Did you read my review of Elysian The Great Pumpkin Imperial Pumpkin Ale? If you did, then you know Elysian really loves their pumpkin beers. They brew a ton of them (I’ve had at least four) and I picked up a few I had never had before at Kroger recently. The Great Pumpkin was one of them and today’s beer, Elysian Dark Knife Pumpkin Schwarzbier was the other.

To hear Elysian tell it, Dark Knife Pumpkin Schwarzbier is a fairly new beer. Taking Elysian out of the equation, I don’t think I’ve ever had a pumpkin Schwarzbier before.

Elysian says:

This season we took a stab at our first pumpkin Schwarzbier-brewed with pale, Munich, roasted barley and a smattering of dark malts. German Northern Brewer and Saaz hops give it a little edge, while 90 pounds of pumpkin entrails, cinnamon and ginger smooth over the crime scene.

But what season are they talking about? The magic date seems to be 2017; at least that’s when Untappd added the beer and check-ins started to appear.

Ingredients from the website:

Malts: Pale, Munich, Roasted Barley, Chocolate, Carafa Type 2, Caramunich Type 1, Kiln Coffee

Hops: Northern Brewer, Saaz

Elysian Dark Knife Pumpkin Schwarzbier has an alcohol content of 4.3% by volume with unspecified IBUs. I paid $7.99 for my bottle at Kroger.

Elysian Dark Knife Pumpkin Schwarzbier pours to a jet black color with a thick creamy tan head and a harsh roasty nose with a hint of vegetal pumpkin. Taking a sip, the beer is quite roasty with a burnt chocolate aroma like a good Schwarzbier should offer. It’s clean of fruity esters, and though the stringy pumpkin comes through; that’s a vegetable, not a fruit folks. It finishes with a bright spicy cinnamon, and a hint of ginger. Most of all, it finishes roasty bitter and makes you want another sip.

I love that Elysian Dark Knife Pumpkin Schwarzbier is 4.3% ABV, too. On the downside, the spicy cinnamon works well with the roast but that occludes the pumpkin a bit, though you get it. Overall, a solid beer that I will seek out again.

And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.

*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.

(B)=Bottled

(D)=Draft



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