AHS Pumpkin Ale (23) - EXTRACT Homebrew Ingredient Kit

I followed instructions but added 4lbs of canned pumpkin to the boil, baked a small pumpkin cubed and covered it with maple syrup at the end of the boil. I also added vanilla beans and an oak spiral soaked in vanilla vodka. May have overdone it with the vanilla a tiny bit. Next year I'm going to try pumpkin pie filling.

This is a great pumpkin ale. The aroma and taste is spot on with what you would expect. I will say its no session beer so I recommend bottling over kegging if you drink as much as I do. It also surprises me how quickly the alcohol creeps up. Great Pumpkin ale!

My wife and I used to live in Athens GA and go to a microbrewery called Copper Creek. GREAT beer, but their pumpkin ale was far and away their best...would sell out in about 3 days. We moved, and my wife has been on me to try and replicate that recipe. This is THE BEST and (and closest) recipe to that I have been able to do (in 4 years of attempts). I added 2 extra TBLSPS of pumpkin pie spice, soaked in vodka for 3 days first, to the fermenter (I don't do secondaries) one week before bottling. Everything else I followed the recipe on. This is an AMAZING brew, and I just ordered 4 (yes...four) more kits at the request of my wife because it has been made clear to me that this is a beer that we MUST keep on year round. Try this, add a bit of extra pumpkin pie spice, and GET READY...WOW is it good!!!!

This kit is Great Iused canned pumpkin in a grain bag and have a wonderful beer I have to hide from everyone that has tried it, they keep coming back begging from more. Thanks, AHS I'm hooked

Made this with 2.5 cans of organic pumpkin. 3 cans would have been perfect. Waited a few minutes to add the spices until 3 minutes left of the boil. 2 week primary, 6 weeks sitting in (secondary) keg. Carbonated and drank. Tasted great. Just need to add a little bit more pumpkin. The spices were well noticed, no need to add to them.

Brewed this about a month and half ago using two cans of pumpking. Great flavor, however I would add another can of pumpkin next time. Will be brewing this one again in the near future.

I made the AG version. Beer came out really good and has a nice crisp finish. I know this is typically a winter ale, but I find it a great on a hot sunny day. I read the other reviews and decided to use x3 15oz cans of pure pumpkin in my batch. I found that it gives a good pumpkin balance and flavor. Note... there was a poor pumpkin harvest in 2009 and finding cans of pumpkin is very hard. Be sure you can get that before committing to the recipe. I found some cans available at a reasonable price on a health food website. All of my local grocery stores were out and only had the pumpkin pie cans - not pure pumpkin.

Used one can of pumpkin in a grain bag. Pumped up the spices just a little bit with additional cinnamon and nutmeg. Opened one after two weeks in the bottle and it was a little flat. Waited two more weeks and it was great! Served it along with another home brew and store bought at a thanksgiving party and this pumpkin ale was the favorite! Most favored it as there was a hint of pumpkin but not overpowering. Very smooth, nice head. I will definitely brew this one again next fall.

Update: After 2 weeks in the bottle it wasn't quite done. But at 4+ now, it seems to be getting better every day. Spices taste crisp and fresh, and the beer is smooth enough to drink 3,4,6 or more! I'm more of a stout/porter guy but this was one good ale.

I agree with the previous post about adding additional cans on pumpkin, also I think the spices could be pumped up a bit. If I could redo mine I would add 3 cans of pumpkin and a few more spices toward the end. Mine turned out alittle light. I'm learning and this was my 10th brew...so I do blame myself somewhat.

This beer is sitting in bottles right now so I haven't tasted the finished product yet. However, I had so much fun brewing this one that I felt compelled to share how great of an experience this beer has been so far! I baked 3 cans of Libbys pure pumpkin and added to the mash, brought wort up to boiling and added spices the last 10 minutes of boil. While getting the original gravity I sampled it, and WOW!! This tasted better than any beer I've done (before fermentation that is). It had a creamy, full body with a very pleasant aroma and flavor. When I bottled at 3 weeks it seemed to have lost a little bit of that punch, so I added a slight spice tea to the priming sugar. I'll be taste testing in a couple weeks, so I'll check back in to let everyone know how it turned out!

