GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. - 'Tis the season for pumpkin, and in this case, it's pumpkin beers. Pumpkin beer has been around since colonial times because the meat of the pumpkin took the place of malt entirely.
Click on Serious Eats for a longer explanation.
These days brewers are getting creative with other vegetables, such as sweet potatoes (see Indeed Brewing's Sweet Yamma Jamma) and even rhubarb for aging (see Olvalde's Auroch's Horn aged on rhubarb).
Vegetable beers pair well with holiday foods like roasted ham or turkey, funky cheeses, and traditional desserts.
Jason Alvey of the Four Firkins specialty beer shop joined KARE 11 News @ 4 to talk about his picks-
Flat Earth Brewing Co. (St. Paul, MN)
Mummy Train Pumpkin Ale
5.2% ABV
Town Hall Brewery (Minneapolis, MN)
Petunia's Pumpkin Ale
5.80% ABV
Third Street Brewhouse (Cold Spring, MN)
Jack'd Up
5.4% ABV
Indeed Brewing (Minneapolis, MN)
Sweet Yamma Jamma
5.0% ABV
Vine Park Brewing (St. Paul, MN)
Harley's Bumpin' Pumpkin Ale
Olvade Brewing(Rollingstone, MN)
Auroch's Horn aged on rhubarb (Belgian Strong Pale Ale)
10% ABV
Jason says today's pumpkin beers sometimes contain actual pumpkin, but just as often they contain pumpkin spice flavors (all spice, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg). These seasonal beers are very popular, and also diverse. Some are like dessert in a glass, while others create subtle or spicy profiles. The beers can accompany both sweet and savory foods.