Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

Brewed by Dogfish Head Brewery
Style: American Strong Ale
Milton, Delaware USA

cloudy orange under a medium sized creamy beige head. vanilla, kalua, cream, cake, peachy hop aroma. flavor is full of peach syrup, marshmallow, and vanilla. creamy palate. somehow smooth. lots of vanilla cake mix. this a completely new territory for me. i like it. massive.

12oz bottle poured into an English pint. I rated this beer years ago quite low. Now that I have a lot more experience with extreme beers I’m rating it again. Here goes... 120 pours murky and orange-colored with a largish head of rock bubbles. It has a wonderfully green aroma of hops, not the normal hop smell but an actual aroma of raw hops like when you smell whole leaves. The acidity in this beer is quite high. The alcohol comes through quite strongly as well. There is a slight sweetness I could do without. I agree with ManvsCity on the dessert wine feel. This is more of a novelty beer than something I’d pursue for the taste.

I was kind of afraid to open this one. Sticker on the bottle says 20% ABV, and there’s about a quarter inch of hop particulate sludge the bottom. Pours clear amber with extremely thin head that fades quickly to a ring around the outside of the glass. Smells of overripe cantaloupe, Canadian ice wine, kettle corn, cotton candy. Mouth feel is more like a desert wine or port than any normal IPA. The hops is more of a resin than an infusion, it’s not bitter in the least, but bites you in the finish with alcohol heat and some residual tanginess. Lots of sweet malt. Almost cloying sweetness in the taste carries flavors more akin to an industrial strength barlewine than any normal IPA. At first, you think you can’t possibly drink much after that first sip, but it grows on you, sip after sip. And even with all the excesses, everything somehow holds together. Probably one worth cellaring to see what would become of all those hops over time.

I was not really prepared for this beer and because the ABV is not printed on the bottle I had no idea how powerful this one was. I poured a cloudy orange color with a moderate head and sticky lacing. The nose was so intense in made my eyes water, and smelled more like cognac than beer. In addition to the alcohol there are huge aromas of citrus, pine, and flowers in the hops. This is simply a hop monster. The mouthfeel is more like cognac than beer as well, but it remarkably smooth and full bodied for something so powerful. The flavor demands this be sipped, and that is fine because it is fun to drink. The finish is alcohol of course with some sweetness ,but it actually finishes dry. This is a beer like no other I have ever seen, and it was not until I came to review it I realized it was 21% ABV. Not something you would drink every day, but one worth repeating for a special occasion.

Finally got around to trying this stuff. Have been scared to drink by myself due to high level of alcohol so I shared with friends. Aroma is hoppier than I expected given all the sugars that must be in it for this high of ABV. Some citrus, pine, and floral hops in the 90 Minute mold followed by big sugary sweetness and some fusels on the nose. The aroma is actually probably the best part of the beer IMO. Pours a nice copper color with a lasting head. Initially there are some noticeable piney/citrus hops for a second. These are followed by intense sugar and malty sweetness on the mid palate and then a shot taking like burn that is unpleasant and kills anything that this might have had going for it, which in my opinion was not much due to the ridiculous sweetness. Hard to drink, I have a bottle that I am going to age for the next 15 years and see what it turns into.

Appearance: Considering how dark the DFH 90 Minute IPA poured, I expected the 120 Minute to be even darker. My assumption was wrong. It pours a very nice dark yellow color with only the faintest amount of pale white head. Because of the insane viscosity alone in this beer, there is quite a bit of lacing and sheer heaviness that coats the side of the glass. Smell: Two of my good friends joined me to drink this one – and for good reason. As we held the glass up to our nose for the first time we all laughed out loud. This is an INSANE “beer.” I mean, wow! The first thing that came to our mind was model glue or sticking your nose in a bag full of freshly-purchased pungent hops. This is unquestionably the most intense smelling beer you’re going to find. I imagine it’s the most intense beer you’re going to find…period! Taste: The laughs continued because holy hell this is a monstrous beer. Taking my first sip was like taking my first leap off the high dive at the pool – I was hesitant to say the least. There’s no question what hits your mouth first – HOPS, HOPS, HOPS, HOPS, and more HOPS! And when I say hops, I mean the most intense essence of hops you can find. If you could somehow liquefy strong hops into a gold liquid (oh wait, it’s been done). Mouthfeel: The DFH 120 has about the same consistency as Sauternes. If you can imagine how a hop liqueur would feel on the tongue, then you’re about halfway there. There is a lot of body and sweetness that coats the mouth and tongue and holds on like there’s no tomorrow. Makes you wonder why it’s not called a Quadruple IPA. Maybe one day… Overall: We had a lot of fun drinking this beer and enjoyed the insane bitch slap we got from the hops. However, this is a beer that should not be taken seriously. What I mean by this is that there is no way anyone should want to drink this on a regular basis. It is extreme beyond belief. I will definitely search for another one to keep as a conversation piece the next time I get together with other hop lovers, but in no way see it as one of the better IPAs out there.

A cloudy pour from the bottle into a pint glass. The beer remained cloudy with sediment and had a murky brown-orange color with a small foamy white head that was short-lived and only had mild cling. The aroma had an immediate presence of alcohol, but also a lot of grainy and earthy hops, with some barley and straw, and maybe a bit of citrus and lemon too. Its taste was sour and bitter with some straw and grain components and a noticeable presence of alcohol. The body had a lot of fizz and carbonation, but was still fairly smooth and evened out over time; it had a filling mouthfeel. This beer is very intense, but still pretty drinkable considering its potency.

Bottle... Poured a cloudy pinkish-red with an off-white head. Aroma of alcohol and sweet grains. Upon instantly sipping the beer was pretty mellow. It was in the finish that a strong kick and warming sensation sprang up. Very syrupy and a lot of bitter hop notes. It definitely was balanced for such a powerful brew. Other notes of melon-like fruits and sweet caramel.