Dogfish Head - Burton Baton (2007)

Today my quest to break out some of my weird an unusual beers takes me back to 2007.  It was a troubled time for America and I give you the following alliterative list to prove it:

• Barbaro is euthanized
• Bears lost the Super Bowl
• Britney Spears shaves her head.  Gets new tattoo
• "Breakfast of Champions" author Kurt Vonnegut dies
• Boris Yeltzin dies
• Bob Barker leaves the "Price is Right"
• Boston wins the World Series

Gratuitous Barbaro pic.

There were a lot of bad things, beginning with "B" that happened in 2007, but thankfully Burton Baton flew in the face of it all.  Having been brewed off and on since it's release in 2004, it eventually gained enough popularity to become brewed year-round.  Thank goodness.  It's labeled as an Imperial IPA, but Burton Baton is actually a blend of an DIPA and an English-style old ale, which is then aged in a big ol' oak tank.  Normally, I would not review an IPA or DIPA that is one month over 6 years old.  However, the bottle contradicts my logic by clearly stating, "Lush & enjoyable now, this beer ages with the best of 'em."  OK, I'll bite.  Let's pour!

Aroma 10/12

Oak notes are prominent, but nothing about this beer is harsh or aggressive.  The vanilla and oak touch the nose and bring with them some interesting travel companions.  A faded citrus is next.  It carries the remnants of juicy grapefruits and pineapple, but those fruity bits have all but disappeared completely.  Thankfully, we still have a slight acidity that gives the scent a bit of a bite.  The old ale notes come in after that and carry with them all the things we love about the style: sweet malts, a light roast, raisins, and a nice gentle warmth.

Appearance 2/3

I'm not expecting the world when it comes to carbonation in a 6 year-old bottle, but I was pleasantly surprised at the half finger of head that formed after a fairly aggressive pour.  Unfortunately, the head was the high point for the appearance of this beer.  It sits in the glass the murky color of a sun tea that has steeped too long and grown too dark. Held up to the light an attractive red can be found in the center of the glass, but it is poorly situated amidst a fog of rusty hues.

Flavor 19/20

Whoa!  One is immediately lambasted by dark fruits, caramelized sugar, honey, a deceptively sneaky warmth, and a wash of malty sweetness.  There's no fading in here; this beer is sweet and it means it.  There is a richness of flavor that cannot be anticipated from the aroma.  I wish there were more to say about the backbone of the beer, but the flavors are so robust and well-blended that there is little opportunity for nuance.  If held in the mouth a pepper note arises, but I am uncertain if that another remainder of the hops or just alcohol tingle.  I swear that at times this beer even shows glimpses of maple syrup.  The finish shows a slight warming and a moderate bitter to show us that the hops cannot be forgotten just yet.  Both sensations linger well into the aftertaste where that pesky pepper note appears again as a dot on the horizon.

Mouthfeel 5/5

Excellent work here.  Not only is this beer smooth thanks to some barrel aging and some cellaring, but also thanks to gads of malt.  Remember the honey and syrup mentioned earlier?  Well, it's nowhere NEAR as thick as those, but it's just as silky and smooth.  Since we're on the subject, it definitely has a full body and loads of sugars to let this beer absolutely slide all over the mouth.  It avoids becoming to heavy and thick by utilizing perfectly present carbonation, alcohol warmth, and that peppery prickle.  The alcohol warmth, of course, gets stronger as the beer warms and helps contribute to a dryer finish.  Prior to warming no one would have a clue about the 10% ABV.

Overall Impression 9/10

This aged incredibly well.  True, the hops are not at their peak freshness, but that doesn't mean their hallmark cannot still be found 6 years after bottling.  The aroma was not the strongest trait of the beer, but the less impressive introduction made experiencing the rest of the beer an exciting surprise.  The flavor was intense and sweet and the mouthfeel was amazing.  This beer did great things with its dark fruits, oak, and camouflaged warmth.  What a treat!

Total 45/50

Silky without being syrupy.  Sweet, but not one-dimensional nor cloying.  What more do you want?  This beer gave big flavor without feeling like it was beating you.  I would definitely say that at this age it errs more on the side of the English-style old ale than an Imperial IPA.  It's abundance of sweet malt, dark fruits, color, and apparent ability to age well all point toward the old ale.  The aroma would indicate an IPA that is too old!  A beer that clings to its "big beer" status and former glory with a thick body, now unbalanced sweetness, and perhaps a high ABV.  Thankfully, it became much more than that over the last 6 years.  Maybe Burton Baton was one of the best things to come out of 2007.  It sure as hell wasn't James Blunt.

And they ain't kiddin'!

SOURCES:

http://www.dogfish.com/brews-spirits/the-brews/occassional-rarities/burton-baton.htm

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-12-28-2419931004_x.htm

Dogfish Head - Saison du Buff

Howdy everybody!  First off, allow me to apologize for writing so sporadically as of late.  Not only am I currently working retail during the holiday season, but I also went on vacation, attended 3 weddings, had an offer accepted on a house, and am a new uncle!  Needless to say, I've been kept a bit busy.

Today's beer is Dogfish Head's Saison du Buff.  Well, it's kinda Dogfish Head's.  This brew is actually a collaboration between Victory, Stone, and DFH.  It was brewed once before in 2010 and we're definitely glad to see it back.  It is brewed in each of the three breweries using the exact same recipe and then released in stages throughout the year.  Besides the collaboration of three powerhouse names in the craft beer world, the most notable attribute of this beer is its ingredients.  It's an ale, a saison to be specific, that is brewed with parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme.  And yes, for those of you wondering, it probably sells very well at Scarborough Fair.  You can find the full story behind this beer by clicking this link to Dogfish Head's website.  I've had Victory's version on tap before and look to have a repeat of that great experience in a Dogfish Head bottle.  Let's pour!

Aroma 11/12

Not surprisingly, the beer starts out with strong herbal notes.  However somewhat surprisingly, you'd almost swear there was some mint added to their already long list of herbs.  Floral notes come forward and continues to waft from the glass.  In another twist, I'm finding more cloves in the aroma and not so much of the pepper for which saisons are known.  Overall, this aroma is fantastic and you'd be hard pressed to find another beer that smells like it.  Think of a flowery golden ale and now add a dash of Belgian spice and a hearty handful of herbs.  It's wonderful.

Appearance 3/3

The glass is filled with a hazy, pale straw color and topped with an off-white head.  The head shows good retention and is constantly being rejuvenated by pillars of bubbles that can be seen ascending from the bottom of the glass.  Not a ton of shades present, but its on the mark for the style.

Flavor 19/20

Whoa!  This beer went through about 4 major flavor changes in the first 3 seconds of tasting.  Let's see if we can nail those down.  Initially, it's a dark sweetness that quickly morphs into what appears to be a citrus, but is really just some of the saison's sour coming to the forefront.  The herbs also make their presence known as do some dry, bitter notes.  Which of these flavors stick around when held in the mouth?  Actually, the light sour assumes the throne as the beer's primary flavor, but it is not without assistance from the floral notes giving the beer a very light, sweet taste.  This lighter, sweeter flavor makes it easier to see the hints of pepper in the brew as they clash well with the sweetness and keep the beer true to its style.  The finish is given some brief foreshadowing when held in the mouth, but still remains quite a surprise when it finally reveals its full bitter.  The finish may have some lingerings of the floral sour that preceded it, but it is largely dry and with a long-lasting bitter.

Mouthfeel 4/5

This beer exhibits a medium mouthfeel that feels lighter thanks to the delicate sweetnesses within it.  Its sour never comes close to taking over the beer as a whole and while the carbonation isn't as aggressive as the style usually demands, that's OK by me.  It's abundant in its muted state and still allows the beer to feel like something more substantial and full-bodied.  Almost any prickly sensations could be initially considered carbonation, but upon holding the beer in the mouth it can be quickly determined to be the spices.

Overall Impression 9/10

This tastes like a saison should, but includes some of its own twists.  Saison lovers should definitely seek this out, but might be out of luck as the most recent batch (as of this writing) was released by Stone in late May 2012.  The herbs go remarkably well with the style, yet are far from overwhelming.  The sour/floral taste was impressive as was the incorporation of Belgian yeast's spicy flavors in a more subdued manner.  This is a complex beer with varied flavors coming at you from every angle and with a finish bitter enough to keep you coming back for more.