My buddy was having a fall beer brewing competition at his house and I needed a beer to wow the crowd. I was in the mood for a pumpkin ale and figured it would be different (most others were making Oktoberfest brews). I picked up this kit from AHS and I was very pleased. The beer kicks ass and my only regret is not brewing it earlier. I brewed it with one large can on pure pumpkin right in the grain bag. I put it in the primary for a week and the secondary for a week. I kegged it and let it sit another 2 weeks prior to the competition. The beer had a great flavor (although next time I may go for 1 1/2 - 2 cans of pumpkin). It had a nice head and was very smooth. Out of 6 brewers I cam in 2nd with this brew (lost to a very good beer my buddy brewed). I was sure to save myself about 6 beers after the competition and I know that if I would have given the beer another week or so it would have one. This beer definitely got better as it sat so I would recommend you lay off of them as long as you can! I just kegged the AHS Oatmeal Stout and I expect good things again. AHS have always produced excellent beers!

Great Beer that finally turned out....Pumpkin Pie in a bottle. Used 2 cans of Libbys Pumpkin that we baked at 350 for 30 minutes before adding to the mash. Doubled up on the spices and it was worth it. Conditioned for 5 weeks before carbonation really kicked in and all the spices showed up. We are trying to hold off before the holidays to drink this, but they keep disappearing.....

Don't be afraid to add 3-4 cans of pumkin for a good flavor. I really like this one, especially after letting it sit for 4 weeks.

Something is missing with this kit. I did all-grain with 3 cans of pumpkin. Maybe it needs a second spice pack. It's better than what some companies call 'pumpkin ale', but it's not what I was hoping for. So far it's been conditioning for almost two months. Maybe it'll 'pop' once thanksgiving rolls around.

Didn't really care for this one.

Just a follow up: it did improve with age. I will brew it again this fall.

I kegged this extract kit after 4 weeks in primary. After two weeks on force carb at 12 PSI/40 degrees, this beer is REALLLLLLY GOOD. I actually am now going to bottle most of it to save for the frigid Florida winter, and drink a little as a dinner drink. The instructions said not to add spiced pumpkin, I assume because it already had the pumpkin spices. However, I added two 29 oz. cans of Libby's Spiced pumpkin mix into my grain bag, and the beer turned out nearly perfect to my tastes. Buy this kit if you like a good pumpkin ale!

Great beer so far. I ended up baking two trays of pumpkin that I cut up and threw it in the brew pot with like 20 min left. Once done I let it chill in the primary for about 5 weeks and then in the secondary for another 5. I dry hopped with 4 small cinnamon sticks the last few days and after a few weeks in the bottle it is great!

10 days primary--2 weeks bottle (maybe): At Thanksgiving my father upon first sip said: you could sell that. Then my mom drank one and enjoyed it greatly. 4 Weeks in the bottle may it even more impressive. Cooked whole pumpkin in oven for an hour. Used a grain bag during the minimash. Added tablespoon or 2 of brown sugar. It's ok, and may not be better with more spices--especially after 1 mos. I was psyched as this was first batch in 10 years, and it now I am addicted. I may brew this in sept. for thanksgiving.

Made this as my first attempt at a Pumpkin Ale. This was my first all-grain batch (done using extract equipment). I added 4 cans of organic pumpkin baked on a cookie sheet for a hour at 350* to the mash. Beer turned out GREAT!! Have friends and family requesting more. My sister has already requested a case for her Bday next year just for her. I might try tweaking the amount of spices next time, but overall this beer was balanced and tasted great!

I did 60oz of pure pumpkin in the mash; the beer just didn't have that 'pumpkin' flavor I was looking for. I agree with the comments below about the spices; they need to be doubled and brown sugar should be used. The orange peels threw the beer waaaaay off balance. The overall taste turned out to be more like a wit beer, something Blue-Moon'ish. Granted it was a good brew, but I would never guess it was a pumpkin spice ale or a pumpkin anything. This is not a recipe kit that I would order again.

