Dogfish Head Punkin Ale Review

Name: Dogfish Head Punkin Ale
Style: Pumpkin/Yam Beer
ABV: 7%
IBUs: 28

It’s the changing of the guard in terms of the transition between Summer & Fall. With it, the seasonal releases from breweries are also following suit.

Which brings us to today’s beer: Punkin from Dogfish Head. Every year, the label art on this beer changes and this year we have anthropomorphic pumpkins in leather jackets playing drums, guitar and there’s even one singing. How punk indeed.

Appearance – Clear dark orange with a ton of visible carbonation rising from the bottom of the glass. The head is thin and on the soapy side with very sparse lacing along the sides of the glass.

Aroma – Pumpkin Spice & Nutmeg dominate most of the nose with a solid toffee malt foundation. I’m also picking up on some floral hops but they’re not immediately apparent; Not that I would expect them to be.

Taste – Fairly reflective of the nose. You’ve got that pumpkin spice & nutmeg that make up the majority of the flavor, which in turn is backed up by that toffee maltiness. I’m also picking up on a mild but noticeable nutty flavor in the aftertaste that reminds me somewhat of a brown ale, along with a slight floral hoppiness.

Pumpkin beers were one of my favorite beer styles when I first got into craft beer almost 8 years ago and I’ll admit that it’s fallen out of favor with me in place of more traditional styles. Having Punkin reminds me why I fell in love with the pumpkin beer-style in the first place and has got me thinking that I should maybe revisit the style. Overall, I liked this and it’s a great beer to help celebrate the start of fall!