Total 46/50

Even though I emphasize talking about the sour/sweet/floral primary note of this brew, please do not categorize this with the genre of beers that one might generally avoid for being "too sweet."  There is so much going on here!  The herbs, the sour, the floral, the spices, the bitter... it all comes together for a remarkably balanced and well-assembled beer.  This is one of the best versions of the style that I've had thus far.  Granted, my familiarity with the style is less than others, but I stand by that statement.  This is one collaboration that we can all hope is reconvened very soon.

For those not understanding the "Scarborough Fair" reference.

Dogfish Head - Punkin Ale (2011)

Hey yo!  A good majority of us in the U.S. craftbeer scene have had the privilidge to enjoy a Dogfish Head Punkin Ale.  It's generally well-received, earning an 88 on beeradvocate.com and a 90 at RateBeer.  But how well does it age?  Will its 7% ABV have kept it safe throughout the course of one year?  Where ever will we find someone to answer these persistent questions?  Don't worry.  I might know a guy.

If you'd like a little history of DFH's Punkin' Ale, their website has this to say about it,

"Punkin Ale is named after the seriously off-centered southern Delaware extravaganza Punkin Chunkin (check out some of these Discovery Channel videos of Punkin Chunkin, you gotta see it to believe it!). In fact, Punkin Ale made its debut as it claimed first prize in the 1994 Punkin Chunkin Recipe Contest. Yes, that was a full 6 months before we even opened our doors for business!"

Obviously, being DFH's first award (even before they officially opened), gives it a special place in their history.  I'm sure there's a great attatchment and sense of gratitude toward this beer for a great start on a burgeoning business.  Shall we see why this brew received its award back in 1994?  Let's pour!

See the Dogfish even has little fangs for Halloween!  Extra
beer geek points if you noticed this before.

Aroma 11/12

This is very well done and exceptionally balanced.  First to the nose is actually the pumpkin flesh, a nice change from being ambushed by spices as is all too easy to do with this style.  The mix of allspice, cinnamon and nutmeg (as listed on the bottle) are not far behind, but they are presented as rounded and not a sharp kick.  There is also a distant brown sugar that blends very well with the light caramel malts.  This smells like the holidays!  I'm reminded of gingerbread men, but not quite as dark.  As the beer warms, the spice, pumpkin, caramel trifecta is right on the mark, as all three contribute and can easily be detected.

Appearance 3/3

It is several shades lighter than the below photo would indicate, which does not do it justice.  It is a combination of dark gourd hues, a mish-mash of autumnal palette colors, and a rusty amber shade.  Definitely appropriate for the season.  Its bisque head is adequate in size and shows above average retention.  

Flavor 17/20

With almost no introduction the beer rushes in and there is plenty of pumpkin and spice to go around for everyone.  Behind those primary flavors is some nice caramel sweetness and a surprisingly dark tasting malt. There's also an interesting bitter note to balance all the sweetness of the malts & pumpkin - likely contributed by the spices.  As the beer sits in the mouth, all the distractions of the spice, bitter, etc fall away and one is left with a relatively undisturbed, slightly sweet pumpkin flavor.  This isolation is shattered as soon as you swallow.  Immediately, the spices rush back in, practically tripping over themselves to be the first down the throat, and leaving a slight alcoholic warmth in their wake.  The spices and alcohol give the tongue a tingling sensation before transitioning to a rather drying and bitter aftertaste.  The beer as a whole is well-balanced between the dark, almost molasses-like malts and the spices, with the more subtle pumpkin flavors doing their damnedest to keep pace.

 Mouthfeel 5/5

The carbonation is kept at a perfectly subtle level for this beer and leaves most of the prickly sensation in the mouth to be contributed by the spices.  Thankfully the carbonation does give the drinker a fantastic(!) silky foaming action in the mouth.  This combination of low carbonation and nice foaming keeps the beer drinkable, yet substantial.  At 7%, I'm surprised I can sense much of the alcohol warmth at all, but if anyone knows how to expose and utilize an alcohol's warmth, it's Dogfish Head.

Overall Impression 8/10

A nice pumpkin beer!  It definitely does not hide behind its spices.  While said spices are certainly present in this beer, they never dominate the profile.  The aroma is well done in its balance and the mouthfeel is a "best of both worlds" characteristic that could be easily overlooked despite its importance to the beer as a whole.  There's a lot going on at once: spice sensations, spice flavors, pumpkin sweetness, malt flavors, bitterness, foaming action... take some time to appreciate all of it.

Total 44/50

This is a little less robust of a beer than Dogfish Head typically puts out, but they can't all be giant killers now can they?  In other words, it's not a super high ABV, flavor saturated, tongue punching ale to be reckoned with that we're used to seeing from DFH, but who says that's a bad thing.  This is one of the most drinkable DFH beers that I've ever drank and please do not infer that means it's short of flavor.  There is plenty of flavor to be found here, and thank goodness it's not all a Tony Montana-sized desktop coke mountain made of cinnamon and nutmeg.  There was restraint used in making this brew and I appreciate that to no end.  Usually, buying a less-than-powerhouse beer is not why I buy Dogfish Head, but if it can guarantee me an excellent pumpkin ale, then I will make that purchase time and time again.

"If only this were cinnamon and nutmeg..."

Dogfish Head - 75 Minute IPA

Gang, I'm sorry that I've reviewed so few beers this month!  In my defense, I've been performing in a musical, obtaining a mortgage, starting a new job, house shopping, musical rehearsals, commuting 2 hours every day, and trying to occasionally sleep.  But excuses are for the weak, so I figured I'd at least try to make it up to anybody that reads by posting about something with a little more renown.  Let's crack open a Dogfish Head 75 Minute IPA.

For those unacquainted, Dogfish Head 75 Min is a blend of their 60 and 90 Minute IPAs and is continually hopped for 75 minutes.  It had been released previously under the name "Johnny Cask," and involved similar label art, sans Groucho Marx glasses.  It replaces their Squall IPA, which was a bottle conditioned, naturally fermented, unfiltered IPA that was hopped for 90 minutes.  75 Minute packs a moderate punch with a 7.5% ABV and just to keep things interesting is naturally carbonated using maple syrup from the Calagione Family Farm.  It's actually the same syrup used in their Life & Limb collaboration with Sierra Nevada.  IPA + maple syrup?  Should be an interesting combination.  I mean caramel's sweetness works very well in IPAs, so maple syrup shouldn't be that great a stretch, right?  Right?  One way to find out.  Let's pour!

Oh and this is yet another bottle courtesy of my good friend Keith.  I can't say enough about the craft beer that this guy sends me.  It's nuts!

Before

After

Aroma 10/12
Starting out, I was a bit concerned.  You would've been too.  The hops were very mellow and the beer was offering more of a "wheat" profile than that of an IPA.  Please, give this beer at least 5 minutes in your glass to open up.  You will not regret it.  Check into Untappd, text your mom, whatever, just let this beer open up aromatically.  It was like two different beers.  The new aroma is giant in comparison and adds a lot of complexity.  It keeps the lemony citrus (wheat-like), but adds the sour tartness of a grapefruit.  Those two aromas take center stage and allow plenty of other smaller roles to strut their stuff.  Also detectable are bits of earthy grains, a few shavings of orange rind, and a a dash or two of spice.  While my mind says something like "grains of paradise" due to the association with the citrus, my brain says it's probably an aroma from the hops instead.  I am not detecting any maple at this time and only suggestions of bitter.  Much later on in the glass I have determined that the spicier/herbal hops definitely were the culprit of the earlier detected spiciness.  They come out to play last, but they quickly become the dominant aroma.

Appearance 3/3
Forgetting that this is a bottle-conditioned brew, I gave a more aggressive pour than I should have. The resultant head was huge, with tons of tiny, tightly-packed bubbles.  This stuff stuck all over my glass and lasted long enough that I'm pretty sure it could have joined me for a feature length film.  The color is a nice bright gold that grows darker toward the top as it fades into more of a harvest gold.  This is a lighter color than I expected after hearing that the syrup was involved at such a late stage in the brewing process.

