As everybody knows, fall is the time that pumpkins come into season. The pumpkin, of course, is a very versatile food. You can make soup out of it if you like, and some do. You can also use it in cookies, cake, or the perennial holiday favorite, pumpkin pie. I happen to enjoy mashed pumpkin as well (try it as you would squash). And when you're done with all that, you can always toast and eat the seeds. But the very best thing you can do with pumpkin is to make beer with it. I may have said all of this in another review, but you’ll just have to indulge me. Hey, I just love pumpkin .

There are more than a few pumpkin ales available across America, but most of them are distributed only locally. For years, though, you could always count on finding Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale pretty much anywhere you went. That’s mainly because Blue Moon beers are made by Coors, which affords them the benefit of a wide distribution network.

Since I moved to Georgia a few years ago, I haven’t seen Blue Moon’s Pumpkin Ale for sale. Happily, that changed this year and a large number of local stores are carrying it. Don’t be put off by the fact that Coors brews this, either: it’s a great beer with a lot of pumpkin flavor perfect for fall enjoyment.

Of the assorted pumpkin ales available to beer lovers, some accent the flavor of pumpkin, some the spices traditionally found in pumpkin pie, and some both. The Frog and Hound brewery of Willimantic, Connecticut, now sadly defunct, made a wonderful pumpkin ale full of stringy, vegetal pumpkin flavor. The Union Station Brewery, a brewpub in Providence, Rhode Island, makes a delicious Pumpkin Spice ale that has lots of spice but, surprisingly, no pumpkin.

So where does Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale fit in? I think it’s in the middle category. To be sure, there are plenty of spices here, but there’s a good amount of pumpkin flavor too. The resulting beer is not overpowering but very flavorful and a perfect match to a slice of pumpkin pie or other fall fare. I like it with turkey on Thanksgiving.

Here's what I thought of the beer in October of 1997:

One of the things that always surprises me about Blue Moon beers is how few people realize that they are a branch of Coors. They are generally surprised when I tell them that that is the case. Perhaps they don't think a large brewer can produce such flavorful beers, but I am happy to say that such brewers can and do brew such beers. I have been impressed with the quality of Blue Moon beers, and the Pumpkin Ale is my favorite among them.

Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale is definitely a holiday beer. It is an appropriate deep orange in color with a generous head and a nose rich with pumpkin and spice. As I sip the beer, bold pumpkin flavor and a slightly toasty malt character wash across the palate, accented with but not overpowered by hints of nutmeg and cinnamon. This beer would be a fine complement to holiday fare, most notably a heaping slice of pumpkin pie. Exceptional!

And now:

Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale pours to a deep orange amber color with a light creamy head and a slightly sweet malty nose that hints at pumpkin. The palate starts out slightly sweet and full of rich crystal malt, then develops notes of sweet cooked pumpkin flavor, nutmeg, and candied fruits. The finish is nicely balanced, dry, with a lingering hint of spice.

I really like this beer, and though the notion of pumpkin in beer may seem strange to some, it shouldn’t. After all, our colonial forbears used pumpkin as a seasoning and even a base for beer when barley and hops were in short supply. Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale may not be the best example of the style on the market, but it is a reliable, tasty, and readily available version. Ask for it at a retailer near you, and tell them the Bruguru sent you.

Update 9/15/2007: It's September of 2007, and as I type I'm sipping a delicious cool glass of fresh Blue Moon Pumpkin Ale. The name has changed slightly, of course, and the label now advertises the beer as Harvest Moon Pumpkin Ale, with the "Harvest Moon" in large boldface and the "Pumpkin Ale" in smaller letters beneath. The neck label proudly proclaims this as Blue Moon beer.

The beer is still a treat, spicy and delicious with the flavors of fall. There has always been some debate as to whether pumpkin is actually used in the making of this beer. Years ago, I called Coors and asked them that same question. They stated that the beer is indeed made with "essence of pumpkin", and the six-pack carrier lists flavors of "vine-ripened pumpkin, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice."

Don't let the naysayers get you down. This is still a great beer, and at just $6.49 a six-pack, a great deal too.

Update 10/10/2013: Sipping a Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale this evening, and I have to say it's every bit as good as ever. Maybe even better! I've enjoyed this beer on tap at Taco Mac since my last check in and loved it; tonight's bottle is just as impressive. Lightly toasty malty in the nose with definite notes of pumpkin and spice. The palate reveals more of the same, a bit of chewy caramel and toasty malt, stringy meaty pumpkin flavor, dark fruity mince pie, and spicy notes of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg and vanilla. The spices dry wonderfully in the finish. The label says the beer is also brewed with wheat which seems to be something new.

However you slice this pumpkin pie in a glass, you are sure to enjoy it. Still a bargain at $7.99 a six-pack. Jacked up to 5 stars for 2013.

Update 8/14/2014: OK, so I know it's really early early to be thinking about pumpkin beers in August. But Taco Mac is running a special, 23 ounces of this wonderful pumpkin beer for just $5.50, and it's a bonus credit for the 23 ounce draft. I couldn't resist, and I'm glad I didn't. This is still bursting with fall flavor, the toasty malt, pumpkin and spices mentioned above are all here. Blue Moon's best beer in my opinion.

Update 8/24/2017: Another new label for Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale. This year I paid $8.99 for a six at Kroger. The beer has an alcohol content of 5.7% by volume with 16 IBUs.

From the website:

In 1995, we crafted our first autumn seasonal—Pumpkin Ale. At the time, Oktoberfest beers were in high demand. For our version, we wanted to create a beer that was a little different than what was already out there and complemented the season by highlighting the flavors we’ve all grown to love during this time. It was so popular that it became the first nationally available pumpkin ale. Harvest Pumpkin Wheat, as it’s called now, is crafted with pumpkin and spices of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and allspice for a taste you’ll want to fall right into.

Ingredients, also from the website:

Malts: Munich, Caramel
Hops: Hallertau
Our Twist: Pumpkin, Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Clove, Allspice

Update 10/3/2019: I'm at Taco Mac and having a 23-ounce mug of one of my favorite pumpkin beers, Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale. A bargain at $4.85 for 23-ounces, and it'ss till as delcious as ever with pumpkin flavor and spice.

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