Panic ! There ’s a pumpkin shortage and you ’ll never get to wassail another pumpkin beer for as long as you ’ll live ! That ’s what beer publicationDraft reportedearlier this week . To be honest , it was a little less fear - mongering than that , but we ’re here to say you to calm down . There are plenty of pumpkin beer on shelf already , even though it ’s 90 degrees right now where I dwell ( and belike where you live too ! ) – as you may see , the " pumpkin deficit " is nothing to worry about .

But that does n’t signify it ’s not annoying that we ’re talking about pumpkin beer in August .

The pumpkin beers are in stores now and will never not be there (until at least 2017)

Let me drop a verity bomb on you : It ’s August . As I indite this , there are 41 days left until the conclusion of summer . pin is not here , and yet craft brewers are already priming us for pumpkin beer time of year . I speak to a local beer shop employee and she tell me it seems the breweries " are trying to beat each other to the shelf . " She ’s not josh . Where I live in Colorado , there ’s alreadyBoulevard Funky Pumpkin , Upslope Pumpkin Ale , Jack - group O Traveler Pumpkin Shandy , andSam Adams Harvest Pumpkin Aleon shelves .

As a frequent beer buyer ( and juicer ) , I do n’t understand why pumpkin beers are display now . There ’s still plenty ofsession IPAsto drink before we get into fall beer season . the pits , I ’ve see Cucurbita pepo beersfrom last seasonstill on shelf . So how is there a dearth of Cucurbita pepo ?

Brewers don’t seem to be having an issue finding pumpkins

This all jump when Draft report brewers complaining of the difficulty in rule pumpkins to on a message circuit card . Then they interview a few brewers who confirm there were issues . sound like the qualification of a shortage , right ?

Not on the button . We reached out to an equally small number of brewer both big and small , and have a unlike position . Sam Adams sources pumpkins from the Pacific Northwest and the Southeast , and had no progeny . One of its brewers , Megan Parisi , recount us she ’s brewing a beer that uses 20lbs of pumpkin in each barrel called 100 Pounds of Pumpkin . Not really , it ’s visit 20 Pounds of Pumpkin . She had no issue . Traveler Beer Co. is a brewery that distributes its shandies nationwide , include the Jack - group O Pumpkin Shandy . A rep enounce it was add plenty of Cucurbita pepo from IL , and had no trouble .

I also spoke to much smaller brewers , like Alan Simons ofDry Dock Brewing , which only distributes in CO , and he enounce hedidhave a job finding pumpkin puree for his Imperial Pumpkin Ale .

pumpkin beer

Lee Breslouer/Thrillist

Ah crap , I was faulty this whole time ! There is a shortage ! Panic ! Panic !

Just kidding – even though Dry Dock had issues sourcing the beer , it partner with Ticklebelly , a bakery across the street to get some more autumn pumpkin puree . seemingly the bakehouse had problem finding some too ! But Herbert A. Simon put to work with the Ticklebelly folks and ultimately he was capable to get enough puree to make the beer . Hooray !

A pumpkin shortage is not a pumpkin shortage until you can’t find pumpkin beers

Sure , there might be some supply chain issues in sourcing Cucurbita pepo , but until the day come when you go to a ginmill or the liquor store and ca n’t find pumpkin beer – it ’s not a shortage . There ’s a ton of them out now , and IT ‘S FLIPPING AUGUST .

Ilove pumpkin beers– hell , I tasted a ton of them for science – but I ’d be all right to not see another one between now and October . Once it hits gloam , I know the shelves will be carry with everyone ’s pet gourd beer , and I ’ll be pledge along with everyone else . But for now ?

Let ’s all halt panicking about made - up shortages and savor another fruity session IPA while we still can .

pumpkin beercap

Flickr/Henry Burrows

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pumpkin drinking beer

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pumpkins

Flickr/Allagash Brewing