Flavor 18/20
Initial flavors are pale malts, but quickly move to pale ale by showing biscuity, crisp flavors.  A delicate citrus doesn't hurt the mix either.  Things gracefully transition into a dry, crackery citrus, though the dryness is lost a little in the silky smooth texture.  A muted pineapple is present as well and the round caramel sweetness becomes a wonderful compliment as the beer continues to warm.  Even the syrup faintly speaks up from time to time.  The finishes finally emphasizes the diminished resin flavor that has since been biding its time, and really reminds you that this is an IPA.

Mouthfeel 5/5
This beer offers a really neat duality with regards to mouthfeel.  On one side, it's bottle conditioned so there's plenty of bubbles around to refresh the mouth.  On the other, once the initial carbonation dies down the mouthfeel is ri-donk-ulously smooth.  Not "imperial stout" smooth, but quite surprising for a beer this light in color (and that didn't foreshadow this level of smoothness in the pour).  Alcohol warmth is barely detectable except in fleeting glances and the body is moderate, no matter what the silky mouthfeel tells you.

Overall Impression 8/10
I like it.  It's not mind-blowing like most DFH offerings, but 'tis still a solid IPA offering.  In fact, it's a relatively mild DFH brew, but whether or not that is a bad thing is up to the drinker.  I prefer a milder offering from time to time and 75 Min fits the bill.  A aroma that eventually opens like a fissure, a dichotomous mouthfeel, and a complex hop profile are all components that contribute to this beer's success.  I do wish the maple syrup had more of a noticeable contribution.

Total 44/50
The brewing mastery on this is truly top notch.  The mouthfeel, head size, and head retention are all indicative of some truly talented folks doing some great work.  The taste/flavor is enough to be satisfying and robust, but without overwhelming the unsuspecting drinker the way some DFH beers can.  I dig it!  It's also an IPA in a bomber that doesn't seem to relish the fact that it's an IPA.  Let me explain, the fact that this beer is a special release doesn't mean it has to be a powerhouse example of the style.  Most IPAs, let alone those that come in bombers, ensure that they are well-hopped and bitter.  This beer, while well-hopped, doesn't slam you with bitter or a lack of balance.  On the contrary, it's remarkably balanced for the style.  This beer shows that there are other characteristics to be considered when speaking of IPAs, and which of those characteristics should constitute or be inherent within those IPAs that have earned a reputation of excellence.  Is this a top IPA in the craft beer market?  No.  Does it show us all things that top IPAs can do to make themselves better?  Absolutely.  Does it example characteristics that I would like to see before heaping praise on IPAs in the future?  You betcha.

Dogfish Head - Squall

It's definitely time for another craft beer from Dogfish Head.  In fact, my guilty conscience will no longer let me rest until I open and finish this IPA that has been in my presence for far too long.  At least, that's what I tell my wife.  Now, did I intentionally review two beers back to back that involve large sailing vessels on the label?  No.  Is it some sign of spring?  No.  Is it a sign that I should buy a boat myself?  Again, that's what I tell my wife.  That said, the only place I'd rather be drinking this is on a boat.  DFH needs no introduction.  Let's pour!

Aroma 11/12
This bottle opened with a violent hiss and then assuaged any startled souls with a relaxing floral  and pine combination.  The pine doesn't last long, but the floral is soon joined and usurped by strong honey and lemon zest aromas.  A nice bready malt balances the lot before a classic IPA smell is achieved by the reemergence of the piney hop note with a new caramel tone.  You'll definitely want to let the head die down on this one to receive the full experience.  This is a classic smell that doesn't have any of the strong alcohol warmth that can accompany some of DFH's bigger brews.  Squall rings in at 9% ABV.

Appearance 2/3
The head is perfectly foamy on this and was moderate in my 2-3 oz pour for smelling.  Pouring the rest of the glass yielded a monster head that will have me exercising caution in my pours for the remainder of the bottle.  I guess I should have known given the *hiss* that greeted me upon prying off the bottlecap.  In its defense, said head does leave fantastic lacing down the sides of the glass.  It is lightly hazy, but still relatively clear for an unfiltered beer, though this has been sitting a while and I assume most of the sediment has settled on the bottom of the bottle.  If the bottle weren't black, I could confirm such things.  The color is an array of golds and other tiger's eye shades and clearly shows a column of carbonation rising from the bottom.

Flavor 19/20
The first impression is a fabulous one!  Rich, smooth caramel rolls over the tongue and splashes to a halt with a light alcohol warmth and bitter.  Holding this in the mouth, the caramel can become sugary at times and mixes insanely well with the brighter honey, faint hop citrus, flakes of pepper, and a notable alcohol burn (the alcohol especially comes forward as the beer warms).  No real different waves of flavor to speak of, simply a cohesive unit of flavors doing their thing.  The finish is a dash of pepper (exacerbated by the prickly alcohol), resin, and that lemon zest that keeps hanging around in the background.  Oddly enough, all these flavors then make a hasty exit for a curiously clean finish!  It's very unusual, but another reminder of all the tremendous things that beer can do.  I really liked it.  The aftertaste continues that cleanliness, but does allow a light bitter to linger along with a very dry mouth.

Side note:  Slurp up some the foam (you WILL have the chance)!  It's all the beer's sweetness if a light, foamy package.

Mouthfeel 5/5
There is so much to love about the mouthfeel in this beer!  The carbonation is lively, as expected in a bottle conditioned ale, and is almost prickly.  Normally, this is something I rather shun in a beer, but in this case the slight prick of the carbonation actually goes well with the peppery hops and the alcohol warmth.  It all mingles together on the tongue for a rather complimentary, if not enjoyable, experience.  I've been waiting since the first sip to write about how SMOOTH this beer is.  Yes, even despite the carbonation.  The first sip was a wash of caramel in a body that is absolutely massive.  You can almost imagine caramel coating your tongue and it is fantastic.  The smoothness continues when the beer "foams" up in the mouth.  I place "foams" in quotes because instead of foaming, the beer instead takes on this wondrous creamy quality and it simply cannot be topped.  Best of all, with the carbonation being slightly more aggressive than usual, it prevents the creamy bodied beer from becoming syrupy or sluggish to drink.  I love that the warmth is part of the experience instead of being some strange offshoot that distracts from the beer as a whole.

The Dread Pirate Roberts takes no prisoners.

Overall Impression 10/10
The mouthfeel of this beer is superb, in case you couldn't tell by the unusually long paragraph used to describe it.  It's not often that a mouthfeel impresses me the most about a beer, but then again Dogfish Head has never been a typical brewer.  The flavors and aromas are few, but blend very well in a focused/teamwork sort of way.  The warmth definitely becomes stronger toward the end of the bottle and eventually begins to permeate every aspect of this craft brew.  It is not unwelcome, but definitely not something that was much of a factor when the beer was first opened.  (Note: Even when first opened, the bottle was at an appropriate drinking temperature.  I believe the alcohol warmth was evoked by the motion of tipping the bottle for subsequent pours and by leaving it open to "breathe" like wine.)


Total 47/50
This is one heck of a beer!  Coming from Dogfish Head, this shouldn't come as much of a surprise, but this IPA had sat for quite some time in my cellar so I was expecting a bit of a "deteriorated" performance.  Not so.  The aroma was top notch (even without the eventual addition of alcohol warmth), the flavor will go toe-to-toe with any IPA on the market, and the mouthfeel... well, I believe I've already beaten that dead horse.  Another top notch job from Sam and crew at DFH!  This is definitely giving me pause to think, "Why the heck am I saving all these Dogfish Head beers in my cellar?!"  I need to be drinking more of these.  Stat.

Dogfish Head - 120 Minute IPA

Ahhh... the first review of a new year.  The next beer on my schedule was going to be Dogfish Head Punk'n Ale, however that seems an odd choice to ring in the new year.  Now DFH 120 on the other hand seems more than appropriate don't you think?  It's a beer that needs no introduction to the initiated.  To those still learning, it is the king of big, hoppy beers.  It is big, bitter, rife with alcohol, expensive, and the probably the most hop-laden beer you will find any time soon in a brewery of this size.  It sits around 18% ABV and at 120 IBUs (bitterness measurement), when most IPAs only rate from 40-80 IBUs.  Make no mistake, this is not for rookies nor the weak.  It is a hop bomb in every sense of the word and I'm ready for an explosion.  Let's pour!

Note:  Mad love to Keith for snagging me yet another premier bottle!!

