I have a NB all grain cream ale kit on it’s way. I thought about making a pumpkin cream ale. Any thoughts? Would 10 lb of fresh baked pumpkin be good? Should I add the pumpkin to the mash, boil, primary, or secondary? Am I way off base with this idea? Probably shouldn’t do this being new to all grain, but, tis the season!
Might come out too tart without the addition of charamel malts you typically find in a pumpkin ale. May as well just make a pumpkin all out of the pumpkin cream ale kit. Just add a pound of C60, spices, and pumpkin.
If you can get the article from the November/December 2008 issue of Zymurgy, Mark Pasquinelli gives a really fine recipe for a Holiday Pumpkin Spice Ale. I’ve used it three years in a row (slight variations in the recipe each year) with much success, using both real and canned pumpkins. This year’s version used canned (the drought has the local squash farmer at wits end) - 14 oz. in the mash and about 3 lbs in the boil - and it is turning out well. It’s been in the keg for a few weeks, and I plan on bottling it soon. He warns about putting pumpkin in the mash, so go easy if you go that route. I think it adds some color to the wort, and perhaps some flavor, but that’s about it. Good luck!
