Belgian specialty malts make The Reverend the perfect beer for homebrewers who love malty beers.

What happens when a monstrous pumpkin ale is aged in fine fresh rum barrels? Rumpkin!

Avery’s winter strong ale has a gorgeous mahogany hue, a hint of hazelnuts, and a finish reminiscent of mocha and toffee.

We interviewed Adam Avery to gather his thoughts on how to store beer, what to expect from aged bottles, and the best ways to enjoy the experience of cellaring craft beer.

**Aroma:** “A fruity nose with hints of black currant and boysenberries. Some herbal, anise-like presence. Dank, catty hops character dominates.” **Flavor:** “A definitive malt presence that is well-balanced by an assertive, but not overpowering bitterness. Some corn-chip flavors detract. The hoppiness is much like the aroma with lots of berries and herbs. Light but discernable off flavors of acetaldehyde and DMS and a light metallic finish. The expected hops flavors are there—pine, lemon, grapefruit—but a difficult tannic and astringent note competes with the more pleasant flavors.” **Overall:** “The malt/hop balance is right, but the hops flavors lack complexity and feel dated (not wholly enjoyable) while the corn flavor detracts from the overall experience. Finishes slightly astringent and bitter in a way that hints of issues with fermentation and malt.”

Be it smoked, roasty, imperial, or traditional, there are plenty of great porters to be found on tap and on shelves. We asked five brewers and industry pros from around the country recommend their favorites.

Trick-or-treating is about to take on a whole new meaning for grown-ups. We present the updated Craft Beer & Brewing candy and craft-beer pairings for Halloween.

**Aroma:** “Nice citrus fruit character with some spicy notes to add complexity. Light wheat sweetness accompanied by hints of floral coriander and lemon zest.” **Flavor:** “Nice sweet lemon citrus, earthy and pepper notes come through with medium malt sweetness. A very faint carbonic twang, but not terribly complex. Spices are subdued. Very nice balance of body and a crisp, refreshing finish.” **Overall:** “Refreshing and crisp wit. Nice citrus sweetness is profiled in a beer that is solid, but without too much to differentiate it from the crowd. A great example of the style.”

Avery Brewing Barrel Herder Andy Parker walks you through the ins and outs of receiving, preparing, filling, and emptying barrels with practical tips and equipment recommendations throughout.

**Aroma:** “Very floral (jasmine, honeysuckle) with a bit of caramel in the background. Big chocolate, touch of coffee, moderate vanilla, light roast, touch of toast, light umami. Very estery, banana, alcohol, dark fruit, and alcohol akin to a Belgian quadrupel. This is abbey manager Father Mathis Vandeputte’s best attempt at an imperial stout on his yearly sabbatical.” **Flavor:** “Moderate chocolate, moderate toast, moderate base malt, moderate earthy hops bitterness, full body, good carbonation. Aftertaste: dark chocolate, light hops, touch of sweetness, light toasty, moderate starchy malt, touch of ethanol. Some sour notes. Sweetness comes off as candy—Hershey’s syrup in sweetened coffee.” **Overall:** “Full-bodied imperial stout with enough hops bitterness to not be cloying. It does have a slightly under-attenuated malt characteristic. This is not a subtle beer; the alcohol will bowl you over and the roast/mocha thing is heavy. But for all that, it's a nice thing to curl up with and call it a night. This will satisfy most people’s expectations even though it lacks some complexity.”

**Aroma:** “Lots of fruit at the front, with hints of red apple, cherry, and raisin. Bready, toasty malt sweetness is just a bit behind the fruit, with subtle caramel notes and some black pepper phenols.” **Flavor:** “Rich blend of bready malt and the fruity sweetness of cherry, apple, and pear. Alcohol and carbonation are well integrated with a creamy mouthfeel throughout. Some earthy spice adds to this beer. Solid body to balance out the high carbonation and a slight alcohol warming toward the end of the sip. Well-balanced, clean finish, leaning a bit on the sweeter side, but enough bitterness to keep it in check.” **Overall:** “A great example with the high points being a very nice fruity ester character balanced by enough malt sweetness and bitterness to keep it from being over the top. Well blended, rich, complex, and easy drinking.”

