Fall for seasonal P.E.I. beer this autumn
From pumpkin to bourbon-barrel aged, try a more full-bodied and flavourful beer for autumn
Many beer companies are now brewing limited-edition fall seasonals, and P.E.I. brewers have embraced the trend.
"Just like there are seasonal foods, there was once a strong tradition of brewing different beers for different seasons," explains P.E.I. Brewing Company brewmaster Chris Long. "This was tied to the agricultural products that were available to brewers such as fresh hops, or brewed in order to use up the last of the previous year's grain harvest. Craft brewers are trying to bring that tradition back and release beers that suit and celebrate the changing seasons."
Here's a look at some of the offerings from the Island's six breweries.
Gravedigger
Pumpkin is a popular flavour for fall seasonals, and Upstreet Craft Brewing in Charlottetown has brought back its annual pumpkin beer release, Gravedigger.
"We like to call it pumpkin pie in a glass," said Upstreet brewmaster Mike Hogan.
"It's got 10 different non-traditional baking ingredients but I'll take that list to my grave!"
Hogan says the beer makes a great dessert on its own or suggests trying it with some actual pumpkin pie and vanilla ice cream.
As is common at Upstreet, the name is a musical reference — in this case, an homage to Alberta country songwriter Corb Lund's song Gravedigger.
8 Cord IPA, Pumpkin Ale and more
P.E.I. Brewing Company just re-released its 8 Cord Double IPA fall seasonal, a strong beer weighing in at 8.5 per cent alcohol by volume (ABV). It's also offering Gahan Pumpkin Ale brewed with real pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger and 5.8 per cent ABV. And it plans to re-release Shortest Day Milk Stout in the next few weeks.
"Summer is over and we finally have time to do something different," said Long.
The 8 Cord was "brewed as a reward to all the Maritimers who are working hard getting ready for winter," stacking wood, Long said. It is "a bit of a brute with its high level of bitterness and strong hop aroma," — Long suggests drinking it on its own. "Pair it with a sense of accomplishment for a job well done," he added.
Pumpkin Ale is loosely based on an English ale style with lots of kilned, toasted, and caramel malts "for a rich malty flavour" Long explained. He suggests pairing it with a hearty meal or with dessert, like pumpkin pie, spiced ice cream or chai flavoured dessert.
Both are available in 473 millilitre cans at the P.E.I. Brewing Co. taproom and liquor stores across the Island.
Shortest Day Milk Stout will have 5.3 per cent ABV, and is described as black and opaque topped with a dark, long-lasting head. It has a prominent vanilla aroma with toasty undertones that last throughout the pint. It is spiced with nutmeg and "packs a festive punch to the finish."
Milk stout, by the way, does not contain milk but is "back sweetened with milk sugar," Long said.
Island Born, 3-Mile Limit and more
Moth Lane Brewery in Murray Road, just outside Tyne Valley, has a handful of limited-edition fall beers.
That's because owner Eric Wagner likes to try new things and doesn't stick to a stable of beers, preferring instead to roll with the seasons.
Island Born is a pale ale available now made with five different varieties of Island-grown freshly-picked hops used for flavour and aroma — "it has a fair bit of nose but it's not super hoppy," said Wagner. It's five per cent ABV, available on tap at Moth Lane and HopYard, John Brown's, Back Woods Burger, Uncle Mike's in Summerside and other select locations.
"I won't be able to get these fresh-picked wet hops again until next year," said Wagner of the limited edition Island Born — he made 40 kegs.
Moth Lane also plans to release a bourbon-barrel-aged Russian imperial stout called 3-Mile Limit in the coming weeks. Wagner got the barrels from a distillery in Cape Breton and says it will have flavours of, well, bourbon, as well as coconut, vanilla, chocolate and coffee. Wagner is bottling it in a corked champagne-style bottle for $26 each. He's bottling only 1,000 units and says several hundred are already spoken for. He recommends serving it with "stronger-flavour meat dishes and stews" or on its own as an after-dinner drink.
Wagner has brewed a third new beer celebrating marijuana legalization that will be available shortly — it's called Rolling Papers. It's not flavoured with pot, but rather with terpenes, which are fragrant oils present in both hops and cannabis. Rolling Papers is a pale ale Wagner describes as having a dank or earthy mouth-feel. "You can't have pot unless you have Rolling Papers," he said, adding it pairs well with "anything if you got the munchies."
Ekuanot Sour
Copper Bottom Brewing in Montague will begin offering Ekuanot Sour in two weeks.
It is a kettle sour dry-hopped with patented Ekuanot hops.
"It will have a tart finish, with notes of citrus, tangerine, and orange peel. It's not a traditional fall seasonal, but people have been really receptive to the sour beers we've released in the past, so we've decided to brew this as a one-off to experiment with different hop varieties," explains Isaac MacIntyre at Copper Bottom.
It won't be canned or bottled — it'll only be available on tap at the brewery and a few select restaurants across the Island, and by the growler in their taproom
What else?
Evermoore Brewing Co. in Summerside, P.E.I., is the Island's newest brewery and isn't quite ready to create a fall seasonal yet.
"We are probably one brew away from doing a seasonal, we just need to make sure our inventory is healthy first, since we are so new!" said owner Alex Clark. After shoring up stocks of their favourite core products, they'll soon embark on creating a winter seasonal.
However, Evermoore's Batten Brown brown ale has been popular with customers now that the weather is cooling off after a stellar September. It's a 5.5 per cent ABV hopped lightly with amarillo hops, said Clark. "Good malt forwardness but light enough not to fill you up before your turkey dinner!"