Many moons ago (I think it was around 1995) I went to Oldenberg’s Beer Camp in Fort Mitchell, Kentucky. It was an event I’ll never forget, and one of the best beer-related trips I’ve ever enjoyed. Sadly, Oldenberg is now defunct and their huge brewery demolished, but others have taken up the mantle of Beer Camp and you can still find one today if you try hard enough.

Anyway, one of the more memorable moments at beer camp was the Saturday morning breakfast with a keg of Tabernash Weiss while we listened to notable speakers, one of whom was none other than Peter McAuslan of Montreal’s McAuslan Brewing Company. He lectured on the virtues of his Oatmeal Stout as another breakfast option, among other things.

At the time, I was already familiar with McAuslan Brewing for that hearty Oatmeal Stout and their magnificent St. Amboise Ale. McAuslan Brewing has been around since 1989, and I have been drinking their beers since the very early 90s. So, happy was I to see St. Ambroise The Great Pumpkin Ale here in Georgia.

In French, the native tongue of Quebec, this beer is called St. Ambroise La Grande Biere a La Citrouille, French for The Great Pumpkin Beer. Whatever you call it, it’s very tasty indeed and McAuslan describes it as follows:

Each year as the leaves fall and the north wind blows, St-Ambroise Pumpkin Ale make its return – a magical potion that casts a potent spell with its well-crafted blend of blond and caramelized malts, gentle hop, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, cloves and pumpkin. Its delicate malty character and hint of sweetness will quench any creature looking for easy-drinking refreshment.

St. Ambroise The Great Pumpkin Ale has an alcohol content of 5% by volume with 18 IBUS. The beer is normally pricey at around $9.99 for a 4-pack, and that of 11.5 ounce bottles. I got a 4-pack on clearance, though, for just $3.99 and that was a steal since this was the 2014 release.

St. Ambroise The Great Pumpkin Ale pours to a brilliant copper color with a thick unruly head of foam and a rich nose of nutmeg, cinnamon, and candied fruits. Taking a sip the beer has a fine caramel malty backbone with a hint of buttery crust followed by spicy hot ball cinnamon flavors, vegetal pumpkin, more candied fruit, and a very dry spicy finish of nutmeg and again cinnamon.

This is a very good one indeed, folks, very much like a glass of pumpkin pie, which is indeed what I want from a pumpkin ale. It is a bit expensive at normal price, but it’s so good I would buy it again, even in the 4-pack. If you’ve never tried it, you should not miss it my friends. One of the better examples of the style.



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