Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

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

I drink this once a year, on my birthday. Color between that of a root beer and ? Dum Dum. Hoppy and malty, what else could you want? Has some burn; definitely a sippin’ ale

Roasted orange peel, "Pineau des Charentes" flavor, light notes of the DFH malt signature with a very shy 21% alcohol burning just enough to keep you away from your glass for 4-5 minutes. During that moment you’ve been wondering if it’s beer or lemon infused vodka. There you go, sipping and sipping until you’ve finally realized that it’s a once in a lifetime IPA that every beer-freak should have. Impressive might be a correct adjective...

Let me just say, this is the first time I paid ten dollars for a twelve-ounce bottle of beer. But it was quite worth trying. The bottle we tried was brewed in 2004; I don’t know if I have the patience to age it for a decade, as the label suggests. It was quite tasty. Its texture was smooth and silky; it slipped on the tongue like Drambuie. It was quite sweet and packed a wallop. The overabundance of hops might have been overwhelmed by the sweetness or alcohol content. This is the brandy of beer.

WOW! Yeah, it’s strong, but it’s not too strong where the alcohol takes away from the flavor. Pours amber/golden with an offwhite head. Have a couple of theses and you are set for the night!

Pours amber with almost no head. Strong piney hop aroma. Sweet malt taste up front fades in and out with the hops. Flavor is everywhere. Big hop bite at the end with an aftertaste that leaves you wanting more. Reminded me of Dreadnaught in a way. Can’t understand how this beer only has a 3.8 average. Even at $9 a bottle it is worth every penny.

Bottle bought in spring 2006. Great bright orange color, whitish head. Aroma of peaches, grapefruit, peat, honey, pine. Sweet, tingly flavor of citrus--name a citrus fruit, it’s in there. Pine hops give the pucker but honestly it’s not too bad. Maybe the age has smoothed the beer out. There’s an underlying alcohol base but it’s not distracting. This is hop honey syrup and it’s oh so good.

Bottle shared with HogTownHarry & tupalev -- courtesy of Dave B. I had heard this beer was good but never did I imagine it was this good! Pours a clear, slightly bubbly, orange-amber with a small lasting foamy white head. The aroma: hopjuice baby! Oh yeah, I friggin’ love it -- I am going to just sniff this all night. Sniff. Sniff. The flavour: Holy Sh!t! Can a beer taste better than this? the following superlatives come to mind: Excellent! Impessive! Delicious!...you get the idea. If I must describe it further then I would say the flavour is a wonderful blend of juicy hops and toasty malt and is surprisingly well balanced. I freaked when I saw this was 21%, I exclaimed loudly "There’s no way!", hell I’m still shocked as you would never know it by the taste. Palate is syrupy and has a Barley Wine texture. Quite simply one of the best beers I’ve ever had and I’d argue one of the best beers period.

This is a very huge beer, more of a brandy or rum then a beer. It pours very amber with very little carbonation. The warming alcohol subdues the massive hops. The finish is oily and smooth.