2013 Pumpkin Beer Tasting: Elysian Wins Again!

You might remember that Doug and I hosted a little pumpkin beer tasting night last year. It was so successful that we decided to do it again this year... but turn it up a notch.

Last year we had 10 pumpkin beers, 6 people, and only candy corn to snack on.

This year we had 18 beers, 1 pumpkin cider, 10 people, and a whole spread of fall deliciousness. Much better.

Just like last year, we had everyone rank the beers on a scale of 1 to 5 and just like last year, Elysian Brewing from Seattle was the clear leader, with two of their beers coming in 1st and 2nd place. Here's a breakdown of the top five, with the other 14 listed after.

#1 Elysian The Great Pumpkin Ale (Seattle)- Ranked #2 last year

Elysian makes this ale by putting roasted pumpkin seeds in the mash and adding pumpkin to the mash, kettle, and fermenter. Think "pumpkin pie" and that's the flavor of this strong beer.








#2 Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin Ale (Seattle)- Not tasted last year

Brewed with seven and a half pounds of pumpkin per barrel and conditioned with ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice, this pumpkin ale differs from The Great Pumpkin thanks to the addition of ginger and its significantly lower ABV (5.9% vs. 8.1%).






#3 Two Beers Pumpkin Spice Ale (Seattle)- Not tasted last year

Similiar to the Night Owl, Two Beer's Pumpkin Spice Ale is brewed with cloves, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, and pumpkin and has the perfect balance of maltiness.





 #4 First Edition Good Lawdy Miss Gourdy (Portland)- Not tasted last year

Okay, so this is Doug's pumpkin beer that he brewed specially for our event. We both agree that there was not a lot of pumpkin flavor in this and that its high ranking might be because our friends are good at being friends... but it was a tasty fall beer nonetheless, so it's making the list!







#5 Shipyard Pumpkinhead (Maine)- #3 Last year

Pumpkin, nutmeg and cinnamon flavors abound in this very drinkable wheat ale.





#6 Elysian He Said Porter (Seattle)- brewed with 21st Amendment

#7 One Man Show Boooooo Careful (Portland)- Nathan's home brew

#8 Harpoon UFO Pumpkin (Boston)

#9 Epic Imperial Pumpkin Porter (Salt Lake City)- #6 last year

#10 Alaskan Pumpkin Porter (Juneau)

#11 Two Kilts Pumpkin Ale (Portland)

#12 Laurelwood Pumpkin Ale (Portland)- #7 last year

#13 Silver Moon Twisted Gourd Pumpkin Ale (Bend)

#14 21st Amendment He Said Belgian-Style Tripel (San Francisco)- brewed with Elysian

#15 Captured by Porches Undead Pumpkin (Portland)

#16 Tieton Cider Works Smoked Pumpkin Cider (Portland)

#17 Oakshire Big Black Jack Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter (Eugene)- #9 last year

#18 Midnight Sun Brewing TREAT Imperial Pumpkin Porter (Anchorage)

#19 Unita Punk'n Harvest Ale (Salt Lake City)- #8 last year

Doug and I also got a very special surprise this year. Sarah moved back to the Bay Area a few months ago, so when she texted me this photo, I was all "wish you were here to share your beer insights!"

And she was all "look closer at the picture I just sent you." I'm apparently an idiot because I stared at this photo for quite a few seconds before I realized Sarah was standing on our front doorstep! Yep, best surprise ever!

Do you have a favorite pumpkin beer?

Boston: Drink and Hunt- 80's Ski Hunt

Anna and Erica's sister Courtney was in town last weekend so in her honor we rallied the girls and signed up for Drink and Hunt's 80's Ski Hunt.

Do you know about Drink and Hunt? They're a relatively new company (I think they started up last summer) that sponsors themed scavenger hunts/pub crawls around Boston, New York and San Francisco.

We didn't really know what we were getting ourselves into when we signed up (somehow we all missed the FAQ page), but we ended up having an amazing time.

The hunt works like this:
Each team has a special webpage that you access via smartphone. The page gives you a one sentence clue about what bar you should go to next. Can't figure it out? Ask for a hint and you'll get a second clue as well as 5 minutes added to your total time. Still stumped? Ask for another hint and you'll get the address... and another 5 minute penalty.

Once you get to the correct bar, you have to show that you've made it by answering a question like "What is the first name of the politician in the black & white photo by the bar?" or "What is the first word of the third line on the plaque by the window?" After you answer the question, you have 5 minutes until you're given the next clue.

We used those 5 minutes for sharing pitchers and doing tequila shots but you can also pass the time by answering 10 trivia questions on your webpage to earn extra points. Our questions were appropriately 80's themed.

Teams can also get more points by posting on Drink and Hunt's Facebook page and tweeting photos of the team with people like a bartender and someone in colonial dress.

Wanna know more?

Here's a recap of our Drink and Hunt experience:

We started our day at Erica's for an intense 80's hair and makeup session.

Check out our team shirts (and my out-of-control side pony): 

Awesome, right? Thanks, Courtney!

We met up with our fellow hunters at The 21st Amendment, where there was time for a pitcher and some appetizers before we were read the rules and sent out onto the streets. 

Our first stop was Jose McIntyre's and then we were off to Mr. Dooley's.

Of course we enjoyed the drinking, but getting to the bars was part of the fun too...

The "bob n' weave"

 Parkour!

Heel click?

Right after Mr. Dooley's though, we began to encounter some setbacks.

Katie W's super cute flats starting acting super evil and we were forced to make an unscheduled pit stop at CVS for bandaids and socks.

Our hunt was further delayed when we/just me decided it was necessary for Courtney to play Wham!'s "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" on her phone while I danced in the aisles.

My bad guys.

More trouble came when, even though we had used all 3 clues and had multiple phone convos with Drink and Hunt, we still couldn't find the damn Kinsale. Seriously though, addresses are hard sometimes. Especially when you've been pounding beer and shots of tequila all afternoon...

We finally found it, but by that point, we were pretty much done. The next bar we were supposed to go to was Sail Loft (which we had only figured out thanks to a couple we met at the bar) and walking all the way from Government Center to the North End seemed impossible.

So we called back Drink and Hunt and demanded they tell us where the final bar was. We were disqualified, but at least we could finally sit down and enjoy our beer without the threat of the clock looming over us!

 Team Aquanet at The Grand Canal, our final destination.

So yeah, by the end the whole scavenger hunt schtick did get a little old, but running around Boston, throwing back a few pints with friends, solving clues and being introduced to new bars we might have otherwise missed definitely made the hunt worth it.

In fact, we had so much fun we're considering joining Drink and Hunt's upcoming St. Patty's Day hunt. See you there?