Saturday Fun

We hit up a pumpkin farm in the morning and then visited a favorite town in these parts for their annual Oktoberfest.  And we even managed to find some Graverobber Unholy Rye Whiskey from Art in the Age.

Below are some photos we took.

Weekend Plans: Nitro Sweet Potato Ale

Boy, is this stuff good.  Made in Bucks County, PA and distributed locally by the Vault Brewing Company.  Was expecting the usual over-the-top sweet spice taste of autumn ales and beers and got something that was really reserved and extremely smooth and creamy.  The flavors of molasses, vanilla, and spices are definitely there, but not in a sweet way.  No clue how that is achieved.  Usually, holiday ales are great as a solo treat, or as a dessert beverage, but we had these during a dinner at the Vault Brewing Company restaurant and it paired perfectly with some pastrami sliders and wood-fired duck & apple pizza.

J. Wakefield Brewing: Sleepy Hollow

The seasonal offerings of autumnal beer are always tricky.  I've mentioned in the past that my hopes are always high at the start of each Autumn...  high hopes that there will be a pumpkin ale that soars above the rest.  Something that isn't too sweet but has a distinct pumpkin flavor.  A beer that feels like pumpkin season.  I feel like I'm still on that quest - everything is just too sweet for me.  Thankfully there are folks like Pumpkin Ale Reviews' Sam Heimer and Fatherkrespi documenting this stuff each season.  

We stopped into a beer distributer over the weekend and got some nice stuff for Memorial Day.  While we were looking around, we saw something called Sleepy Hollow from the J. Wakefield Brewing Company.  The design was fun and the description was intriguing:  sour ale with blueberry, lemon, orange, lactose, and vanilla.  The color of the ale was berry-like.  The taste was a little shocking.  I love sour ales, and this dark drink was extremely sour.  Full of sweet and tart notes.  Felt very Halloween-night-ish (if that can be a descriptor).  Definitely something you share with someone, as it can be like eating too many Smarties (I mean that in a good way).

I think I dug the uniqueness of this one.  It's not pumpkin ale.  It's not the usual flavors of Autumn.  It's sour and sweet and strange.  So much so that I think I would call this one Witch's Brew and not Sleepy Hollow.

Antonio Bay Weekend

Remember those windy daytime shots from John Carpenter's THE FOG?  

The vastness of the sea was captured really well in that film.  And the windy beach and lighthouse scenes captured a sense of isolation that helped set up the slow build to the coming night mists of the fog (and Blake and his men).  

We took a trip to the southernmost tip of New Jersey this weekend.  Cape May isn't like the other shore points in Jersey.  Quaint Victorian homes and only a modest stretch of hotels make the town feel cozy and inviting.  The weather was sunny, chilly, and very windy.  We joked about capturing Cape May's darker side for an Antonio Bay photo dump, but in the photos below, we ended up catching a really nice weekend at the Jersey shore. 

Waiting For Friday

I'm ready.

Spring House Brewing

Barrel Aged Baltic Porter conditioned on Dutch Cocoa, Single Origin Peruvian Coffee, Carob, Chicory Root, Madagascar Vanilla Bean & Cassia Bark. 50% Basil Hayden Bourbon Barrels, 25% Sagamore Spirit Rye Whiskey, 25% Basil Hayden Double Oak Toasted Bourbon Barrels.

And great design by the one and only Mike Egan.

Click below...

Annual Pumpkin Ale Reviews

Sure, there's no disputing tastes, but this IG account will come in handy when the pumpkin ales start hitting the stores.  Co-run by a favorite Halloween artist too.

Click below...

Thanks, Wren!  

Beer And Candles

Thought this was a great photo and a fun excuse to push my favorite candle shop and the official scent of the Pumpkinrot Haunt...  SoyNSuds' Anise & Clove candle.

Click here for the SoyNSuds shop.

Free

Hopsy the Beer Drinking Clown's lesser-known brother...
I don't know his name, but he seems rather charitable.

More images here.

PBR

Image by Grayson Alexander.

Jack-O Traveler

After years of searching for a pumpkin ale/beer that appeals to me, I think I just found it, in the form of a shandy.  The Jack-O Traveler from the Traveler Beer Company.  It's light and spicy, and not too sweet, with a lot of lemony zest going on.  Has a really nice and nutty finish.

I highly recommend it for those who might always have high hopes for the seasonal pumpkin beers, but who are always a little disappointed with the offerings.

Jack-O Traveler is an alluring wheat beer illuminated by the tastes of fall. He strikes a perfect balance between bright refreshment and seasonal spice. Jack is brewed with fresh pumpkin, for a delicious dark-hued, Shandy-inspired beer.

Space Mead

I'm all for food/beverage tributes to literary/film references.  Like I'd love to find a bottle of Romulan Ale in the state store.  Blade Runner noodles are at the top of the list...the Dune spice chew....
Yoda's stew...

Honey Ale is brewed with Summit and El Dolorado hops, honey, and five different types of malt, including honey malt. Narragansett Beer President Mark Hellendrung explains, “This one is really a prologue about H.P. Lovecraft himself. We picked one of his stories, ‘The Festival,’ where there’s a space mead consumed by a winged creature. What’s great about craft beer is that it’s really breaking the style boundaries and guidelines. So, this is Sean’s [Larkin, Brewmaster] interpretation of a modern day honey mead through the medium of a beer.”

Click below for more info:

A Warrior's Drink

The flavor draws heavily from the blending of the rye malt and traditional clove character, creating a very rich and unique flavor, a bold beer suited for the harsh Klingon lifestyle.

The Root Of All Evil

Two great Halloween drink recipes from the cool folks who make Root and Snap.

Click below:

 

Booze Update

We bought a bunch of seasonal beers/ciders, as well as the Samuel Adams Harvest Collection.
Loved the Sam Harvest Pumpkin.  Wasn't over-the-top with the sweet, and I'm not sure I would have guessed it was "Pumpkin" at all.  But it was really nice, and it would have gone well with food.

Tried Ichabod Pumpkin Ale (purchased due to the name and label).  It was ok.  Was light on flavor though.

Had a Shipyard Pumpkinhead Ale.  Definitely the sweetest so far.  I recall seeing a video from the Shipyard company where a clump of vanilla ice cream was dropped into a glass of this ale...and the glass was coated with caramel.  And I totally get it now.  Definitely more of a stand-alone drink.  A dessert ale, if there is such a thing.

Also tried the pumpkin cider below...

How could I not?  Look at that Jacko Apple.   I hate being negative since beer tastes are so subjective, but I had a hard time with this one.  The flavor was strange and I couldn't place it at all - didn't taste like pumpkin or apple.

Looking forward to trying the other Sam Adams, and the few strange pumpkin brews we picked up at Wegmans.  I'll be sure to post my faves.

Sam Adams Harvest Collection

Thanks, Autumnleaf.  I wasn't aware that they put a sampler like this out each year.  I'm a big fan of Samuel Adams.

Seasonal Beer

The first bottles of the Autumn beers I'll be tasting this season.  Pleased with both of them, though I can't say either one is loaded with any flavors that scream "IT'S AUTUMN!"

The quest continues.

Leinenkugel makes a great summer shandy.

Tis The Season

To hunt for a Pumpkin Ale that I love.
Seasonal ale is a strange beast.  So many misses and so few hits.  Looking forward to finding something that captures the season.

Recommendations welcome...

Image by luvehorror.