Aroma 11/12
This is much sweeter than I anticipated with honey drizzled green apples bursting from the pour!  Soon after is a fresh bed of pine needles, apricot flesh, and orange rind with lesser grapefruits and lemon zest.  No citrus is safe.  The alcohol warmth is plentiful without overpowering the delicate citrus.  An area of concern is that the acidic citrus combines with this warmth and occasionally reminds one of a rubbing alcohol instead of a natural beer warmth.  Thankfully, this fades relatively quickly as the beer warms.  Hiding behind this virtual produce aisle of citrus is a bit of caramel and a roasted, grainy malt.  It is not a dark caramel and blends excellently in with the hops.

Appearance 3/3
The head is rather diminutive from a rather aggressive pour, but what head is produced remains for a long time and leaves a sheet of lace on my glass.  The beer is just short of being completely opaque; a bit of a surprise in an Imperial IPA.  Usually, one sees them a bit lighter, but this is not a usual IPA.  The color is rusty with lighter, squash-toned edges.  Not a lot of hues here, since the center of the glass is so dark, but the few colors available are very attractive.

Flavor 19/20
Ummm... consider me very confused.  This is supposed to be a hop bomb, but the initial flavors are gobs of rich, delicious honey and waves of creamy caramel.  It is astonishingly sweet and absolutely delicious!  The citrus makes it too bright to be maple syrup-like, but it only falls just short.  Without letting up one bit, this beer rhinocerous-charges full speed into the backbone and dumps in a crate full of the fruits from the aroma: primarily apricot, but also hints of the brighter citrus are present albeit less distinct.  When held in the mouth a peppery hop begins to show, as does the tingle of warmth, a bit of green apple, and a very light bitter.  Keep in mind all of this is against the backdrop of the rich, sugary caramel.  The finish is the first time the sweet, sweet malt begins to subside and allows the hop bitter a brief say in the beer's composition.  It's also a showing of the beer's hop content for such a sweet, potentially mouth-watering beer, to leave such a dry finish down the center of the tongue.  The aftertaste barely hints at some "American" piney hop flavors, and leaves intense (but not loud) bitter.  As if one accidentally chewed a small portion of an Advil, not the whole pill.

Mouthfeel 5/5
Of course with this level of sweet malts, it results in a supremely smooth, full-bodied beer.  It doesn't come close to being syrupy, and this is undoubtedly achieved by the drying hops.  The alcohol that was worrisome in the aroma was hardly a factor in the flavor and never came close to overpowering the other monster flavors.  The carbonation is appropriately low and the legs on this beer are ridiculous.  It literally clings to every surface it can.  I swear I see fingernail marks as it slides down.

"Ages Well"  That. Is. Promising.

Overall Impression 10/10
Big, huge, caramel-laden, full-bodied, experiment that pushes the boundaries of beer.  The packaging as a whole is rather misleading.  Instead of blatantly plopping a bottle of hop oils in front of the drinker, DFH has chosen to let other aspects the hop shine, especially in the aroma.  The malts may have second billing, but they steal the show in a very surprising way.  Not in a "this is here for balance" type way, but more like a "thank goodness the hops are here to balance out all this crazy sweet malt" type way.  Big-but-still-able-to-show-nuance is not something that every brewery can manage, but DFH pulls it off here.

Total 48/50
"They" say that 120 isn't a beer for everybody and I can only say they're half right.  If you're a novice beer drinker, you may not enjoy this.  However, if you have an affinity for craft beer this beer definitely deserves a try and some props.  It's not an over-glorified bottle of pine resin (though I'm not sure how fresh this bottle is), nor is is big for the sake of big.  It's a full-bodied, smooth, warm, sugary sweet, giant of a beer that shows us what else hops can do when they're not being slammed down upon our palates.

My initial paragraph was clearly written on reputation alone.  This bottle shatters it own reputation and provides a unique and surprising experience.  My wife even found this drinkable!  In fact, she sipped this more readily that some other hop aggressive beers that I have brought home.  Needless to say, not the hop bomb that I was expecting.  Buy it.  Try it.  You can't miss this beer.

In finishing, I'll simply quote the bottle.  "What you have here is the holy grail for hopheads.  This beer is continually hopped over a 120-minute boil and then dry-hopped every day for a month.  Enjoy now or age for a decade or so."

Warning: Dogfish Crossing

Dogfish Head - Robert Johnson's Hellhound on My Ale

This beer is being broken out for two reasons:
1.  Fellow beer enthusiast Jason from www.thegreatestbeerofalltime.com mocked me for holding on to this great "super-hoppy ale" and not drinking it at its peak freshness.  I must make amends.  :)
2.  2011 marked the 100th birthday of Delta bluesman Robert Johnson and coincidentally, this post marks my 100th POST!

Now, certainly one of those anniversaries is much more important than the other (I leave that for the reader to decide), but in either case, due to the rare nature of Dogfish Head beer in my locale, this beer has been waiting for a special occasion.  I'm very excited to crack it open and very excited that people continue to read and share this blog.  Craft beer people ARE good people!  I've found trading partners, met people in real life, discovered new festivals, shared opinions, exchanged laughs, partaken in lengthy conversations, and even found a free beer or two along the way.  I'm proud to be a small part of such a great, growing community.  Big thanks to my drinkin' buddy and beer trading partner extraordinairre Keith for snagging me this bottle from 1200 miles away.  Let's pour!

"I got to keep moooovin, blues falling down like hail. And the day keeps on remindin' me, there's a hellhound on my trail."

Aroma 12/12
I keep coming back to the glass because the aroma seems to evolve by the minute.  At first it was a fresh, crisp, lemongrass with lemon rinds to boot.  Then it gave way to distinct grapefruit (as in, "you'd swear it was in a bowl in front of you"), but not with a grapefruit's strength.  After that a faint, bready sweetness was barely allowed to speak a word before being silenced by some bright tangerines.  As it warms in the glass, all these aromas are being allowed to blend together with a sweet malt that brings more balance as it goes and even a little woody hop note.  No noticeable pine or resin, though this may have to do with my tardiness with cracking open the bottle.  This is a citrus cornucopia that is divinely conjured.

Appearance 3/3
This is a fairly opaque beer.  While it tells me that this ale means business, it does not allow for many shades to shine through.  As it stands, the color is a caramelized acorn squash shade that shows some pleasant peach and gold tints toward the edges.  The head was fantastic to watch settle as it lazily lurched its way to the top of my tulip, keeping me guessing whether it would overflow or not.  The beer swirls stickily around the glass, has superior head retention, and awesome lacing.  Well, lacing infers that there are holes in it.  This head whitewashed the inside of my glass.  Impressive.

Flavor 19/20
This beer starts off with classic Dogfish Head characteristics: big, boozy, and a real smack to the tongue!  The malts are molasses sweet and a bit of a surprise given their lack of presence in the aroma.  The rich, dark, sweetness of the malts is both a nice compliment and contrast to the brighter citrus that makes up the other half of this balanced backbone.  However the malts never seem to give the citrus a chance to shine as they do in the aroma.  In fact, the majority of the backbone is dark caramel malts, thick with molasses with glints of the citrus shining.  The finish will dry parts of your tongue completely like parched earth and leave other parts salivating like a Pavlovian dog.  I'm not sure how this happens, but I can certainly attest to it.  As the finish fades into the aftertaste, it's more drying than wetting, but a neat sensation all around.  The finish also includes distinct grapefruit flavors and deep bitters.  The aftertaste is the sweet malts from the backbone being trounced by all that intense bitter goodness.

Mouthfeel 4/5
It is not a light-bodied beer by any mean,s but lighter than one would assume considering the huge flavor.  The carbonation is appropriate at first, but fades into nonexistence toward the end of the bottle.  This compliments the malts and stickiness of the beer, but not the citrus elements. Despite the beer's great stickiness in the glass, the mouthfeel s not slick at all.  In fact, it is fairly drying.

Overall Impression 9/10
A damn good beer, plain and simple.  Like its namesake: not gritty or simple, but still beauiful in its own way.  The aroma is top notch and the I believe that the bitterness would be present no matter how long you left this bottle to cellar!  It's great body shies from being overly heavy, but still packs a ton of flavor.  Now I'll just have to wait to try a fresh bottle.  Ed note: Mariah, the address those crates can be sent to is....

