Shipyard Brewing Pumpkinhead Ale
What the brewers say
“A crisp and refreshing wheat ale with delightful aromatics and subtle spiced flavor.”
What our panel thought
Aroma: “Nice malty nose, but the spices offer more of a phenolic complexity than pumpkin character. The aroma doesn’t promise much.”
Flavor: “Pumpkin flavor comes through as baked pumpkin with a touch of brown sugar, followed by cinnamon and allspice that add complexity rather than a big pie experience. Nice big mouthful of malt, with toast and caramel standing tall. Crisp with almost a carbonic bite and balanced with a subtle hint of sweetness in the finish.”
Overall: “Spices are used well to support the pumpkin flavor. Very tasty but comparatively simple in its use of spice and malt complexity.”