Wine time: Pumpkin time a brewing
If there’s anything that symbolizes the fall season it’s pumpkins.
There are a variety of pumpkins. The edible varieties are squash. The decorative varieties are gourds. They can come in a spectrum of colors, however the most common, the ones used for carving jack-o’-lanterns, are orange or dark yellow.
Pumpkins festivals are held throughout the U.S., sometimes featuring Pumpkin Chunkins, where contestants use homemade mechanical contraptions to propel pumpkins for distance. The current record is just under 1 mile.
Giant pumpkins are another attraction. They can grow to more than 2,000 pounds.
Wine can be made from just about anything that grows. We’ve made it from peaches, cherries and bananas. Someone may make a pumpkin wine, but we’re unaware of it. We are aware of fine pumpkin beers. They’re a great way to celebrate the harvest season.
Pumpkin beer recommendations
▪ Dogfish Head Pumpkin Ale, Rehoboth Beach, Del., $2.60. This full-bodied, well-balanced brew is golden orange in color. It has defined flavors of cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice with a hint of brown sugar.
▪ Lakefront Brewery Imperial Pumpkin Lager, Milwaukee, Wisc., $3.50. This beer is aged in used brandy barrels, which provides subtle remnants of the liqueur to the strong pumpkin flavor. This reddish copper colored beer has nuances of cinnamon, toffee, caramel and vanilla.
▪ Southern Tier Southern Brewing Co. Imperial Pumpkin Ale, Lakewood, N.Y., $3.75. This ale is dark golden brown in color with strong aromas and flavors of pumpkin, nutmeg and baked bread.
▪ Harpoon Brewery UFO Unfiltered Pumpkin Ale, Boston, $2. This beer has aromas of fresh pumpkin bread. It’s mild in body with distinctive flavors of sweet pumpkin, cinnamon and allspice.
Jim and Marie Oskins live in the Lake Wylie area. They can be reached at winetime@comporium.net.
Pumpkin Pancakes
You don’t have to just drink beer or enjoy pumpkin pie during the fall. These easy-to-make pancakes are a big hit this time of year and have enjoyable pumpkin flavor.
1 cup pumpkin puree*
1 1/2 cups milk**
1 1/4 cups flour
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
In a bowl, mix together the milk, egg, oil and pumpkin puree. In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugars and spices. Stir the pumpkin mixture into the spice mixture until moistened. The batter should be slightly lumpy.
Heat a lightly-oiled griddle or frying pan to medium heat, about 350. Using about 1/4 cup for each pancake, scoop the batter onto the griddle. Cook until brown 1-3 minutes. Flip and brown the other side, about 1 minute.
*You can make your own pumpkin puree. Carving pumpkins are too fibrous to make good puree. Canned puree usually contains butternut squash and other pumpkin varieties yielding complex flavors. For the time and effort involved this is one of the few times that we recommend that you use a canned alternative.
**You can make these pancakes using beer, including pumpkin beer, instead of milk.
This story was originally published October 15, 2015 at 10:55 PM with the headline "Wine time: Pumpkin time a brewing."