Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

Pours orange color with off white head. Big sweet malt aroma with lots of pine. Very sweet flavor with lots of hops, lots of malts and lots of alcohol. Medium body with minimal carbonation and a sticky, syrupy mouthfeel. Good to try, but too much to drink often.

The aroma is big alcohol so I figured it would hate this beer. The taste is a lot better though. It has a very sugary sweet taste which was surprising. It is definitely a sipping beer, but is pretty good.

WoW!!! everything about this beer is huge! beautiful pour, very thick and bright orange and amber color. Thin head and soooooo sweet smelling. same with the taste. wow sooooo sweet and the alcohol is well hidden but present in the nose. definately a sipper(i guess thats an under statement!!! ha ha ha!!) Very good. just like a port wine I think. Another well crafted brew from one of the best around.

This beer pours orange and thick with a little bit of white head. The aroma is very limey with lemon and orange as well. There is also the tartness of grapefruit on the nose and a bit of a boozy aroma. Huge hops flavor with a bit of a bite. There is a huge boozy flavor. Wish I would have rated this when I had it on tap. Ohh, well. Time to make a 120 IPA/World Wide Stout Black and Tan.

Far on the end of pricey at Mellow Mushroom on Sheldon but it was a delight. A shotgun blast of hops that well disguised the enormous abv. Dogfish knows IPA.

5/5/08
Bottle. Pours a clear orange with a pale head that creates some really nice lacing. The aroma is really, really interesting. It’s very caramelly with mango, grapefruit, kiwi, and alcohol. It’s very viscous to the tongue. Initially, you can taste the grapefruit and mango (mostly mango) with lots of thick, caramel sweetness. Alcohol is instantly evident, but isn’t overwhelming. As the brew starts to pass the taste buds, a very palpable baked, buttery biscuit flavour emerges. The citrus flavours take a step back as the caramelly sweetness continues strong. Alcohol begins to burst at this point. It becomes quite a nice complement to the flavour. A hoppy bitterness begins to arise. The finish is a mixture of a thick, caramel sweetness with a hoppy bitterness, light mango citrus, a baked buttery biscuit, and a good amount of alcohol. This reminds me more of a barleywine style than an IPA. Now, I’m not much of a fan of sweet beers, but the flavours in this is so well balanced and it also brings some other interesting flavours and combinations in flavours. I’m extremely enjoying this beer.
Aroma: 8/10
Appearance: 4/5
Flavour: 8/10
Palate: 4/5
Overall Impression: 16/20
Total Score: 4

8/23/08 After a conversation with the waitress, at The Ginger Man (Manhattan, New York) she informed us of a "freak batch" of 120 Minute that ended up being 28% as opposed to the usual 21%. This piqued my interest, but my interest wasn’t high enough to want to fork out 20 dollars for a single bottle. However, a friend graciously purchased the beverage to share as a birthday gift. I try this supposed "28% freak batch," it’s different than my first experience. The hops qualities are actually bursting in this one. Caramelly sweetness with hints of citrus is an initial flavour. As the brew flows off the tongue, alcohol instantly hits. Soon after, though, hops suddenly explodes. Intense grapefruit and lemon citrus completely eclipses the caramel and even the alcohol. Bitterness very commanding, but not unbearable. Pine is also somewhat noticeable. The finish is a citrusy dry and bitter. What surprises me the most is the alcohol is masked better than my first bottle.

I’m still in doubt whether this was a freak 28% batch. However, as well as it’s masked, it doesn’t even seem like it’s 21%. This was very different from my first bottle, and far better. This is what I was expecting to taste when I first bought this beer.
Aroma: 9/10
Appearance: 4/5
Flavour: 9/10
Palate: 4/5
Overall Impression: 17/20
Total Score: 4.3

4/19/08:
Large grapefruit like hop aroma. Body is a deep orange-brown color with an off-white head which is rich and clings to glass. Lace. Flavor is full and rich. Loads of caramel malt, fruit, nuts, hops and yes - alcohol. Finish is chewy and thick. Delicious!

On tap at Romans Pub. I’ve heard a lot of talk about this beer so when I found out Romans would have it on tap I marked the date on my calendar. Poured with a nice thick white head that slowly melted away into the glass. The aroma was that of hops, caramel, and no doubt alcohol. The flavor was much sweeter than I would have expected. It really threw me off at first. Also it had an almost syrup like texture on my tongue. The aftertaste was very much that of an IPA or Double IPA. It really left my mouth dry. I agree with the statement of this being a sippin’ brew. Having tried it, I’m glad I did, but I doubt I will order up another in the future. Not that it’s a bad brew, but just a bit of a novelty in my books.