It's all okay now. A day later, you're in a place where you can take a moment to read this quick post. I hope you have a pumpkin beer at-hand to drink as you read. So, without further waiting, let's send this spooky season away from the blog in the best way we can, with a Halloween post. Today, I'm drinking Weyerbacher's Imperial Pumpkin Stout, and trying not to let myself get too frightened as the holiday season change.

Weyerbacher's been headquartered in Easton, PA since it was founded by Dan and Sue Weirback in 1995. The brewery made its mark on the '90s beer scene with complex, high-gravity beers and, although its introduced some lighter fare, those bruisers have since remained its calling card. 

Imperial Pumpkin Stout (as of this writing) has a brief profile on the brewery's Seasonal Beers page. This lists it as a 9% ABV--you guessed it--imperial pumpkin stout. The full write up is as follows: "Dark chocolate and roast meet pumpkin spice in a rich, warming stout." So, big, boozy, pumpkin, chocolate, and spicy? Yeah, that'll keep the ghouls and ghosts away.

Cracking into my can, I get milk sugar sweetness and chocolate decadence; it's reminiscent of a craft chocolate bar. Beneath this, the pumpkin rises, subdued but definitively present, covered in those seasonal spices that make a pumpkin beer a pumpkin beer. I love the nose, and Henrietta does, too. She gave my can twelve whiffs.

Chocolate reigns supreme on Imperial Pumpkin Stout's palate. Curiously, I'm finding a bit of mint here, layered just between the chocolate and the pumpkin. Maybe it's a by-product of the flavors all coming together? Regardless, it actually only adds to all that the stout has happening. Again, the pumpkin comes around after everything else, spicy as one would want. The finish, however, is that minty quality and the chocolate, with a nibble of boozy warmth.

There's a hefty mouthfeel here. Oh, it's a 9% ABV imperial stout? I would've guessed that! It feels silky, full, and rich. Weyerbacher nailed this part of the beer.

Imperial Pumpkin Stout is like the best part of trick-'r-treating as an adult. You get home with your kids and sort through their candy. All that "old people" stuff that's delicious but too rich for them? That becomes yours. My kids wouldn't like this beer at all if they could drink, but that'd be fine. More stout for me!

I'm impressed with Weyerbacher's Imperial Pumpkin Stout. It's not as pumpkiny as I'd initially wanted, but it feels Halloweeny all the same. I'm giving it a 10/10. Here's hoping next Halloween's post is on time!