Great beer!!! I will brew this again, but i agree with most. I will double the spice and I think I might add some brown sugar, not sure when yet. Another thing i will change is the dried orange peel. I think it gave it a slightly Metalic flavor, and fresh orange peel would be better. Overall a really good beer, worthy of a 10 gallon batch.

This was my very first ever batch of homebrew....decided after watching a few YOUTUBE examples on brewing beer that I was going to go the All-Grain method...and boy was I NOT disappointed. After just 3 weeks bottled it tasted AWESOME!!!!!Added my 2 cans of pumpkin in the boil....will probably amp up the cinnamom and nutmeg next time for taste and aroma. Will definaltely brew this one again....Hey , also wanted to create a BIG shout out to any other chicks who might be brewing beer out there. Come join the FUN!!! 1 week into fermentation on a Grand-gru (similiar to Blue Moon)....can't wait to bottle this one and try it. I'll keep you posted....

Agreed with Matthew S below. I baked 3 Pie Pumpkins for 1.5 hours at 350° with the inside coated with brown sugar (roasted the seeds on a pan for 20 min along with them). I had about 4 lbs of pumpkin meat that I scooped out and put directly into the Mash (brew in a bag all grain method). I used the provided spice plus about 25% more and 1/2 cup of liquid Chai Tea. This beer is amazing and the fresh pumpkin really comes out. I let sit in the keg for 6 weeks after I heard recomendations from others for this amount of aging. I really good fall ale. Austin is the only site I actually buy kits from....they know what they are doing. Cheers.

This was probably my 8th all-grain beer. I cubed three pumpkin pie pumpkins and sprinkled them with brown sugar before baking at 350 for an hour. I added that to the mash and it turned out to be an excellent brew. Everyone who has tried it thinks it is the best pumpkin ale they have had. You rock AHS!

Best pumpkin ale I've ever had...and I'm not just saying that cause it's mine. The key to this brew is the spice package...use them liberally. I used 2 at boil, and I boiled another w/ my bottling sugar and mixed into the bottling bucket. If I were to do it again, I would use 3 spice packs at boil. I used 2 cans of pumpkin "stuff"

I was not impressed at all. I got the mini-mash kit, added pure canned pumpkin (real pumpkins were not available yet) and it was average at best. I saw a lot of reviews saying mixed things about it, and i thought it was going to be good, don't get me wrong its drinkable, but my wife won't even touch it. It is not something i would buy again, and i'm better off with storebought pumpkin beer.

I brewed the extract version of this pumpkin spice ale as one of my first home brews. It was good but it is NOT the pumpkin pie in a bottle I was hoping for. What I ended up with was an outstanding amber ale with a hint of pumpkin pie spices. I did not want to hassle with the pumpkin puree or roasted pumpkins. I plan on brewing another batch for Halloween and I'll use the roasted pumpkin approach and double up on the pumpkin pie spice additions.

I hoped for a little stronger pumpkin pie flavor in this beer, but it is still a nice session beer. I would definitely make this again, next batch I would increase or double the spice pack.

Extract with Windsor Ale, 4.5% ABV. 10 days in primary and 0 days in secondary, bottle conditioned. What could go wrong did go wrong and still turned out great. Steeped 3 28oz cans of p/p mix along with grains. Forgot to add the bittering hops at start, dropped them in after 41 min of boil, didn't affect final outcome. Added spice back along with 1TBS of p/p spice mix at 55 min mark. At bottling time smell and taste did not have enough pumpkin for me so I added 2tsp of p/p spice mix and bottled. 14 days in bottle the smell/taste was awesome. Last bottle did not last more than 45 days so I did not notice any reduction in pumpkin smell/taste. Will brew this one again, using cooked sugar pumpkins vice pie mix and add the hops according to schedule. Great for Thanksgiving and Christmas.

