Roosters Pumpkin Beer

Roosters Brewery, whose beers are the staple diet of many a Yorkshire pub, marked this Hallowe’en with a pumpkin beer. No ordinary pumpkin beer though, a pumpkin beer served in nothing less than a giant pumpkin. A really, really giant pumpkin.

Pumpkin 5 Spice Ale was tapped at North Bar in Leeds, in front of Calendar news and a small selection of excitable beer lovers. Arguably a more delicate task than tapping a cask, the job in hand was left to Sam Franklin of Roosters Brewery.

And what of the beer? Well, it’s eminently drinkable: sweet without being at all syrupy; conditioned to perfection with just a hint of carbonisation; spicy but not hot – nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves dominate, ideal for warming the spirit on a cold day.

Everything in moderation including moderation they say. Strangely perhaps, Roosters 5 Spice Pumpkin Ale is a beer that you could drink with little moderation. One of the best session beers of the year.

And it’s served from a pumpkin. A giant pumpkin. What more could you want on a lazy Saturday afternoon in autumn?!

Roosters Pumpkin Ale at North Bar

Sam Franklin of Roosters Brewery tapping the pumpkin ale at North Bar

Roosters Pumpkin Ale, freshly poured

Beer information:
Beer: Pumpkin 5 Spice (pumpkin conditioned)
Brewery: Roosters
Style: Pumpkin Ale
ABV: 5%
Country: Yorkshire

Roosters brewed enough 5 Spice Pumpkin ale for 9 casks and a number (reported to be 12) of pumpkins that were sent to every corner of the UK. The pumpkins (unfortunately from Lancashire) came from the annual pumpkin competition at Mere Brow near Stockport. Luckily two made it to Leeds, to Mr Foleys and North Bar, where they took up a remarkably large amount of space on the respective bars. For more information see Roosters, an interviews with Sam Franklin at beerreviews.co.uk and the Publican

Tags: north bar, pumpkin, roosters, yorkshire