Total 47/50
A solid DFH offering and one they can be proud of.  This beer stands on its own , not because it's a palate-killer, but because of its own merit.  I hate to mention the aroma again, but good gracious!  It stands toe-to-toe with any beer I've smelled.  The flavor stepped away from the aroma a bit, but I feel it did so for the sake of balance.  It's not "excessive" as Dogfish Head can sometimes lean toward, but is anything but small.  Lots of great malt, citrus notes, hop bitter, and an appearance to beat the band all make this beer one of the better DFH offerings that I have sampled.  Truth be told, I feel guilty for having finished this one all by my lonesome. This one deserves to be shared with friends that can appreciate a bitter beer.  Extra music nerd brownie points are also issued to DFH for bringing what would be an otherwise unknown musician into the public vocabulary.  I'll end the post with the description from the beer's label.  Thanks for the reads everybody!  Here's to another 100 posts!

"2011 marks the 100th birthday of Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson who, according to legend, sold his soul down at the crossroads in a midnight bargain and change music forever.  Dogfish Head pays tribute to this blues legend by gettin' the hellhounds off his trail and into this finely-crafted ale.  Hellhound is a super-heavy ale that hits 100 IBUs in the brewhouse, Alc 10.0% by Vol., 10.0 SRM in color, and dry-hopped with 100% centennial hops at a rate of 100 kilos per 100 barrel brew-length.  To accentuate and magnify the citrusy notes of the centennial hops (and as a shout out to Robert Johnson's mentor Blind Lemon Jefferson) we add dried lemon peel and flesh to the whirlpool.  To read more about Robert Johnson go to www.robertjohnsonhellhoundale.com"

Clearly, the label art is not my own.

Dogfish Head - Theobroma

The title of this column could have went one of two ways: the way I chose, simply the name of the beer I will be reviewing, or the way I felt.  In that case, this column should be entitled, "I Am Extremely Jealous and May Never Forgive Them As Long As I Live."  Initially, that may sound a little harsh, but trust me you will empathize by the end of this post.

OK, so perhaps I kid a little about never forgiving.  To give a little backstory, there is a bar where I used to live in Tampa, FL called World of Beer.  I have posted about it before, but if you have not checked it out already, here is their website.  Believe me when I say that you want one to be franchised in your area.  Ridiculous selection of bottles and taps, great rewards programs, fantastic bartenders, nice look... you get the idea.  It's pretty much my bar utopia-shangri-la-nirvana-cloud-9.  Tonight is their "Dogfish Head Night."  Yes, it's just as good as it sounds.  I think I'll let the pictures do the talking.

This is the tap menu.  Are you kidding me?!

Caution: Extended viewing of this picture will cause physical arousal.

For those of you not familiar with what is going on in the last photo (like myself) that is the much talked-about "Randal the Enamel Animal."  This is what DFH invented (no, seriously) to infuse their beer with other flavors.  Put hops in Randal and run DFH 60 Minute through it and now its hoppier (or shows different hop profiles).  You get the idea.  What does World of Beer have whipped up for Randal tonight?  I quote them and say, "Theobroma running through a Chocolate and strawberry infusion and chili peppers Randal!"  I think I would not sound out of line to say that I would give a small appendage to attend this event.  15 taps, 2 Randals, bottles of 120 Min., and a "mystery keg."  What else could you want?  OK, ok... one more pic.

That is a lot of DFH and their ABVs.

However, all this amazingness condensed into one spot does not help my wanting to be there.  That said, the closest I am going to get is by cracking open my own bottle (or two) and having my own DFH night.  Besides, I started and ended last month with DFH reviews and it was really well received.  If it aint broke, don't fix it.  Let's pour!

Picture is my own.  Bottle art image used without permission for educational uses only.

Aroma 11/12

As the head settles, the smell of bready malt is very clear.  Later, comes notes of honey, light warmth, the sweet spice of ancho chilis, and a distinct citrus note which shows up fashionably late.  There is virtually no cocoa apparent in the early aroma, despite its virtual double listing (cocoa nibs & cocoa powder) on the label.   Thankfully, when the beers warms a bit the ancho/honey collaboration becomes readily apparent and is quite the knockout combination.  Either aroma profile is amazing and I found it difficult to tear my nose away from the glass.  It begs to be sampled.

Appearance 2/3

It pours the color of Aztec gold with bright orange and peach highlites.  It is gorgeous in the glass.  The head is small and remains as a collar through most of the tasting.  Though, this is understandable with the chili oils involved.  I must confess a bit of shock as to how light this beer is with all the talk of its cocoa ingredients.  I poured it and exclaimed, "What?!"

Picture is my own.

Flavor 18/20

The first taste is surprisingly sweet, as a sweet cream would be, but transitions rapidly into a hullabaloo of its other ingredients.  The backbone has other flavors constantly bouncing around into one another.  These are coming in waves, but appearing and disappearing quickly.  It is a bit quirky, but very enjoyable.  Honey is first, or maybe it just seems that way from the beginning sweetness, but it quickly is takes a backseat to the earthy notes from the chilies and annatto (which I am told is akin to nutmeg).  The ancho flavor and spice shows up at about the same time and is probably my favorite part of this brew.  The ancho, true to form, lends little to no heat, but a great flavor.  As the beer warms, the cocoa sweetness is allowed to peek out to compliment the honey which is, after holding the beer in the mouth, one of the dominant flavors of the beer.  The finish continues the profile without showing anything new: sweet, a little ancho flavor, and a bit earthy though it does show more of a light bitter.  The aftertaste is a warm tinge of alcohol (in a non-distracting way), and a bitter that I can only assume comes from the cocoa nibs.  Quite nice.

Mouthfeel 4/5

Biggest concern is that halfway through the glass the carbonation is all but gone.  Definitely a full-bodied beer which compliments nicely the large flavors it is carrying.  As mentioned before, the warmth of this 9.0% ABV beer is detectable, but not in any sort of way that is distracting from the beer.  In fact, it somehow compliments the flavor/spice of the anchos.  I cannot say I've seen that done in a beer of this style.  It is as if the alcohol is allowed to provide the warmth that the chilies do not.  The result is a similar sensation, but without the lingering, oily heat one often experiences with hot peppers.  Very interesting.

Overall Impression 8/10

I'm sure that cocoa played a large part in the brewing process and history behind this ale.  However, it does not play much of a part in its final product.  If the rest of the resultant beer were not so fantastic, there would be much lower scores involved.  While this beer does not deliver on its cocoa marketing, it does deliver on ancho chilies, honey, earthy goodness, and a high level of technical quality.

Total 43/50

Early on, I would have said the cocoa was imagined, but as the beer warmed it was allowed to show itself ever so slightly.  However, from the color to the aroma to the flavor, this beer seemed to peter out its promise of cocoa.  Fortunately, it matters little.  This beer is fantastic!  I am a little biased to ancho chilies as I use them in my own, personal "Sweet & Sassy Chili," but the flavor and earthiness they lend here brings a smile to my face.  It is that unique and delicious.  How many brewers could successfully add anchos to a beer and still stand tall?  Well, seemingly more and more all the time, but Dogfish Head did it and they did it well!  Those chilies combined with the sweet honey and the light bitter background truly are the trifecta of flavors that make up this beer and I am not complaining.  No single flavor is too loud, the warmth is just right to compensate for the peppers, and the brewing caliber is bar none.  Kudos again to Dogfish Head!  They're breaking molds every day.  

Some say this beer doesn't live up to its hype, but what other beer gets as much hype as the Ancient Ales series besides a select few (Dark Lord, Pliny, KBS, etc)?  Heck those other beers don't have (or didn't have) TV shows!  I would say that DFH captivates the public attention so well, that we in the craft beer world maybe expect the moon whenever we drink it, and that is hard to live up to.  However, if you were to drink this beer without all the hype and TV shows and magazine articles, I bet it would still be a premier beer in the craft brew world and not nit-picked the way it is currently.  Try to put the publicity aside and really taste this beer for what it is; whether that be to its detriment or benefit.

Cheeky.

Dogfish Head - Midas Touch

Ahh, the month of July has started and ended with Dogfish Head Craft Brewery.  It seems unreasonable to think that a month ago was my interview with Sam Calagione, but time does fly when you're having fun.  And it certainly has been fun!  I think in July I have met more people, gained more readers, and had more great beer than in any other previous month.  I might have even made a friend or two.  This community constantly impresses me and it has truly been a "golden" month.  Reference to gold in tow, it is then only appropriate that this review be for Dogfish Head's Midas Touch.  This is another bottle sent to me by my good friend Keith who is constantly forcing me to look for new and awesome stuff to send back his way.  It has been a while since I have had this brew, so enough talking... Let's pour!

