Pumpkin ale may well be the most distinctively American of beer styles. While virtually every other type has been inspired by or evolved from a classic European recipe, pumpkin ale is as American as, well, pumpkin pie. One of its most refreshing expressions is in this version from Brooklyn Brewery. A coppery brew, it is fragrant with baking spices as it pours. But, true to the Brooklyn style, it shows great restraint—exploring how the pumpkin and caramel malt flavors knit together rather than trying to overwhelm the senses. All in all, it’s a food-friendly ale with a dry, hoppy bite and an earthy, autumn-scented finish.

Dogfish Head "Indian Brown Ale"
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American Brown Ale - Delaware / All-Year
$2/12 oz.
7.2% ABV

Bigger and stronger than the average brown ale, this quirky brew is true to the off-centered sensibilities of this high-profile craft brewery tucked away in low-profile coastal Delaware. Dogfish Head’s Indian Brown Ale is an uncommon hybrid, supplementing the dark, sweet malt of brown ale with the assertive hopping of an I.P.A. and the burnt sugar character of a Scottish ale. Unbound by style, this brew roams free of convention or precedent. The dusty, cocoa-colored beer sustains a creamy head for minutes on end. Scents of milk chocolate and raisins compete with lingering flavors of hard toffee and orange peel. Brown ales are often mild, if not downright meek—but not this one.

Great Divide "Fresh Hop Pale Ale"
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Imperial Oktoberfest Lager - Colorado / Seasonal
$7/22 oz.
9.3% ABV

Colorado is crazy about beer. The state is home to some of the country’s most creative craft brewers. Inspired by the annual September hop harvest, Great Divide in Denver brews this once-a-year specialty with freshly picked hop flowers rather than standard dried or pelletized hops.  Fresh hops look like little fluffy green pine cones, palpably sticky with the resinous oils that deliver the beer’s distinctive bitterness and herbal aromatics. This beer practically bursts with juicy green hop aromas, vivid enough for surfers and college students to recognize the hop’s family resemblance to its cousin cannabis by smell alone. Yet, despite the hop aroma overload, the "Fresh Hop Pale Ale" finishes without an overly harsh bitter bite.

Most beer is made to be consumed fresh, but some are built to last or even improve over time like a fine wine.  North Coast’s "Old Stock Ale" is inspired by one such style, the ‘olde ales’ of England designed for long-term aging. This huge beer is loaded with everything that helps ales mature gracefully; massive amounts of malt, hops and alcohol.  Dessert-like in flavor and richness, this beer is like a liquid bread pudding. Laden with flavors of drunken fruits, like rum-soaked raisins and brandied cherries, it nonetheless finishes drier than it starts, like a dusting of bittersweet cocoa.  At over eleven percent alcohol, a party of four could reasonably share a standard bottle of "Old Stock Ale" as a nightcap after dinner, savored slowly from snifters. If you’d like to sock it away, store it upright in cool dark conditions for up to five years.

Rogue "Mocha Porter"
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American Porter - Oregon
$6/22 oz.
5.5% ABV

Oregon’s Rogue makes some of the country’s finest black beers, and their Mocha Porter is no exception. It showcases the extraordinary coffee and chocolate flavors that emerge when barley is fully roasted instead of just darkly toasted. Unlike many craft brewers, Rogue knows how to load a beer with flavor without weighing it down with alcohol.  Their Mocha Porter is silken in texture and goes down easy. Uncommonly herbal and hoppy on the nose, the beer is not excessively bitter. Its flavors start off sweet and seductive, but finish with a quenchingly dry tang that tempts you to try another.

Samuel Adams "Octoberfest"
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Octoberfest Lager - Massachusetts / Seasonal
$1.50/12 oz.
5.7% ABV

Nothing says fall like Octoberfest, the German celebration of the autumn harvest toasted worldwide with a special seasonal brew.  Octoberfest lager is made by tweaking the traditional pale lager recipe; adding extra toasted malt deepens color, boosts alcohol and adds nutty malt sweetness.  Yet the style retains the brisk refreshment and understated flavor that makes lagers the most popular beers in the world.  This American interpretation of the Oktoberfest style offers an amber color and subtle flavors of toffee and honey-roasted peanuts with a crisp lager finish.  Samuel Adams is the top selling brand of craft beer in the USA, making even their seasonal brews reasonably accessible nationwide.

Ayinger "Ur-Weisse"
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German Dunkelweizen - Germany
$3/16 oz.
5.8% ABV

Fantôme "Saison D’Erezée – Automne"
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Saison - Belgium / Seasonal
$10/25 oz.
8% ABV

"Saison" is a style of beer that is far more diverse than most.  These hand-crafted farmhouse ales are a specialty of southern Belgium, where they were first made in winter for drinking in summer—brewed extra strong to survive warm months without refrigeration.  Among Saison producers, Fantôme is one of the best, and has an expanded repertoire that includes a "Saison" for every season.  The autumn offering is distinctively woodsy, conjuring the colors and scents of turning leaves.  On the palate, the beer surprises with a bracing twang of cidery acidity that balances swirling flavors of brown baking spices and roasted squash.  Saisons are known for their earthy qualities and the "Automne" is no exception; it has a wild edge that is both special and strange, like a smuggled raw-milk cheese or the fragrant air of an old-growth forest.

Modelo "Negra Modelo"
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Dark Vienna Lager - Mexico / All-Year
$1.50/12 oz.
5.4% ABV

As food flavors deepen into fall, you need a change of pace from summer’s cheerful pale lagers. Not too serious, but not a lightweight either, Negra Modelo fits the bill perfectly. Rich in color, yet brisk in flavor, this brew is modeled on amber Viennese lagers. The makers of Corona, the Mexican powerhouse brand, produce this distinctive-looking beer. Deeper in toasty malt scent and flavor, it nonetheless finishes as clean as any lager, and is ideal for serving with spicy food.

Among Bavaria’s famed breweries, Spaten takes special pride in their Oktoberfest beer, since they were the first to brew this seasonal style back in 1873.  Modeled on Vienna’s popular amber beers, it was stronger and maltier than standard lager—a perfect choice for a fall beer that had to be brewed in spring and survive the warm summer months.  An instant sensation from the start, Spaten’s Oktoberfest remains a classic example of the style it inspired.  Brassy in color, it offers aromas of multi-grain toast topped with butter and honey.  Crisply quenching, its hop bitterness is subdued, making for a supremely friendly style for Indian summer sipping.