Brewer: Blue Moon Brewing Company
Location: Golden, Colorado
Type: Pumpkin Ale
ABV: 5.7%

Slipping backward in our eastbound trek, once more to Colorado, for this week’s seasonal brew. Remember, in my Red Banshee review, how I said I wasn’t going to take a swipe at Colorado’s Mega-Beer…right now?

Welcome to “right now.”

So, one of the other universally present, universally recognized American beermakers is MillerCoors. It used to be just Miller and just Coors, with one in Wisconsin and one in Colorado. It’s a long, convoluted story about how it evolved into now Chicago-based MillerCoors, but this company now encompasses lots of recognizable North American beers, including the Miller and Coors products (der), Canada’s Molson products, Keystone, Pabst, Schlitz, Stroh, National Bohemian, Zima (dear prophets, do they still make Zima?)…and Blue Moon.

That’s right, Blue Moon Brewing Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of MillerCoors, brought in under the Coors umbrella. The parent company almost never associates itself with Blue Moon, claiming they want the company to stand on its own merits. Personally, I’ve always felt that it’s because they want people to believe that Blue Moon is just a regular old craft brewery whose eerily reaching global presence is attributable to the wildly tasty beers they make.

Can you tell that I’m not really a disciple of any of these notions?

Do I think that Blue Moon is a terrible brewer? No. Do I think they’re good enough to be so globally accessible as a “craft brewery”? Mmm, not really. No matter how hush-hush MillerCoors is to the general public about their affiliation with Blue Moon, the affiliation still exists. And Blue Moon definitely benefits in ways that real craft breweries do not. Does this make me biased against them because they have special access to “Daddy’s money” and accompanying resources?

Yes. Yes, it does. What can I say? I’m always one to root for the underdogs rather than the pampered purebreds.

So, anyway, Blue Moon. “Craft brewers.” With a really big backer. They do tend to enjoy dabbling in a diverse line of flavored beers, including specialty releases like Agave Blonde, Caramel Apple Spiced, Valencia Amber, Raspberry Cream, and Peanut Butter ales. Never tried any of those, but I’ve had their Summer Honey Wheat, Winter Abbey, and Belgian White ales. I bet you can automatically tell what one of my other issues is with them, can’t you? Lots and lots of light-colored beers…not necessarily heavily hopped, but definitely not the PANTONE chip I seek in my beer color wheel. Again, not terrible beers, just not to my liking.

However, I was offered a single of their Harvest Pumpkin Ale, which I happily accepted…because I’m sometimes not a total hard-ass in my dismissal of things based on previous experiences.

Sometimes.

Gorgeous pumpkin-colored pour topped by a satisfying dollop of creamy foam form an instant and lovely visual association, and allow a clear view of the constant chains of effervescence linking ever upward through the body of this beer. The nose and taste offer hints of cinnamon, clove, and all-spice, but are ultimately overwhelmed by an incredible nutmeg presence.

Seriously, this is one nutmeg-worshipping brew. I don’t mind nutmeg in small doses, especially when paired with the other traditional pumpkin pie spices, but I definitely consider it to be a spice to be used sparingly. Otherwise, it’s way too intense, almost to the point of painful. Kind of like the taste of this ale. A little dab’ll do ya, indeed.

Blue Moon would do well to keep this fact in mind the next time they brew a batch of this seasonal beer.