The Beer Garden

SHAWN’S REVIEW

• Taste: 5
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 5
• Buzz Factor: 3

Let me first say that I haven’t had a pumpkin flavored beer in years because the last version I had left a horrible taste in my mouth and an irreplaceable hole in my wallet. Loathe to duplicate that experience I refused all manner of pumpkin brews. Then a good friend told me I should give this one a try. I did, and it was a worthy homecoming! There isn’t a head to speak of but it filled my glass with a beautiful dark orange color. The bouquet is strong in this one and the first sip is really potent! Just as you swallow is when the Great Pumpkin really kicks you in the back of the throat. The aftertaste lingers longer than I would like, but certainly won’t stop me from consuming this again before it goes out of season. If like me, you were disappointed with a previous foray into the pumpkin genre, I whole heartedly suggest you give this brand a try. It is packed with loads of flavor and really has a spicy kick! The label is also tastefully done, with a great choice of a matte paper label, distressed type and subtle use of color.

• Taste: 3
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 5
• Buzz Factor: 4
• Color: 5

This is one spicy beer, like water from a potpourri bong! Call me crazy a pot(pourri)head, but I kinda liked it. The aftertaste was little long-lasting and after about 1/4 the beer, it was a little much for me, but flavored beer is not really my thing which may make me a harsher critic than this beer deserves. I will say, Dogfish Head has some really terrific beers - all worth trying. Their website is cool; I’m a fan of the design work on it, their packaging and merchandise. Hope to make it to their Rehoboth Beach, DE brewery next summer. Like I said, I’m probably rating this lower purely based on personal preference in beer, but I will say for those of us who appreciate beer as a total experience - this is worth a try. Everything about this beer made me remember why I love fall so much; the smell, the taste and especially the color which was a nice warm orange that glowed like a candle in a jack-o-lantern!

UPDATE!!! - It’s been 2 years since my initial review of this beer. I’m much more fond of it and have found myself seeking this beer out for the past couple falls and buying it up like a squirrel hording nuts for the coming winter… Here’s my updated review:

• Taste: 4.5
• After Taste: 4
• Label: 5
• Buzz Factor: 4
• Color: 5

On a side note… Made the trip to Rehoboth Beach this past summer. I found it a mixed bag. [I’ll be fair and say I had fair share of “quantity” drink the previous night while visiting my brother who plays for the Aberdeen Ironbirds in MD - Awesome team, fantastic ballpark, great time] so this for me was kind of like filling up on stale dinner rolls before eating a fillet. If you are planning a visit to the Dogfish Head flagship, don’t expect all your favorite beers to be on tap… now, naturally, I didn’t expect to find the pumpkin beer to be available in July, but I was disappointed in the availability of some quality staples. The service was lousy, the food was your run-of-the-mill bar variety fare (but, who’s going there for the food anyway, right?) and ambiance was lacking. However, I thought the samples were generous and reasonably priced and just would have liked to have more options to try. Oh - one more thing I’d like to correct from my last post… I said all Dogfish Head beers are worth trying… I had spoke before I tried the “Midas Touch”. It might be the nectar of choice for Turkish Kings, but, I’d rather drink Bud Light Lime than have this pass through my lips again. At least I can get a 12 of BLL for the price of 4 MT’s that I’d feel too guilty to even pawn off on unsuspecting guests.

• Taste: 4
• After Taste: 4
• Label: 3
• Buzz Factor: 3

I agree with my fellow Bottle Recappers - this is a great beer to have in the fall months. The warm, spicy flavor is the perfect drink to help you warm up on a cool autumn evening. The only problem is that in order to enjoy the Punkin Ale on those cool autumn evenings, you need to stock up on six packs during the sweltering days of August. We learned that lesson the hard way as most of our local establishments were out of this brew before autumn truly began! If you want to enjoy this seasonal brew next year, you should keep an eye out in the early part of the season or else you might miss out.