Picture is my own.  Bottle art image used without permission for educational uses only.

Aroma 9/12
The aromas read almost like a checklist off of the bottle: barley, honey, white muscat grapes, & saffron.  As the head dissipates, there is a strong smell of baked bread.  When it settles a bit the sweet ingredients begin to shine, and the first to the front are the grapes.  A sweet smell with what could be perceived as tannins, but that could simply be me misinterpreting the warmth in this 9.0% ABV beer.  Once everybody has gotten acquainted, the primary nose is the honey, grain, and warmth in that order.  They all play well together and make quite a striking compliment to one another.

Appearance 2/3
This beer is a golden honey-apricot color, with a stiff ivory head.  No real changing colors or highlights to speak of, and the stiff head, while not insanely resilient, does remain long enough to not be rude.  High clarity allows the drinker to see several never ending columns of ascending bubbles.

Picture is my own.

Flavor 17/20
It is very hard to review a beer this unique.  All the ordinary characters are not present to be gauged and you are truly left with a blank page from which to start.  First to the tongue a light sweet grain drizzled with just a bit of the honey from the aroma and even a bit of the grape sugars - a very round sweetness.  The backbone is full of slightly more vinous grapes flavors, sour notes, herbal strength, alcohol warmth, and peppery spice.  This is very aggressive and biting, especially compared to how this beer starts.  The finish is a flash of bitter before proceeding to the vinous grape, earthy grains, and alcoholic warmth, and leaves the mouth especially dry.  The aftertaste is also unusual, though this should not come as any surprise with this beer's unusual biography and ingredients.  There a very mild bitter that lingers and this is the primary aftertaste, however before this is there is a very different sour/sweet flavor that is this beer's swan song.  It is almost like an earthy, and extremely muted or dull pickled ginger.  All the sour, sweet, and bitter flavors have combined well at the end and they all wish to make sure they send a proper farewell.  It's simply hard to know who to listen to.  As this beer warms the white grape sweetness becomes much more apparent as the beer first enters the mouth.

Mouthfeel 4/5
A medium bodied beer and that is deceptive.  One expects a heavier beer because of the immense, intense flavor, but also expects a bit of a lighter body because of the light, simple coloring.  Carbonation runs rampant, which is important (yeast-wise) to a higher ABV beer, but tapers down nicely toward the end of the 12 oz. bottle.  Lots of uncamouflaged warmth in this bottle as well.  If the flavors were less intense, this very technically sound beer would be much more drinkable.  It currently stands as a sipper.

Overall Impression 7/10
If you are new to the story of Midas Touch (and we all were once), please go and look it up.  Its origins are fantastic and truly show the beating heart behind one of America's most popular craft breweries.  This is a excellently brewed beer with unique, innovative ingredients; no one can dispute this.  When it comes to the flavors, however, there is room for some subjectivity.  There are so many bold contenders, that they seem to fight for the drinker's attentions.  This abundance of flavors combined with the warmth makes a beer that seems to be speaking loudly to you instead of holding a conversation.

Total 39/50
Again, wow, what a story behind this beer.  By now, it should not be a new story to anybody involved in craft beer, but it has not lost its luster.  This is a big beer.  Yes, in this world of DIPAs and Imperials we've all had the chance to roll with some of the big boys, but this beer is not to be toyed with.  Big flavors, high ABV, and a body that keeps from being a complete sipper, all make this an excellent beer.  Does that mean there is not room for improvement?  No.  DFH is beyond capable of making beers with more nuance that this.  Unfortunately, all these intense and unique flavors (I couldn't tell you what saffron tastes like if my life depended on it) are all squeezed in too tightly and it is hard to let them compliment each other, unlike in the aroma.  I also thought that the warmth took a bit more center stage than it should because, again, I want to taste these weird, "off-centered" ingredients.  Do these gripes and nit-picks make it a bad beer?  Far from it.  However, I think we all know that DFH is beyond capable of improving this beer into one that speaks its flavors instead of thrusting them upon us.

Dogfish Head - red & white

After interviewing Dogfish Head's founder and president, Sam Calagione, only days ago (yeah, I'm still pretty proud of that), what other brand of beer could I review than the one that hails from Milton, DE?  Not only are they an American brewery (during a weekend when  certain Belgian breweries still produce American lagers in  American flag colors), but they are also quite revolutionary; something I think we can all appreciate during this Fourth of July weekend.  Heck, today's review is even named "red & white."  That's 2/3 of America's colors and I think you could only get more patriotic if you named a beer "George Washington's Monster Truck-Corn Fed-Flag Waving-Commie Hating-Baseball Playing-Muscle Car Democratic Ale."  Keep in mind that a "Democratic Ale" would be a lot like an "Imperial Ale," but without a czar or other assorted monarchies.  Let's pour!

Picture is my own.  Bottle art image used without permission for educational uses only.

Aroma 9/12
The aroma changes fairly dramatically as this beer warms.  As some have noticed/confirmed with DFH's "Festina Peche" the initial scents are quite tart, but in this beer they are almost like a strawberry.  That aroma quickly gives way to a darker aroma akin to black currants and even that aroma is eventually supplanted by a more earthy tone of dark, ripe berries - a certain nod to the pinot noir berries.  Though they are a bit sweeter and not as vinous as would be expected given their common use in wine.  Orange makes itself apparent as well, but in a darker form than one would find in a grocery store.

Appearance 3/3
If it were possible to rank this higher, it would receive that rank.  This is beer falls in beautiful shades of dark orange and copper, perhaps hinting that there may be more orange in this beer that the aroma may have told us.  The glass is also swirling with a pulp-like sediment and ascending bubbles, giving the illusion that the pint is in perpetual motion.  In only one other beer have I seen this kind of sediment, but the pulp was larger, stagnant, and a bit unappetizing.  The head was generous and long-lasting as a stiff foam on top of the glass.  This beer surpasses all expectations in appearance!

Picture is my own.

Flavor 18/20
A bold flavor is rife from the get go!  The first sip is a powerful dose of oak, vanilla, and dark orange flavors.  It quickly, but smoothly transitions to the main structure of the beer where we are introduced to alcoholic warmth, coriander, gobs of caramel and/or dark vanilla,  and an interesting marriage of berries and orange peel.  The orange flavor (and aroma, for that matter) are so dark, the nearest comparison to make would be to a drizzle of Gran Marnier.  A quick "wine taster's slurp" reintroduces the alcohol warmth in bold fashion.  The finish transitions the "berry" sweetness of the pinot noir into a bit more of a vinous bite (a very nice touch) as it slides over the back of the tongue.  It also gives a bit more of the warmth and dark orange flavors (again evoking a less potent orange liquor) and combines them with a spicy Belgian yeast.  Coriander?  Orange?  Belgian Yeast?  More and more this is coming to resemble an Imperial Witbier with the added touches of pinot noir and oak aging, though the esters that show are clearly orange-related and do not take any of the banana esters typically associated with Belgian yeasts.  The aftertaste is surprisingly clean for how warm and sweet this beer is.  It gives a light hop bitter, woody oak, and the spicy yeast.  Besides a light sour/tart left of the sides of the tongue, this beer leaves one ready for another sip.  Oddly, it is the only time besides the initial sips that the beer gets to show off any of the oak involved in its brewing process.  Though when present it is perfectly placed and replaces the customary citrus+hop combination to aid in cleansing the palate.

Mouthfeel 4/5
Only the unabashed warmth keeps this beer from earning its perfect score.  Body is medium-full and has very appropriate lower level of carbonation, not as easy task in a beer with such a high ABV (10%).

Overall Impression 8/10
This is one of Dogfish Head's big, complex beers and it delivers; huge flavors and lots of them.  The aroma is deceivingly mellow when considering the rest of this beer and the oak makes welcomed cameos, but never truly takes center stage.  The warmth may keep this from being a "anytime" beer and force it to be reserved for more select occasions, but its range of well blended yet distinct flavors perhaps make you want to save it for those special occasions anyway.

