Wachusett Imperial Pumpkin

Another post! Within 7 days of the first! Does my productiveness know no bounds?!

Well apparently it does, because I believe I'm getting sick, I'm tired, and I'm still going to make myself go for a run today. Why? I dont know why. But I'm going to be productive and post this damn it.

However, I am going to the BBC (British Beer Company) later on tonight after a little visit to Witch's Woods. So after getting shared shitless (possibly) I will be indulging in some delicious beers (extremely likely). Before that happy moment, I want to share another beer with you.

I’ve decided to continue this tradition of reviewing pumpkin beers, if you can call reviewing one pumpkin beer a tradition. If you can’t call it that, well then I’m going to make it a tradition. So, we’ll continue onward to the Wachusett Imperial Pumpkin Ale.

This rather subtle beer is brewed with two row barley, caramel malt, and pureed pumpkin. There’s also vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and Belgian candied sugar & spices. Overall, sounds like a great combination of flavors—everything that one would want in an autumn brew.

Color: A dark, almost reddish orange with a thin white head. It’s clear and very bubbly. It’s a bit darker than the pumking, with more reddish hues. A nice lookin’ beer. Say, do you come here often?

Aroma: Pumpkin! However, it is subtler than the pumking was. You can still tell that it’s a pumpkin ale, but the smell is a little more complex. There’s also a hint of cinnamon, and the other flavors (nutmeg, ginger) slowly rise out of the pumpkin aroma.


First Sip: Pumpkin, ginger, and cinnamon. In that order. There’s a little bit of bitterness and sharpness, most likely from the ginger. The taste is waaay (with three A’s) more sublte than the pumking, but the flavors are still there. They’re not hiding, but teasing, slowly leading the drinker on to all the delightful flavors that this brew has to offer.

Mouthfeel: Not so smooth, more sharp. The cinnamon and ginger are prevalent, with the spices playing out over the tongue. The pumpkin is still there—in fact it’s behind the other flavors, enhancing and balancing them. Also a bit more caramel coming through now, but I mostly taste the spices.

Aftertaste: The spices are left on the tongue, but they slowly fade away, leaving little to no taste.

If I had to choose one word to describe this beer, it would be subtle. The second would be intricate. A third would be yum. So if you’re a fan of subtle, complex beers where the flavors come to light gradually instead of announcing their presence loudly, then you will probably like this beer.

This beer is so good, it smiles at you, saying "I know how tasty I am. Drink me!"