As Roberta pointed out, this beer has a wonderful color… although her beautiful and poetic description of the particular shade of orange may be lost on some. You know, those who choose to put strobe lights in their foil-lined jack-o-lanterns, clearly violating predetermined and agreed upon contest rules. Not that I’m bitter or anything…

SHAWN’S REVIEW

• Taste: 3
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 2
• Buzz Factor: 3

Damn good head on this beer, thick, creamy and lingered a long time. This beer has a good balanced flavor, but isn’t going to knock your socks off. I don’t have a lot to say about the beer itself though. The label however is a colossal failure! It didn’t have to be this way! The illustration is a pretty cool oil painting and I like the Weyerbacher logo font. Then someone took the time to ruin it all by slapping a huge UPC code right over the illustration. It’s stark white contrast makes me sad and angry all at the same time. Whoever made this design decision should be forced to drink Odouls for a month!

SHAWN’S REVIEW

• Taste: 5
• After Taste: 5
• Label: 5
• Buzz Factor: 3

I didn’t know what to think about this bottle when I pulled it out of the beer fridge. Originally I was attracted by the sweet, sweet label, but as I emptied it into my glass I was immediately treated to a beautiful, blood, red hue. The head wasn’t super substantial, but well represented. After the first sip, the only thing I could think to shay was “Oh!” In short it has a nice crisp flavor that I will gladly pour into my glass again in the near future! The label is fun and really fits the spirit of this ale. Go find this and buy it right
now!

ROBERTA’S REVIEW

• Taste: 4
• After Taste: 4
• Label: 4
• Buzz Factor: 4

If I drank beer as a kid this is what I would have drank. My mom could have packed this in my old tin strawberry shortcake lunchbox with my pb & j and fruit cup. I swear I can taste apples in this beer; it almost feels like a cider. It’s sweet, but subtle and I enjoyed it from start to finish. I like the label - it’s unique and colorful and I would have given it a 5 if they didn’t use 7 different fonts.

SHAWN’S REVIEW

• Taste: 4
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 4
• Buzz Factor: 3

Pours out a deep mahogany with a small white head that seemed to get up and run away. Tastes good, kind of caramel kind of chocolate with a malty finish. It’s in the 70’s outside, but I am betting this would have really hit the spot if it were about 54 degrees and I had just finished watching someone rake my leaves… I do long for a little more kick in this brew though. Good use of colors and text in the label, though, I am not so sure about the over prints.

JASON’S REVIEW

• Taste: 3
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 5
• Buzz Factor: 3

I don’t know if it’s because I had a preconceived notion of what this ale would taste like, or if the initial aroma was misleading - heck, it could have even been the lingering aroma of Amish Friendship Bread in my kitchen (don’t ask) - but when I opened the bottle, I could have sworn I smelled a wonderfully warm array of autumn flavors and spices. Imagine my disappointment when this sensation did not correspond with the flavor of the beer. Although certainly not dreadful, this beer lacks the impact I was looking for when I found out it was next to be reviewed. I would definitely try it again (maybe after raking Shawn’s leaves), but I just don’t see myself seeking it out at the local establishments any time soon.

Breckenridge labels succeed where I have failed. I’m constantly trying to duplicate the “vintage” looks in many of my design projects, but I come up short every time. The font choice, typesetting and color pallet fit together perfectly. I chuckled quietly to myself (yes, I do that sometimes) when I noticed it actually said “After Rakin’” and “It’s Special” on the label. I wish I could wear a label or button on my coat that said that I was special… without people thinking I meant the “other” kind of special.

ROBERTA’S REVIEW

• Taste: 4
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 5
• Buzz Factor: 3

I have to admit - I wasn’t really thrilled with this beer at first; I originally gave it a 3 on taste, yet I found myself pulling it from the fridge, repeatedly picking it over others until it was gone. Go figure. Maybe it was the label - I have to admit, I’m a packaging junkie. I’d probably drink antifreeze if it was packaged better. Maybe not… but, I do give it to the neighbor’s cats all the time and they seem to enjoy it. Just kidding - put the red paint away, PETA. Really, this beer is pretty good, all packaging aside. It’s a nice dark ale with a warm flavor. It’s frothy until the end, slightly bitter and all-in-all a pretty darn good fall beverage.

