Beer for Halloween - Review of Oak Jacked Imperial Pumpkin

Oaked Jacked Imperial Pumpkin will scare away sweet pumpkin beer drinkers

I picked up this little diddy of a beer during my visit to Costco, Oaked Jacked Imperial Pumpkin. Since it is fall, I feel it obligatory to do at least one pumpkin beer review

Oak Jacked Imperial Pumpkin is brewed by Uinta Brewing Company out of Salt Lake City. Their brewing is 100% wind powered.

 

This is a strong beer with bold flavors and is not something you serve to beer beginners at a Halloween party. Since the beer is both boozy and has strong flavors from the oak barrels, it should be appreciated not gulped. Folks who like their coffee dark, their wines deep red and their pumpkin pie spiced, will love this beer.

Anatomy of Unita Brewing Company Oak Jacked Imperial Pumpkin

Style: Pumpkin Ale

Malt/Grains: Unknown

Hops: Unknown

ABV: 10.31% ABV

Format: 750 ml bottles

This beer is made with real pumpkin flesh and spices. This pumpkin ale is aged in oak barrels for six months which impart toasted vanilla and bourbon flavors into the beer. This is a big beer that tastes like a strong barley wine or imperial stout. The Alcohol by volume is a whopping 10.31 which acts to moderate the flavor of spices in the body of the beer. Notice that the ABV is 10.31%, this is also the date of Halloween. These guys are clever.

Appearance (4/5)

Dark caramel colors and almost dark ruby under direct light. Out of the bottle, it pours with a very wide caramel colored band of medium laced bubbles that takes a few minutes to settle. This is a good looking pint.

Aroma (7/10)

The aroma is big on nutmeg, then a little cinnamon, pumpkin, and vanilla. The aroma has a lingering oak in the nose. I did not get enough pumpkin in the aroma for my tastes.

Taste (7/10)

This beer is full with a long finish. The taste of oak and caramel are the first things that bitch slaps your palate on the first sip. Right after you get back-handed by the flavor of nutmeg , cinnamon, and alcohol. The beer then apologizes with a soft kiss of pumpkin mid-palate, but finishes a little bitter. The pumpkin flavor is subservient to the oak and nutmeg. At first I was not a fan of this beer, although by the 3^rd sip I appreciated its complexity.

Mouthfeel (3/5)

The beer has a medium-high level of carbonation that help break up the oakiness and booziness. This is not a refreshing beer and the alcohol is a little distracting.

Overall (15/20)

I would not drink the full 750 Ml bottle on my own; although, I loved a full glass of the beer. I think it is meant for sharing and sipping. This beer is unlike the super sweet pumpkin beers common on the market in October/ November. I would recommend this beer to seasoned beer drinkers and folks who want to try a different approach to pumpkin beer and don’t mind a sipping experience. This beer does not have a BIG PUMPKIN palate, but it is better for that.

 

Food and Mood Pairing

This beer will overpower many foods, so I suggest you pair with dry meats, Brussels sprouts with bacon, foie gras, ox tail ragu, Hungarian sausage, hard cheddar, raspberry chocolate cake. The fats and stronger flavors in these foods will stand up to this beer and help pull out the pumpkin flavors. I do not recommend pairing with sweet pumpkin desserts. If you want to pair with a pumpkin dessert, go with pale ale.

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