Total 42/50
A pretty impressive offering from DFH, no surprise there.  Technically superior, complimentary flavors, complex, robust, alcohol laden, American, and tasty as all get out... what more could one ask for?  Well, a few things, actually.  When DFH does crazy, interesting things with their beer I want to taste those things.  Pinot Noir juice in a beer?  Awesome.  Let's make sure that gets showcased and not lost.  Not that it was completely lost, but the dark orange citrus was definitely the star of the show.  If you take the time and effort, and therefore money, to ensure that this brew is "89% aged on oak barrel staves," I might like that to be a bit stronger.

Most suggestions I feel pretty confident in, but not for this beer.  For example, I feel like I was expecting more of a wine-like beer.  More dryness, more oak, etc.  There are some things I can say with certainty I would like to see in a beer.  I am not sure how more wine-like dryness or oak flavors would effect this beer.  Actually, the oak I'd still feel more than OK suggesting, but wine-like dryness in a beer?  It is an interesting concept (as many things are), but I cannot say that even I might like the results if such an end were achieved.  However, if there was a brewery out there with the skill and know-how to make it work, I think a number of us could agree that DFH would easily be a top, if not THE top, suggestion.

This result makes me feel that they could have just used dark berries and achieved a similar result.  The use of pinot noir juice allows me (and other drinkers, I'm sure) to assume that a more wine-like flavor profile will be present.  That said, it is a pretty nit-picky point on which to focus.  This is an extremely tasty beer that I shared (albeit sparingly) with all the in-laws here for the Fourth of July celebration.  Even though they are not deeply involved in the craft beer scene, they were glad that I did.  Cheers DFH!  Keep up the great work.

Interview with Sam Calagione

You read right, kids.  I had the insane privilege of stealing some of Sam Calagione's time and chatting about some recent happenings with his company.  For those not yet familiar, Sam is the Founder and President of Dogfish Head, a Delaware brewery that needs no introduction in craft beer circles.  DFH makes “off centered brews for off centered people,” since 1995 and takes great pride to incorporate extremely unusual ingredients not found in our modern conception of beer.

Photo blatantly stolen from Dogfish Head.

Big, huge, gargantuan thanks go out to TMRZoo.com for setting up this interview and putting it up on their site as well.  They're definitely friendly to the craft brew scene and worth a look!

I actually got so excited that I forgot to start recording the call right away (I'm not sure if the shaking was the 12 ounces of espresso I had just ingested or simply nerves).  Just know that there was some small talk and Sam must have sensed that there were some questions on the horizon about curtailing distribution, because he started talking about it almost right away.  From where I started recording, this is our conversation.  Enjoy!  I know I sure as hell did.

Sud Savant:  You’re not the only brewery that has been forced to curtail distribution.  Recently, you’ve announced plans for another 3 year, $45mil expansion effort to take place to help remedy that.

Sam Calagione: Yeah, somewhere around that big dollar amount between $40-$50 million depending on what we put in.  The goal is that we look at our whole footprint of our Delaware production facility and said, “OK, let’s start being smarter about our growth and really put together a plan to maximize how many barrels we can get out of that facility.  In other words, we’ve lived through (very luckily) the three years of 40, 50 60% growth and now that we’re about 145,000 barrels this year, going that fast is too hard, too painful, beats us all up as coworkers.  It’s unsustainable growth for us.  We don’t want to have an IPO.  We don’t want to take venture capital money.  We don’t want to sell out to a big brewery.  So we learned that about 20% growth, for right now, is the manageable number.   We’ll grow by 20% this year, grow about 20% next year, and who knows after that.

SS:  Are you worried at all about getting back into the markets you’ve left?  Other taps are going to hop in those spots in the meantime, right?

SC: We’re all about collaboration when it comes to energy on competition.  Yeah, we had to pull out of some states, but we’re hopeful that those spots vacated will be taken by small, “indie” craft breweries.  And then when we’re ready to go back in those markets that the customers will welcome us back, though it’s never easy to pull out of markets, by any means.

SS:  Absolutely.  You’ve a fantastic web presence with Twitter, Facebook, Blogfish, etc.  Do you think that involvement with your customers, even though you’re taking a hiatus from the area, will help you re-enter those communities a little more easily.

SC:  Yes.  It’s kind of painful.  My wife Mariah does all our social media.  We’re proud for all of our coworkers when Dogfish is celebrated for doing something great or making great beer, but then the flipside is that when we are criticized we take that equally personally on behalf of our coworkers.  Through Facebook, Twitter, and Dogfish.com, we think we did a very professional job in explaining to customers why we’re pulling out of markets and which markets we’re pulled out of.  But you still get the harsh criticism, “Oh, if you guys knew how to run a business, you wouldn’t have to pull out of markets.”  So that process was painful, but it was at least an honest and open dialogue with the consumers, which you never really see the big breweries have, frankly.

SS:  Correct.  There’s a lot of blog and forum traffic about “When are we going to get DFH in our area?” or “Why are you pulling out?”  You’ve answered that in several places.  For those folks who might still be confused as why Florida has DFH, but Rhode Island does not, is it a “first-come, first-serve type policy?”  I’m assuming there are some economics that take precedence there, as well?

SC:  Yeah, and obviously it wasn’t any of our very close markets, but it wasn’t out furthest geographic market.  There were some strategic components beyond just straight geography, but I’ll just leave it at that.

SS: Ha! Fair enough.  Switching gears and talking about community again, you guys have a great brand community in addition to your web presence and it often revolves around creating conversations: hotel partnerships, franchising pubs, modern art in both your label art and of course the tree house, books, film festivals, canoe trips… do you feel you might ever stretch DFH a little too thin one day or do you think that those activities are more essential to cultivating interest in the brand behind the beer?

SC:  We want to keep innovating and pushing the envelope, but we really do look at brewing as an art in liquid form.  So we love collaborating with and cross-promoting other creative, artistic companies or people that we believe in.  For instance, a rock & roll artist like Tara McPherson, or musicians like Jon Langford and Will Oldham and all that cross pollination with the world of art inspires us to innovate even further.  It’s an integral component to what DFH is all about as a brand.  Stretched too thin?  We feel it sometimes.  Right now, we’ve got a billion projects going on…

SS:  Yes, you do!

SC:  We just did our first “Analog-A-Go-Go,” a festival we hosted that’s a celebration of the process between beer lovers and music lovers.  In addition to our ongoing bocce tournaments and Off-Centered Film Fest, we’ve got a lot going on but we’ll know when we’re stretched too thin and hopefully add talented people to our team to let us keep doing all these projects.  Really, other than these events, our social media, and Dogfish.com, the only place we advertise is a few beer publications.  That’s all we do.  We’re not big proponents of old school advertising and marketing.

SS: Good to hear.  It also appears that community involvement breeds more and more collaboration all the time.  You’ve brewed with 3 Floyds, Stone, Victory, Epic, the recently announced Short’s Brewery out of Michigan, and of course Sierra Nevada.  It was also recently announced that a new batch of “Life & Limb” will be coming out called “Life & Limb II.” 

SC: Ken Grossman (Sierra Nevada co-founder) just emailed me a picture of pallets and pallets of Life & Limb going out the doors, so I was psyched to see that.

SS:  Nice!  There are a few questions that it has spawned. Usually the “2” after the name indicates a different recipe.  Is there a different recipe, a variation on a theme, or the same thing, but new batch?

SC:   We thought the maple was a touch too forward in the last batch.  So while the birch and the roastiness will still be there, and the maple will be as well, we turned down the maple by maybe 10%.  Just a hair less maple-centric and a little more roasty.

SS: I can’t wait to try it!  Do you look for this to become a trend or an annual thing with Sierra Nevada?

SC: Well, we did it two years ago.  I’d love to potentially do Life & Limb every other year.  It’s a beer that Ken & I got together with the idea of making beer that would last, and could have the legs, to still taste wonderful when both of our kids were 21 years old.  The idea was imagined at the GABF.  My daughter right now is 8 years old, say “OK, imagine her at a GABF in twelve years going over to the Sierra booth, seeing his son & daughter, then splitting a beer that was brewed that many years ago, talking about the old days of craft brewing. “  It’s really a testament to our goals to keep both our breweries as family companies.

SS:  Excellent. Because there is “Life & Limb II” is there also going to be “Limb & Life II”?

