Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin Ale & Uinta Oak Jacked Imperial Pumpkin Ale

1. Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin Ale

As a big fan of pumpkin ales, I heard about Elysian's pumpkin ales but it wasn't until this year that I got my hands on any of the beer from this Seattle brewery. At this year's Great American Beer Festival, this brewery's table was probably my favorite, mostly due to their well-rounded selection of great beer. Those who know me well know that I use Southern Tier's Pumking as a yardstick for any new pumpkin beers that I try. However, Pumking is an imperial ale, so it's difficult to compare it to a lighter ale such as this one. Ultimately though, it's about the flavor and selection of spices when it comes to pumpkin ales. This beer balances flavor well, maintaining a light beer that you can drink all night. The good thing about this beer is that it really focuses on pumpkin flavor rather than nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla, etc. That's probably due to the fact that 150 lbs of pumpkin are used in each batch.

Overall Rating: B+

2. Uinta Oak Jacked Imperial Pumpkin Ale

It seems like Uinta has just blown up in the past few months and I ain't hatin' it. In a way, I'm glad that I don't religiously research what every brewery releases because there's nothing like browsing a store's selection and coming across something that you immediately need to buy. This beer was one of those. This is the first bottled pumpkin beer I've seen that has been aged in oak barrels. How is that? Pumpkin beers have blown up so experimenting with them is natural. This one definitely works. I just wish I could taste the beer before the oak aging for a complete perspective. Surprisingly, there's not a whole lot in the aroma. The sweet vanilla flavor from the oak combines very well with the spicy pumpkin ale, resulting in a nicely balanced beer. Just don't forget that imperial is in the name - this beer is 10.3% ABV. This beer puts up a fight against Pumking. As long as they keep making it, I'll definitely keep buying it.

Overall Rating: A-

Rogue Morimoto Hazelnut Ale & Schlafly Reserve Imperial Stout

1. Rogue Morimoto Hazelnut Ale

This is an example of trickery. Trickery that I fell for easily. As a big fan of Rogue Ales, my eyes locked into this beer at a bottle shop, thinking it was a variation of their signature hazelnut ale, since they have a few collaboration ales with Chef Morimoto. Nope. Same beer. May as well have had a vortex neck. That said, I'm not complaining because Rogue's Hazelnut Ale is probably my favorite of their beers and is one that I could drink anytime. Great hazelnut aroma. Delicious combination of chocolate, caramel and of course hazelnut in the taste. Well balanced and great mouthfeel. Not too over the top at 6.2% so drinking a bomber (or two) yourself isn't a problem. In all honesty, if I had known it was the same beer in different packaging, I probably still would have bought it. You win this round, Rogue.

Overall Rating: A- (The minus is for the trickery)

2. Schlafly Reserve Imperial Stout

Schlafly is a brewery that's established itself on my beer radar, and considering my smarts evidenced above, that's not hard to do. But the few beers that I've had from this St. Louis brewery have been pretty damn good. This one tops the list. First of all, combine bourbon, barrel and stout in the name of the beer and it's hard to go wrong. Combining bourbon and beer is a magical thing. This beer is made with a lot of malts and hops to blend well with the sweetness of the alcohol and bourbon influence. I would love to deconstruct this beer to taste it before going in the bourbon barrels and then having it on cask before being carbonated, but the end product is fantastic. The bourbon flavor complements the rich, dark imperial stout, resulting in a smooth, creamy beer with a nice, warm finish. Nothing to mess around with at 10.5% ABV but I'd definitely buy it again.

Overall Rating: A+