This weekend marked the eleventh annual iteration of a festival centered around what some might consider a very narrow niche in the brewing world: Elysian’s Great Pumpkin Beer Festival (GPBF), celebrating pumpkin-based brews from around the Northwest, across North America and as far afield as Belgium.
A relatively narrow niche though it may be, pumpkin beer’s popularity has nevertheless surged over the last decade, with Elysian carrying the banner. GPBF’s popularity coupled with consumers’ ever more ardent autumnal affinity for anything and everything pumpkin-based have helped pumpkin beer become not just a staple seasonal brew, but a symbol of fall. And Elysian’s own wide array of popular seasonal pumpkin beers (of about 80 brews at GPBF, Elysian brews nearly a quarter of them), released every year starting as early as August, helps kick-start the annual craze.
After Anheuser-Busch’s unexpected buyout of Elysian in January, many things remained to be seen, including whether GPBF would continue to exist as locals had come to know it, and whether independent craft breweries would continue to participate. That said, the event this weekend was as enjoyable and well-attended a gathering of craft breweries, cideries—even a meadery—as it has been for 10 years.
Of course, at the festival I had my eye out for anything incorporating my two favorite sources of caffeine: coffee and chocolate. The following brews did so to great effect—keep an eye out for them this fall!
Basic Pumpkin Spiced Latte Ale, Payette Brewing Co., Boise || A true feat of flavor engineering, this Idaho brewery’s tongue-in-cheek “Basic” pumpkin spiced latte ale tastes remarkably like a true espresso-based P.S.L.
Sweet Potato Mole Mild, Breakside Brewery, Portland || One of the most creative entries at the fest, Breakside’s rich, savory brew combined cacao nibs, ancho chilis and sweet potatoes, and forewent actual pumpkin in favor of pumpkin seeds.
Punkuccino Coffee Pumpkin Ale, Elysian Brewing Co., Seattle || Elysian’s classic Punkuccino recipe yields “[a] pumpkin ale with the attitude of a world-weary barista,” featuring Stumptown cold brew.
T.R.E.A.T. Imperial Pumpkin Chocolate Porter, Midnight Sun Brewing Co., Anchorage || T.R.E.A.T., which stands for “The Royal Eccentric Ale Treatment,” gets its eccentricity from hefty additions of cocoa nibs, pumpkin and spices.
Habañero Pumpkin Porter, Bluebird Microcreamery & Brewery, Seattle || This spicy brew was created using the brewery-slash-iced-creamery’s Chocolate Porter, augmented with more cacao nibs, chilis, sweet pumpkin and spices.