Taste: 3
After Taste: 2
Label: 3
Buzz Factor: 2

Notes: With a head of snow and a color like wine, you might first think not to drink this concoction, well, you would be right. It has a spicy citrus flavor that is rather unsubstantial. It isn’t that the beer tastes lie poison, and with enough of them, you would get drunk. The problem is that it is about as exciting as shuffleboard. Unless this is your style, pick something else. The label get’s a bonus point since ‘Moses’ is actually parting Lake Erie to reveal the Cleveland skyline.

• Taste: 4
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 3
• Buzz Factor: 2

Not an overly tasty beer but it was damn refreshing. The after taste was just a touch bitter, but not in a negative way. The color stayed true to it’s name.

The label reminds me of home but was put on quite crooked. Think they need to add a little V8 to the machine’s oil tank.

I don’t have much to say other than I plan to enjoy this beer again, ideally after just mowing the lawn.

• Taste: 3
• After Taste: 3
• Label: 3
• Buzz Factor: 2

I don’t really have anything good or bad to say about this ale, it was pretty good, but not great.

I thought I had already review this ale, but noticed my review was longer on the site, so I went to my local purveyor of adult beverages and picked up another one. When I went to the “Mix a Six” section, I immediately noticed a new label for this ale. The new label is much more striking and bold, which kind of makes me miss the quaintness of the one shown in our picture.

Taste: 3
After Taste: 3
Label: 3
Buzz Factor: 3

Notes: Good cocoa smells and an atractive deep brown color. The head was fairly substantial and hung around just long enough to not overstay it’s welcome. The taste was a little hoppy and had brown sugar undertones. Overall I would say the flavor was average, definitely drinkable, but nothing to write home about.
The label has a clean simple design, using calming colors and a good texture.

Berta’s Review
Taste: 5
After Taste: 5
Label: 3
Buzz Factor: 5

Hands down, my favorite beer period. The flavor is magic, the color, luxurious and the buzz, divine. Definitely on the hoppy side, but oh so good! This is a beer you want to take your time with (for all of you out there who usually just drink your beer through a hole you just poked in the side of the can with your dorm key). I can’t say anything else, except I hope this is available in your area so you can experience the greatness of this beer. The label is another story… not so good. The Dogfish label is nice, but I don’t care for the texture or muddy colors. It’s cool though, I put this beer in a Miller Light zip up cozie to disguise it anyway… this way nobody gets any bright ideas to steal a sip of my Indian Brown Ale!! That’s right… always thinking.

Taste: 4
After Taste: 3
Label: 3
Buzz Factor: 2
Aroma: 3

Notes: Pours out of the bottle with a small thin head and a nice golden color having moderate carbonation. The taste is light, crisp and a bit hoppy with a smooth finish. The label is clean and makes good use of outlines on the head line. the illustration fits the brand well, which is good, but it just doesn’t make me sing. If that is what the inside of the brewery looks though, those brew masters have a good view that would be a nice vantage point for a thunder storm. This was a good beer for the twilight hours of a late spring day.

Taste: 3
After Taste: 2
Label: 3
Buzz Factor: 4

Notes: On first sniff I get the strong aroma of wine. The first sip passes by without much of a thought, but the aftertaste has a wicked bouquet that lingers in the back of the throat until well after exhaling. Really, for the strenth of this brew, the taste is a little milder than I expected.
The label is rated a 3 because of the humor of the scared donkey. Otherwise image is lacking a sharpness that the taste deserves.

Taste: 4
After Taste: 3
Label: 2
Buzz Factor: 2

Notes: This beer has a strong flavor with a satisfying bite. Not overly complex, but wraps the tounge in carmely goodness. This beer, with it’s wimpy ABV, would be perfect for a long night n the pub playing pool.
The label doesn’t match the beer’s prowess however. The colors are garish and the repeating sawtooth line everywhere (including the title font) is pure overkill!

Notes: This is a good ale. Not the best, but it’s good.