McAuslan Brewing - St-Ambroise Pumpkin (Citrouille)

To celebrate the coming of fall, we're happy to bring you McAuslan's fall seasonal pumpkin ale, known as Citrouille in Quebec. This brew presents a rich orange-amber color topped by an effervescent head. The spices are apparent as soon as you pour; look for prominent notes of ginger backed by nutmeg, cinnamon, and clove, all of which McAuslan uses in this recipe. We could swear there are notes of cardamom too, but that one's not included as far as we're aware. Soft notes of pumpkin come forth as well, topped with some citric hop notes. On the palate, we found the spices hit upfront with a profile that's fairly well balanced among the various spices. Caramel malt builds from the mid palate into the finish, balancing this ale quite nicely. The pumpkin notes are present but not overpowering, and the overall impression is of a drinkable pumpkin pie. McAuslan's St-Ambroise Pumpkin is one of the better pumpkin beers we've had in a long while. Drink this one a la carte, or a la mode - a scoop of vanilla ice cream is a perfect match. Cheers!

In 1987, Peter McAuslan, a Secretary General of Quebec’s Dawson College, made the decision that it was time for a significant change in careers, and he founded McAuslan Brewing the very next year. Peter had been homebrewing his own beer for over 25 years, but it wasn’t until the early 1980s that he began seriously considering going into commercial production. Inspired by the idea that he could bring the beer consumers of Quebec a better beer, and that they would offer it a loyal following, he resigned from his position in the academic world, and turned his attention toward making his dream into a reality. (And he sure has succeeded! Over the years, Peter has served as director of the Brewers Association of Canada and the Association of Brewers in the United States, as well as President of the Quebec Microbrewery Association.)

Peter hired famed British brewmaster Alan Pugsley in 1988 to help get the brewery set up and to develop the recipes for the first beers. The next year was spent acquiring equipment and expertise, consolidating funding, and building a team of people with the abilities to make the new brewery a success. Along with Ellen Bounsall, a biologist trained as a brewmaster (and who also happens to be Peter’s wife), the team began the vital job of developing the brewery’s reputation for producing distinctive, high-quality beers that have since been recognized as being some of the world’s best by beer critics across the globe.

It was in January 1989 that McAuslan Brewing began their official operations. Located at 4850 St. Ambroise Street (which lends its name to their beers), situated along the Lachine Canal in the St. Henri district of Montreal, McAuslan has established itself as one of the leading craft breweries in Quebec. Today, Ellen holds the positions of Brewmaster and Vice President of Production, while Peter is CEO and President. Ellen is one of only a few female brewers to be a member of the Master Brewers Association of the Americas, and she also is a member of the Product Integrity Committee of the Brewers Association of Canada. We think she and Peter make a fantastic husband and wife team, and when you taste their beer we think you’ll agree!

The McAuslan Brewing Company released a new family of seasonal beers in June of 1997, including: an apricot wheat ale, brewed for the spring; a raspberry ale, brewed for the summer; a spiced pumpkin ale available in autumn; and a strong ale for the winter. In 1998, the brewery joined with Verger du Minot to begin distributing cider on draught. That same year, Mystic Cider was launched in bottles. Over the years, McAuslan has added to their lineup, and currently produces at least a dozen regular releases under their St. Ambroise and Griffon labels.

For more info, news, history, and directions to the brewery, call 514-939-3060, or visit them at www.mcauslan.com.