New Holland Brewing - Ichabod
‘Tis the season of Oktoberfest beers or Halloween beers. I’ve never really taken to pumpkins, although during the first Halloween spent in the US I did have quite an acceptable pumkin pie. Adding it to beer is somewhat akin to adding fruit to beers, it can be quite an experience if you are not expecting it, but like several example found in Belgium it is certainly acceptable when done right. Not got round to any seasonal Oktoberfest beers yet, so this season’s beers will be started off with a “Halloween” beer. For those who do not know about Ichabod – and I was one of them until a while back – he is a fictional character from the novel The legend of Sleepy Hollow and the legend of the headless horseman.
The Beer: New Holland Brewing – Ichabod; 5.2% abv
Aroma: hoppy, heavy spice and fruit aromas, cinnamon seems to play a strong part, maybe some nutmeg
Appearance: deep amber or light copper in colour, fluffy head that quickly goes
Taste: pumpkin pie, with spices (chiefly cinnamon) and some citrus elements, malty to some extent, mildly bitter
Mouthfeel: light to medium bodied, dry texture, lively, slightly astringent
Does exactly what it says on the bottle, it is an ale with pumpkins. The spices come out strong, a weird taste if you were expecting something else – although how you would be expecting anything else I do not know. Not to my taste, but it was worth trying. Probably better on tap since those flavours would come out stronger and would probably be less lively.
Website: New Holland Brewing