I used 8 pounds of pie pumpkins for a 10gal batch and the end result was a nice balance between malt, pumpkin, and spices. The spices are pretty subtle so if you prefer the style that tastes like a pie it may be worth adding a little more spice. Ages very well. Something of a foam master on tap; the pumpkin brings a lot of body.

Brewed on 9/11/11 and kegged on 10/17. OG was 1.052 FG at 1.011. I used 3 (16 oz) cans on pumpkin from Whole Foods while steeping then added another can with the bittering hops. I used the WLP005 British Ale yeast. I tapped on 10/19 and finally about to float around the end of January. The bottom 1/3 of the keg really had a bunch of pumpkin flavor but I'm not sure about the age vs stuff settling at the bottom. Also, I can say that when I first drank the brew the spices were there but were subtle. By January the pumpkin had taken over and the spices where gone. I would recommend this brew after 6 weeks of aging to get some strong pumpkin flavor. Would brew again with additional spice packs.

I've had some very good "house" recipes from AHS (a dozen or more)... but was not really impressed with this one. I just felt that neither the spice nor the pumpkin was the star of this show. While this is one of their more popular recipes, i have to dissent from the crowd and say that this is one of my least favorite.

use baking pumpkins double the poundage the recipe calls for. scoop out and cube the pumpkins and bake for 20 minutes at 350. add to grain bag and remove before boil. It turns out quite well, good pumpkin/spice flavor. Excellent fall beer, had everyone at thanksgiving wanting more.

My goal with this brew was to make pumpkin pie in a bottle. Two cans of Libby's spiced pumpkin pie mix were added to my extract kit's grain bag, and I threw an extra teaspoon each of nutmeg and allspice to the boil, and about a half gallon of home made Chi Tea. Dry hopped with a few cinnamon sticks, then hoped for the best. The result, after 2 months in the bottle, was an extremely metallic tasting beer. I believe this is from the massive amount of Chi Tea added - but have no scientific evidence to back this up. I have found, however, that chilling for two weeks greatly lessens the metallic flavor, resulting in a light bodied and enjoyable beer that is, as many have called it, liquid Thanksgiving.

I think this came out very well. Did the extract kit, steeped 4 cans of Libby's pumpkin with the grains. Spices are noticable but not overpowering. Beats all the commercial pumpkin ales I've tried.

This was my first trip into the world of pumpkin. WOW! I brewed this a few months back to have ready in time for Halloween, but it needed another week to really come into its own. I took a large pumpkin and cut it into ten large slices. I took four of the slices and diced each into 1" chunks. I placed each of these dice batches into a gallon of water and kept them at a low rolling boil for 30 minutes, each pot with 1/2 stick of cinnamon and 2 whole cloves. While it was cooking, I took the remaining pumpkin slice (sprinkled lightly with allspice) and cooked at 250 for 30 minutes. Then I strained the pumpkin water (about 3-3/4 gallons total) into my brew pot, tossing the boiled pumkin chunks. I put the baked pumpkin slices into the grain bag, and followed kit instructions...adding the alcohol boost. Fermented room temp for 3 weeks, secondary another 2, and kegged. Two weeks ago it was good, but still green. Yesterday, WOW! It reminds me of a cross between Dogfish Pumpkin and Newcastle...strange, I know, but such is the case. My brewing friends love it and a bartender friend of mine at the local Outback said it was better than any beer he has tasted in a long time. I am VERY pleased!

Ok here is what I did... I mashed about 6 lbs of pumpkin cubed and cook them on a cookie sheet at 350 until soft.... I added to mash and mashed at usual at 60 mins 152 degrees... I sit in primary for three weeks and kegged at 20 psi for 2 days then 15 psi for three... OMG....One of the best pumpkin ales I have ever had... with nice citrus aftertaste... I am really having good luck with AHS ever since I swicthed to AG... You guys have a customer for life... even though I have a local homebrew store here in georgia the only thing I buy there now is yeast.