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A fitting tawny autumn brownly rust hue capped firmly with a dull beige crown of finger high foam. Keeps a moderate skim and heftier collar at the top of the goblet and creeps a light lacing of some strings and tiny spots as its sipped.

Complexly subtle aroma that does its name some justice. Quite Autumnal in spice and dark fruity nuances across the nose. Spiced well with pumpkin/yam and cinnamon to top it while underscored with a nice meld of darker sweet tones that bring maple, vanilla, and fig to bare. A small hint to chocolat' and cream reach the nose as it warms.

Taste is more of the deeper dark malts coming thru with a nice fluffy tone of breadyness dusted with chocolate, caramel, and cinnamon. The maple is there in a tender flow and tow that carries most of the flavor as it then touches to some of the yam/pumpkin spices and warms slightly late with more mapley maltyness and a pinch of fig pudding.

Smooth, soft, rounded, and tender medium body. Slightly creamy with a small push to some carbonation and warmth, but nothing overwhelming. Great overall breath of texture to it. Tenderly breadish, smooth, soft, and creamy. Yum! The 10% is somewhat hinted at and felt with some late warming attributes, but it doesn't hamper its tone of flavors, body, or drinkability. As it's gone quite quickly due to its quaffable quenching quickness. Excellent Autumnal spirit and core from The Bruery with this one. Yum again I say! Yum!

Price: $10.99 Served In: Goblet

A capped 750ml bottle purchased at Abe's in Bethlehem for around $8. Well, I was hoping to cellar this until next year to allow the flavors to mingle a bit, but I couldn't resist it's call as I opened the beer fridge on this chilly Thanksgiving night.

Uncapped and poured into my trusty Duvel tulip glass. The ale appears a mildly murky crimson chestnut color with about two fingers of fizzy, quickly fading ecru foam. A nice looking pour. The flavors and aromas are of cinnamon, nutmeg, a pungent bitterness that I'm guessing is coming from the molasses, a good amount of maple sweetness, banana taffy notes, spicy cracked black pepper, caramel, roasted sweet potatoes/yams, belgian yeast. Medium bodied and I'm glad to see the carbonation problem that plagued last years release has been resolved. This ale is quite effervescent and the spiciness from the pepper and/or yeast lingers well after each sip. The alcohol is well hidden as well. Overall, this is something I'll look forward to each fall. Put me down for a bottle next year.

Price: $8.00 Served In: Tulip

Poured into a NB goblet.

A - Cloudy brass orange. Opaque. Yeast settling at the bottom of the glass. Poured with lots of head and is now settled to a small skim and a ring at the glass.

S - sweet malty, yeast, pumpkin (yams actually) flesh. I almost expected more spice, but I'm kinda glad I'm not getting slapped with nutmeg and pumpkin spice. Smell comes out more with a little warmth.

T - wow quite nice! Still not too much spice. YAM (its not pumpkin) really up front, but sweetened up with the maple syrup that the name kinda gives away. Some nutmeg and earthyness. Belgian yeasty.

M - Medium mouth feel. Really nice and what I'm looking for with this type of beer. Not a lot of carbonation, but there's a small carbonation kick after the sip that jumps off your tongue that's almost is in place of the pumpkin spice that too often overloads these fall beers. Not so much a lasting after taste, and that 10.5% ABV is compliments nicely giving you a warming feeling, not an alcohol burn.

O - It's a nice slow sipper. Not completely a dessert beer tho very enjoyable. This would probably go well with Thanksgiving dinner rather than Thanksgiving desert. It totally drives home the thoughts of Autumn leaves, and the changing seasons.

Price: $10.99 Served In: Pint Glass

A pour into my 25cl tulip glass produces a couple of scattered bubbles that quickly disappear. The beer is a rich mahogany color that shows a hazy, brownish red color when held up to the light. The aroma smells fruity with notes of raisins, a touch of rum, baked brown sugar and perhaps even some notes reminiscent of sweet potatoes (I don't know why these are marketed as yams in many parts of the US). There is lots of toffee character, a substantial caramel character as well as a touch of spiciness that reminds me of a touch of nutmeg, ginger, perhaps some all spice and some white pepper and a touch of something herbal.

The beer is almost, though not completely flat; there is just a touch of carbonation that adds a hint of texture to this beer. It is rich and chewy, but lacks a certain fullness somehow because of the lack of carbonation; it almost seems a bit thin somehow, but I wouldn't want it to be thick and rich. Sweet flavors of raisins, brown sugar glazed sweet potatoes and a deeply caramelized flavor. The beer finishes with a soft spiciness that provides a bit of piquancy / warmth (the alcohol), a touch of woody pepper, a touch of allspice, some cinnamon, ginger and a soft, almost neutralized nutmeg note. The finish has a touch of astringency to it, perhaps even a touch of hop bitterness though this last is subtle.

I like that the spice character is quite subtle, it is hard to guess what is spice and what is fermentation derived here, which is exactly how I prefer it. The beer itself is not too bad, it definitely really needs the texture and vitality that carbonation would bring to it. I definitely am looking forward to getting the next, carbonated batch of this.

Served In: Tulip