Crystalline West Coast-styled IPA utilizes refreshingly clean Rio Grande mineral water to elevate sharp citric fruiting and light hemp-oiled piney hop lacquering. Brisk grapefruit-peeled orange rind bittering and zesty lemon peel crisping contrast less prominent sugar-spiced peach, pineapple and mango tropicalia. Perfectly centrist.
Souped-up ‘imperial’ red ale unearths endless varied flavors. Perfectly stylistic toasted caramel sweetness picks up juicy fruited bouquet over floral-perfumed hop bite, resinous pine char and fusel alcohol astringency. Sappy spruce sinew lacquers candied apple, bosc pear, red cherry, navel orange, ruby red grapefruit, melon and peach illusions. Subtle almond-pecan nuttiness underscores valiant fruit profile. Strangely, well-defined full body features bitterer dark-roasted hop profile than Marble’s India Pale Ale.
Well-rounded golden-hazed moderation loads wildflower honey atop white-peppered citrus tartness and lightly creamed barley-wheat malting. Sourdough yeast picks up flatbread-buttered ‘liquid sopapilla’ pastry sweetness while subtle lemon custard, orange spritzer and banana illusions waver. Corn-sugared maca root niche and floral-perfumed herbal notion caress zesty lemon finish. Serve with orange peel for extra flavor (in similar fashion as hefeweizen).
On tap at Shepherd & Knucklehead, unfussy soft-toned seasonal offers sedate pumpkin spicing to dry gourd acridity above mild caramelized wheat backdrop. Laidback cinnamon-nutmeg-clove expectancy and herbal ginger snip drowned out a tad by spritzy carbolic fizz.
Fair canned pumpkin ale leans on the vegetal side just a tad as roasted pumpkin-seeded tone overrides thin caramel-malted cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice seasoning. Acrid squash and zucchini illusions settle behind spritzy lemony hop soaping.
On tap at Shepherd & Knucklehead, well-integrated medium-full body balances cinnamon-spiced pumpkin pie expectancy with gingerbread cookie doughing and light vanilla accents. Roasted pumpkin, sweet potato pie and yam illusions simmer in the backdrop. Just a tad richer than usual autumnal competition. In the bottle, brown-sugared pumpkin pie sweetness promotes candy-glazed cinnamon spicing as lemony hop spritz prickles delicate nutmeg-allspice seasoning.
On tap at 381 Main, trusty pumpkin pie-spiced medium-full body picks up honeyed Graham Cracker influence overriding dark-roasted chocolate malting and creamy vanilla snip as well as brown-sugared cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger seasoning. Vegetal gourd acridity and mild alcohol burn contrast sweet elements well. In bottle, 2015 version retained pumpkin-pureed nutmeg, ginger, clove and cinnamon spicing while increasing black chocolate roast. Ashen coal bittering deepens above Vienna-malted honeyed wheat spine, adding further dimension. 2019 version may’ve lacked decisiveness as brown-sugared cinnamon spicing and tidy nutmeg-ginger spicing reached mainstream compromise. However, 2020’s bolder endeavor brought tarry molasses bittering to lactose-sugared cocoa nibs, overshadowing pumpkin pie spicing for ginger-rooted sarsaparilla, anise and fern minting above ashen black patent malting.
On tap at 381 Main, updated 2013 version of understated Vienna lager (with marzen tag appended) betters less specific Denver-based original. Autumnal leafy foliage and dewy earthiness pick up mild yellow fruiting. Sharp hop spicing tingles wispy nutty caramel malting to its honeyed wheat spine. Tertiary peach tea, dried orange and baked apple nuances fade to grey alongside wet cardboard snip. 2015 bottled version: evenly spread caramelized Vienna malting, honeyed wheat sweetness and leafy hop foliage regale tightly structured marzen (with brisker carbolic spritz). Subsidiary brown-sugared pumpkin spicing and molasses-sapped gingerbread sugaring upend astringent metallic snag.
Outstandingly complex full-bodied Imperial styling offsets sweet pumpkin pie spicing with vegetal butternut-squash-zucchini-yam ripeness, caraway-seeded rye breading and carrot-caked vanilla icing. Chewy wheat-honeyed caramel malting reinforces brown-sugared cinnamon-nutmeg-allspice-coriander-clove seasoning. Dried-fruiting bruised cherry, sugared fig and stewed prune illusions deepen impact while soured lemony orange snip adds supple backdrop.
On tap at Three Wise Monks, gargantuan pumpkin pie sweetness deepened by generous cinnamon-nutmeg-gingerbread-clove spicing above molasses-sapped caramel malting and chewy vanilla-dipped cookie dough yeast. Sugary rum whir provides subdued alcohol burn to rich pumpkin pureed finish.
On tap at Shepherd & Knucklehead, atypical pumpkin-spiced blonde ale spreads dry orange-oiled lemon rind fruiting and reedy earthen hop rusticity across diffident gourd influence. Subtle coriander, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger spicing insufficient backing up plastique pumpkin pie sedation. In the bottle, meatier pumpkin influence affects brown-sugared spicing, overripe gourd sweetness and refined vegetal whim, bettering tapped version.
On tap at Shepherd & Knucklehead, reticent ruby-browned medium body brings wispy hop bittering to pumpkin puree passivity. Brown-sugared gingerbread, nutmeg and cinnamon spicing meanders above baked bread bottom. Gourd-related squash and zucchini undertones add vegetal notch to semi-sweet rum-buttered pumpkin spicing. Ancillary chestnut, cola nut and pecan notions simmer in the backdrop.
