Shipyard (Signature) Smashed Pumpkin - Gimmie Some Spice!

Hearing good things about this from beverage salesman is one thing; tasting is another. This is the one everyone recommended. However, the reviews online are as split as my and David's opinions:

Pumpkin week officially closes, with Smashed Pumpkin on the right (Dogfish Head not seen here)

The pumpkin taste is light and well rounded. I applaud the brewers for not overwhelming the pumpkin flavor, like so many others have done.

This is where people disagree. SPICE. For me, the Three Wise Men visited the brewery and dumped their Magi spices into the batch - cinnamon, vanilla and nutmeg. Apart, they were nothing, but together they delivered a Chuck Norris round house kick to my taste buds. It felt like the 4th of July in my mouth. I love spices and these three together epitome the season of Fall for me (or lack thereof in SoCal).  Maybe I'm nostalgic, but damn, I want more. I want this during Thanksgiving with my turkey and yams, I want it at Christmas as I roast endangered nuts over an open fire. For being excellent and unique, you're one of the BAD BOYS.

Wasatch Pumpkin Seasonal Ale

I don't have much to say tonight, I'm busy ripping up a dress shirt for my Charlie Sheen costume tonight and marking up my "That's What She Said" shirt for my Saturday night costume, so here's the Wasatch Pumpkin ale.

I LOVE Halloween. Creativity and Sluttiness at their best. The Irish boxers are for my Charlie Sheen drunk costume

It is pumpkin-y alright, but not very sweet and not very spicy. It's pretty blah. Who knew good pumpkin beers would be so hard to find? THE ISLAND rating.

Dogfish Head Punkin

Thank you, The Other Room, for saving Pumpkin Ale Week with this tap. You continue to piss excellence with your selection of sweet beer, here's to you:

One week, we will spend every night at The Other Room and drink every beer. But you know who the real winner is? America. Because beer lovers are patriots.

Rich and and full bodied, this a little column A and a little column B; some pumpkin and some ale, neither overpowering but both complimenting the other with high fives as they hit my tongue. Welcome to THE ROCK.

Indian Wells Spicy Pumpkin Ale Gets My Vote

Home from bowling and we crack open the spicy stuff:

Saddam Hussein is taken down! USA 1, Evil Dictator 0.

Finally! Sumpthin tasty. Love the aroma too. The spice and sweetness reminds me of pumpkin pie. Like Yao Ming, this guy is stands above the rest, yet he can only play for half the game. ARMAGEDDON rating. 

This is grades above the other two beers. I attempted to reserve two beers Wednesday morning from BevMo, Shipyard Smashed Pumpkin and Dogfish Head Punkin, but they were sold out. Like Halloween costume shopping, waiting till the week of the 31st isn't a super idea. Who woulda' thunk? Damn. The Shipyard is supposed to be the cat's meow. Well, missed our chance and we're going to soldier on with the best of what's around.

Blue Moon Harvest Moon gives Pumpkin Ale a Bad Name

Remember that pumpkin that turned into a carriage in Cinderella? Well afterwords it turned back into a pumpkin. After sitting on the road for a week, a brewer used that post-ripe pumpkin for some brew. TA-DA! Harvest Moon. 

Nice label, disgusting beer

Here's another example to sum up the taste for you. The flavor profile is this: Carve a pumpkin. Scrape out out its gooey insides and seeds. Separate gooey insides and seeds. Then instead of eating the seeds eat the nasty, slimy, gross gooey insides and throw the seeds away. Blahhhh. Barf. PEARL HARBOR rating.

PUMPKIN ALE WEEK! Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale

We are counting down the days to All Hallow's Eve with a week of Pumpkin Beers! Who will rise above the seasonal pack? America's Original from Buffalo Bill's Brewery? NOPE.

Yeah, not so much.

I guess the tag 'America's Original' must count for something when it comes to marketing, but with taste nothing is original about Mr. Bill's Pumpkin Ale. Being light on both spices and pumpkin doesn't help its mediocrity. If this was part of a blind taste test, there's the off-hand chance I'd confuse this with Sam Adams' crustier, vagabond brother. TRANSFORMERS 2 rating.

Crossing my fingers for better luck with tomorrow's selection. Being from Texas and now living in LA, the season known as "Fall" is a word I hear but never seen. My hope for the week is to discover a brew with the right amount of pumpkin and spice that will transport me to a place where the seasons actually change. Here's to swimming with bow-legged women.