When is the right time to pull your beer from a barrel? That's a complicated question but Andy Parker of Avery Brewing has some sensory suggestions in this tip of the week.

“Faint bread dough mingled with hints of hop-like lime, light spicy fringe. Lime comes out in the fairly dry flavor—quasi-lime concentrate and lime leaf, watered-down limeade. Aftertaste suggests a bit of brackish character.”

**Aroma:** “Sweet rosy floral notes and pepper, with a bit of tartness coming through as lemon zest, but pretty subtle overall. A hint of sulfur and minerality as well, but it’s not necessarily off-putting, just a bit distracting. Slightly dank and musty with moderate bready malt, and a hint of evergreen hops.” **Flavor:** “A sharper tartness up front, with just a hint of funk, that dissipates quickly and gives way to a bit of lemon and floral notes. Medium-light body with a touch of malt sweetness. Some of the hops bitterness includes grapefruit and evergreen—the grapefruit goes well with the spicy notes of pepper and nutmeg. The saltiness is there but fits comfortably into the mix. The finish is dry, with a slightly bitter finish.” **Overall:** “Fairly refreshing, but the bitterness could be toned down just a hair to reduce the lingering grapefruit aftertaste. There’s not much aroma but slight astringency. Dry and refreshing.”

Oak and chocolate aroma; rich, underlying malt and roast. Sweetness and bitterness moderate; fairly strong oak, chocolate, coffee. Crisp, dry, roast finish—a bit stark. Some oak astringency. Malt floor kind of drops away; doesn’t quite stand up to the oak.

How do you keep your barrels properly hydrated before you age beer, or between batches? Avery Brewing's Andy Parker offers some practical advice in this Craft Beer and Brewing Magazine Tip of the Week.

**Aroma:** “Citrus, orange, grapefruit but with a supporting caramel sweetness and notes of honey. Slight alcohol sweetness.” **Flavor:** “Sweeter and hotter, liked the citrus, liked the lemon. Nice sweetness from honey followed by citrus and lemon zest notes. Could have used a little less malt sweetness. Clean finish with good bitterness.” **Overall:** “Doesn’t hide its alcohol but uses it to support the big citrus hops profile. Balanced with some malt sweetness. Very tasty. Surprisingly smooth for the level of alcohol in it.”

Curious about aging sour beers in barrels? Andy Parker is here to answer some questions.

**Aroma:** “Aroma is overall muted, but moderate caramel, mild coffee, light chocolate, moderate toast, moderate plum and cherry, light vanilla. Reminds me of a Belgium Strong or perhaps an Eisbock. As it warms, more spiciness comes out.” **Flavor:** “Moderate sweetness, roast, plum, cherry, coconut, earthy. Touch of caramel and vanilla, big dark chocolate and mouthfeel. Big sweet fruity notes up front, almost sangria-like. Light chocolate and coffee notes in the background mixed with a moderate alcohol warming. A nicely balanced beer that reveals more as you sip.” **Overall:** “Dark chocolate, vanilla, and hints of roast coffee dominate the front of this beer, and coffee, dark cherry, and dark chocolate linger at the end. Pleasant and easy drinking. Take a sip, and you’re happy to take the next sip.”

**Aroma:** “Huge caramel and toffee notes up front with a decent warming from the alcohol and some rum notes. Spices are a bit subtle, with notes of cinnamon and ginger. Smells like molasses and rum.” **Flavor:** “Intensely sweet caramel and vanilla notes, like candi sugar. Pumpkin flavors are pleasant and come through as candied pumpkin. Spices mostly show up as cinnamon (also allspice, clove, and nutmeg), but work well with the intense sweetness and rum-barrel character. Very sweet, from flavor to finish. Lots of warmth and heat from the alcohol.” **Overall:** “A slow sipper on the porch after Thanksgiving dinner. Big and bold, very rich and sweet, with great spice and sweet complexity, this is a beer that would be very well suited for aging, but it still drinks amazingly fresh. Incredible barrel character, malt complexity, and spices all mingle for a truly unique pumpkin beer experience.”