REVIEW 57: STEGMAIER PUMPKIN ALE

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN:  USA

BREWERY:  The Lion Brewery, Inc.

STYLE:  Pumpkin Ale

ABV:  5.5%

PURCHASE:  60-oz. pitcher, $10.00

SERVING:  Said pitcher, poured into chilled pint glass. First pour from the pitcher yielded your standard head of an inch and change. Almost doubled that with a slower pour. Fairly quick dissipation.

APPEARANCE:  Transparent caramel tone, almost a pumpkin pie color. Off-white head bordering upon light beige. Zero lacing, except for a little of it in the pitcher. Not much bubbling action either.

BOUQUET:  As you would expect, pumpkin spice is prominent; specifically, ginger and nutmeg stand out. Perhaps a touch of cinnamon. On the whole, the aroma is also a bit bready. You won't detect much in the way of traditional beer notes here (e.g. hops).

PALATE:  Average body and mild carbonation. Entry is sweet but subtle. That said, this is a somewhat empty-tasting beer until the finish, save for an undercurrent of nutmeg. As with many beers, the aftertaste is best part, though that's not saying much in this case. It's a little gingery and gives rise to some--some--actual pumpkin flavor. 

MUSINGS AND METAPHORS:  Bleh.

On the bottle, or in my case the tap handle, label, credit goes to the Stegmaier Brewing Company from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. The city of Wilkes-Barre actually owns the Stegmaier building, and it is used for office space for federal employees. So is there a Stegmaier Brewing Company? Well, there was, dating back to 1857. It was once the largest Pennsylvania brewery outside Philadelphia or Pittsburgh. In 1974, the company was sold to The Lion Brewery, makers of such esteemed pedestrian offerings as Lionshead and Lionshead Light.

Perhaps that explains why this attempt at a pumpkin ale comes off as so half-assed. 




GRADE:  D+

The old Stegmaier building in downtown Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.