Pumpkin Ales Growing in Popularity

Craft brewers have been making pumpkin ales for a long time in the United States. While many other specialty brews are European-based, America’s surplus of the classic gourd makes the now-popular seasonal ale a staple in area liquor stores.

“Pumpkin ales have definitely gotten more popular in the craft beer department,” said Adam Schleier, who works in the beer department, . “People are getting away from macro breweries, like Samuel Adams, for instance, and are trying more microbrews now.”

Pumpkin ales have become the most seasonally awaited beer on the market today, Schleier said, because the quality and quantity of the brews has increased and improved.

Some of these ales, like Fegley’s Devious Imperial Pumpkin, which is produced in Allentown, Pa., sold out at Gary’s three to four days after it was put on shelves.

At , assistant manager Travis Della Volpe finds that, still, more customers buy pumpkin ales made by Blue Moon and Samuel Adams more than the craft brew pumpkin ales like Post Road and Smuttynose.

“People trust a brand name and they continue to buy it,” Della Volpe said.

The popularity of other pumpkin-based products has contributed to the rise of pumpkin ale, according to people in the industry.

“You can’t go into a grocery store without finding a pumpkin product,” said Meghan Fraser, marketing coordinator of F.X. Brewing Company.

Fraser said brewers don’t know how an ale will taste until after it is made, so each year, brewers to perfect their formula to make it tastier and more appealing to a greater audience.