This is a strange month in the world of beer. It started out with Oktoberfest, that Bavarian bacchanalia still going strong after more than two centuries, and ends on Halloween night with pumpkin spiced ales seemingly everywhere.
We have already had the first overnight frost of the year, reminding us that the dark and dreary days of winter will soon be upon us in full force, so the light summer lagers consumed on sunny patios will be put away for another year, replaced by darker brews to match the dark days of winter.
The changing seasons are my cue to look for Märzenbier at my local bottle shop or brewery taproom. Readers of Germanic descent will recognize Märzenbier as the closest thing to an official beer style of Oktoberfest, so is very popular for one-off seasonals this time of year.
My favourite is the Mountaineer Festbier from Canmore’s own Grizzly Paw Brewing, a seasonal brew they have been releasing every fall for the past decade or so. As you might have guessed from the name, the Festbier is an Oktoberfest styled brew made in the Märzenbier style, with a rich amber maltiness that helps me ease out the light summer lagers into the darker brews for the winter months.
Look for it at your local bottle shop while you still can, as this seasonal brew is only available for a short time!
When the last pair of beer-soaked lederhosen have been put away for another year, I turn to the other beer style made famous in October, namely the pumpkin ales.
Pumpkin beers were once derided as a marketing gimmick, back in the days when a regular pale and tasteless macrobrew would squirt in some artificial pumpkin flavouring and food colour, then sell truckloads of novelty beer to drunken college students.
Luckily, the popularity of Pumpkin Spiced Latte at coffee shops this time of year convinced some of the more adventurous brewers that the pumpkin craze could transfer to the beer industry, resulting in many new and exciting Pumpkin Ales for the dual pumpkin-themed holidays of Thanksgiving and Halloween.
The first few forays into brewing beer with pumpkin met with limited success, but the crafty brewmasters and experimental home brewers have continued to hone their skills, and the pumpkin beers available today are both delicious and nutritious!
The original Pumpkin Ales date back to the 1620's, when those thirsty pilgrims that piloted the Mayflower ran out of beer they had brought from England, it was not long before they figured out the fermented pulp of a pumpkin would make a passable hooch.
In those days, malting barley was unavailable, so pumpkin innards were used as a replacement. By the 1700s, barley had been imported from Europe, and was growing well in the Americas, so Pumpkin Ales largely died out.
Today, what we refer to as Pumpkin Ale is a barley-based beer that has a bit of pumpkin added for flavour, rather than a beer made by fermenting the pumpkin itself.
Here in Canada, we have a rich assortment of domestic breweries producing Pumpkin Ales, all of which seem to come out right around this time every year.
Looking to our neighbours to the north, Edmonton's Alley Kat Brewing has been releasing their seasonal Pumpkin Pie Spiced Ale every fall since 2007.
Pouring a dark copper, with strong aromas of cinnamon and nutmeg, this beer tastes more of the spices in a pumpkin pie than it actually tastes of pumpkin. With very mild hop bitterness, this beer might be a little too sweet for more than one bottle, but it works divinely after a turkey dinner!
Close to home, Born Brewing in Calgary’s so-called Barley Belt has a seasonal brew called the Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale, widely available in tallboy cans at well stocked bottle shops. And for the connoisseurs, there is a very limited taproom-only release called Barrel Aged Pumpkin Ale, weighing in at a hefty 8% ABV, partially due to being aged in oak rum barrels for 8 months before release. The canned variety has notes of freshly baked pumpkin pie, while the taproom-only barrel aged variety boasts aromas of cinnamon and vanilla thanks to barrel aging.
Looking to the east, we can find one of the oldest pumpkin brews in Canada, from Montreal’s own McAuslan Brewing. First brewed in 1999, this seasonal release is more delicate than its western counterparts, and always popular both in its home province and here in Alberta.
So, whether you plan to spend Halloween waiting patiently in the pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin to appear, or want to add something seasonal to the drinks menu at your Thanksgiving dinner, you can't go wrong with a Pumpkin Ale. Stop by your well-stocked booze merchant to pick up a six-pack today!