SC: We did do a small batch!  I don’t know if we’re going to call it “Limb & Life II” because that one was a bigger departure from the original recipe of the small beer that we made up.  Like the original one, this one was made off of the second running of the beer, but it will have a teeny, tiny bit of distribution.

Another one that I should mention, that I did recently and should hit the market in a month or so, is a collaboration with The Bruery, a great little brewery in Orange County, California.  We brewed a beer together that still has yet to be named, but the profits will be going to a Japanese craft brewers' relief fund. 

SS: Ta Henket, introduced late last year, has been receiving tons of press: Brew Masters and, I was pleased to see as a subscriber, Smithsonian Magazine had a very nice write up for DFH.

SC:  We’re very proud of that one.  It’s definitely a good chance to talk about the world of craft beer with a different crowd than usual.

SS: I imagine so! With all the good press are there any plans to roll with that momentum for a larger release?  The latest I could find on Dogfish.com said that it was not on the schedule for 2011.

SC:  Yeah!  I don’t know what exactly is on the schedule, but we are planning on getting a batch of that out this year, maybe Octoberish or so. 

SS: (Yes!)

SC:  We’re really proud of that beer and it will be made, fermented, with yeast that we captured from the night air in Cairo, which is a pretty unique component to have in a beer.

SS: I think people will really be excited to hear that news.  Now, you’ve got the creative thinking and independent personality that would seem to make it easy to not only imagine new things, but also to put them into action.  Is there anything that you would have loved to do, but has not come to fruition?

SC: We’re really proud of our spirits.  We have a tiny little distillery within the walls of our restaurant in Rehoboth and Allison our Distillery Manager just does a fantastic job making our gins and rums and vodkas.  I would say something that is on the immediate horizon, but we have yet to be able to throw our resources towards (but really want to & need to) is making a bigger distillery.  It’s out on the horizon and something we’re excited about, but there are other projects between that and today, though we’ll get to it soon.

SS: You mentioned resources, is that what’s holding it back I imagine:  The massive expansion and just trying to satisfy existing market demands?

SC: Exactly.   We don’t want to go way further than that, like I mentioned earlier.  We don’t want to take to have to take in outside money.  We can do this all on our own by cashflow with our existing bank debt plan.  We gotta walk, but we can’t run and that’s the way it’s supposed to be.

SS: Sort of an off the wall question, is there any is there anything that you were too embarrassed to take to the R&D folks and maybe you just brewed a little batch at home first, just to make sure? 

SC:  No.  You know, because I am the R&D folks.  I don’t really have to ask for approval to do what I can do, which is kind of nice about being the president and founder of the company.  It’s usually me saying “Hey, let’s do this whacked out thing,” and inviting one of the brewers to come down to the pub and brew it with me.  So I’m not the one saying, “Let’s not do this.”  I’m the one convincing everyone to do it, often times.  For the most part, everyone that works here is just as excited as I am to be focused on brewing beers that have never been brewed before.  You know that’s kind of our niche, the “off-centered ales.”   I think we’re all equally proud about that.

SS: Trust me; it’s exciting as well for those of us that don’t work there.  A question that’s a little less fun: DFH has experienced some turnover at some pretty key positions – brewmaster, head brewer, asst brewmaster, etc.  Are you at all worried about the quality of DFH beer, given that the recent departures were some pretty proven talent?

SC:  Yeah, they were great guys, but no.  Actually, I’m really excited for the future.  Our new Brewmaster and Brewery Ops Director, we’ve been working with them via email, but they both start their first day in the brewery this coming Tuesday.  They’re super talented people with experience at much bigger companies, bigger breweries, that can help us grow.  We already have all the awesome brewers that have already been here that, like me, come from more of the homebrewing and craftbrewing scene.  These guys that are joining us have bigger production experience, so I’m sure we’re going to be able to shape some innovation and creativity, which we always have, but bring it up to a new level in terms of quality and consistency.

SS: You’re referring to Tim Hawn and Patrick Staggs?

SC: Yup.

SS: DFH takes a lot of pride, obviously in being “off-centered.”  Are you concerned with any negative backlash to DFH image from hiring, what some might consider, part of the macrobrew crowd?

SC:  In our brewmaster’s case, yes, Tim comes from the Miller/Coors world, but his facility was all about the Blue Moon brand.  While I wouldn’t call Blue moon craft beer, I would say that it’s definitely more flavorful and uses more exotic ingredients than the industrial lager that Coors/Miller is mostly known for.  So he has great experience there.  He used to work at James Paige Brewing.  He’s worked at a malt house.  It’s not just the big brewery experience that he brings to the table.  Patrick, sure he oversaw the making packaging of Dr. Pepper and Snapple, but he’s a passionate beer geek and very competent brewer.  These are guys who came to our world because they love what we’re doing and their goal isn’t to make what DFH is more like the big companies they come from.  Their job is to take what is great about these other companies and to apply it to the innovation and creativity that we’ll continue to champion at Dogfish.

SS: Yes, hopefully their expertise will lend itself incredibly well to DFH as it continues to grow.  Another less fun question, there has been a lot of legislation happening in different states regarding craft brewing, distributing, and licensing.  Do you have any take on it?  Does DFH have any “battle plans” drawn up for if/when the fight comes to Delaware?  You’re obviously no stranger to effecting legislation.

SC:  I’m on the Board of the Brewers Association, our trade group, which represents the vast majority of the American craft brewers.  We're very active, and more active every day, in federal and state legislative matters that effect small breweries.  I think you see a trend of more of these battles happening on the state level than the federal lever and that’s why each state’s craft brew “guilds” are very critical.  Toward that end, we just began the Dogfish state guild and just had the first meeting with the majority of Delaware craft brewers here in Milton, DE last week.  We had our congressman come in for the meeting!  Small brewers have to be active politically in order to protect our rights.  Let’s face it.  The consolidation of the giant brewers, the consolidation of the giant retailers, and the consolidation of the giant distributers, is only going to become more threatening to craft breweries.  Our solidarity and voice in Washington and the state capitals is critical to our long term success.

SS: Absolutely.  Now for something completely different.  How have Coco Loco and T’weasonal been received at the brewpub?

SC:  Oh, wow, you even know about our specialties!  The Coco Loco, brewed by our great brewer Chris, is fantastic!  It’s just a great tropical tasting, tropical, great hot weather beer.  The T’weasonal, we brewed that about a month ago… did you see the link to the NY Times about that?

SS: Oh yeah!  With the cinemagraphs?  Very cool stuff.

SC:  Yeah, that was a neat way to tell the story.  We’re really pleased with that.  The beer, pre-carbonation, tasted fantastic!  But I’ll get to taste the carbonated tonight because it goes on tap today at noon, so I’m going to go down there to try it.  Anybody, when they come to this area, I definitely recommend stopping by our Rehoboth Brew Pub.  We don’t do any focus groups or taped outside consultants or marketing.  We decide what beers we’re going to roll out for full distribution just by using our pub, the regulars, and people who come from across the country to drink there.  They’re either saying, “Hell yeah!  That one’s great!  You should brew more of that one,” or we can just watch how quickly the test batches are going to know which beers people are super excited about.

SS:  You live in Delaware.  You play hockey.  You’re surrounded by hockey. Bruins, Islanders, Devils, Rangers, even the now-moved Whalers.  Do you have a favorite team up there?

SC:  I grew up in western Mass, kind of by the Vermont border.  I grew up watching the Bruins!  I feel horrible and elated at the same moment, because I didn’t get to watch hardly any professional hockey this year, but am stoked that the Bruins took the cup.  I still play.  DFH sponsors the team and both myself and the restaurant GM/brewer, Jason, both play on the DFH adult team, which is pretty competitive, A-League adult hockey.  I’m still very into playing it, but I don’t really have the time to watch it anymore.

SS: If it’s any consolation, you picked the right one.  Playing over watching, that is.

SC: Agreed

SS: Sam, I can’t tell how excited I’ve been all week for this interview.  It has been a huge honor just to grab a few minutes with you on the phone.  Thank you so much for your time and for answering a lot of goofy questions by a goofy kid in Illinois.  I love the face and voice you’ve given to craft beer and to independent thinking, unique, well, off-centered and off-the-wall people.

SC:  Well, thank you.  We’ll keep putting the “ware” in Delaware and the “mental” in experimental.  Have a great holiday weekend.

SS:  You too, sir.  Cheers.