Dogfish Head 120 Minute IPA

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

Well, I had to think about buying a big bottle to sample this one....why not sell this in splits? Its 20 freakin percent alcohol and its a beer guys! Dogfish, are you listening? Man, what is this stuff? I hesitate to call it "beer". I decided to first try this in a small wine glass at room temperature.....I think that was a mistake as Ms. Hops kicked me off my chair, spanked me, and called me Nancy. I chilled a glass in the freezer until it was cold and tried it again. This time Mr. Sweetmalt put me in a bear hug and wouldn't let go. I think the wine glass was an excellent idea as there is no way that I'd drink 375mls of this stuff, let alone 750mls. On one hand, I want to rate this low because it isn't a quaffable beer. On the other hand, I want to give it full marks just because of the crazyness of making the stuff in the first place and its incredible complexity. I decided to draw a line in between for the rating although at one level it deserves infinity. Don't look at this as a traditional beer, look at it as an alternative to a porto and drink it in those volumes. If you can drink an entire 750ml bottle of this stuff in one sitting, you are a far better man than I.

Bottled. Golden colour, white sparkling head. Big Cascade nose, with an alcohol note. Big on mandarin, with exotic fruits and new mowned hay in aroma. This is a fullbodied beer but not overly. It actually felt lighter and more balanced than DFH 90 min. Mandarin is also prominent in flavour, with notes of dried orange with a sweetish undertone. The bitterness feels very balanced. Tasty beer!

A nice hoppy alcoholic aroma. Wow. This has bite, but comes off just a little bit funky. Would never know how hight the alcohol is, but is certainly a nice beer.

Wow! This is not what I expected. This is a very sweet beer. There was not near as much flavor from the hops as I had antecipated. however when oyu first pour 120 Min IPA you are greated with a wonderful hop filled aroma. It pours with a golden-copper color, and has a rather viscous mouthfeel. The overwelming impression I’ll take from this beer is how incredibly seet it is. Certainly not a bad beer, just not what I expected.

I shared a 750ml bottle of this with my good friend, the venerable jgb9348. Temperature was about 55-60 F. It poured with astonishing golden clarity; no sediment, cloudiness or even a trace particle of anything could be found. Smell was extraordinarily intriguing: Massive malt, wholesome hops, abundant alcohol and precipitous pineapple. Yes, pineapple. Head was white, pretty, and shortlived, yet satisfying. I prepared my lips and mouth for a hop assault of the unheard of 120 IBU variety and took a taste: unencumbering apple/pineapple sweetness, the most polished, distinguishable hops I've ever come across, and tongue-wrapping malt. At this point two major things struck me: (1)The alcohol is not as mighty as I had expected, its very subdued, and (2) The malt here is overpowering the hops by a rate of atleast 3/1. If this brew had to be classified by a style, I'd say its most consistent with a barley wine. It certainly is not an IPA. Its remarkable how this brewery is capable of making such intricate products. This unquestionably was an appreciated surprise and a seizure from the ordinary.

Bottle. Pours a cloudy brownish-orange color with a thick white head. Nice lacing. Aroma has more malt than I’d think with a nice citrusy hoppy beers. Excellent mouthfeel. Flavor is strong in alcohol with an orange hint to it. Nice, sweet, and hoppy, but not overpowering. A solid beer.

bottle from brickskeller. criminy. aroma hits you like a hammer. hoppy, boozy. flavor is intense: loads of fruit, maltiness dominates and then the hops step in and dry it down to just the right level. i’m in heaven and i don’t consider myself a hophead.

On tap at the Blue Dog in Lansdale as part of a DFH tasting. Pours a translucent golden with a small white head that left decent lacing. Aromas is candied sugar, orange and a sweet maltiness. Flavor is sweet, real sweet but I actually like that about this. Alcohol picked up in the flavor. Almost a bit sticky yet nicely balanced. This is an extreme beer and I’lm glad I got a chance to check it out. Thanks to Rob (owner of the Blue Dog) for making sure I got free sample while we wait about an hour for a table at the joint. This thing gives you an instant buzz.