Dogfish Head Immort Ale

Brewed by Dogfish Head Brewery
Style: Barley Wine
Milton, Delaware USA

Clear brown pour with a red tint. Fluffy beige head. Hoppy aroma with a some alcohol, a bit of caramel, but really not much going on. Way to sweet, but my drain liked it just fine.

Hard to believe this is characterized as a barley wine style beer. If it really is, i’d have to say this is the best of it’s kind. Can definitely identify the maple, oak, and vanilla in the aroma and taste. The only thing resembling a barleywine is the chewy palate and the high alcohol content which is delightfully not present in the taste. A night capper for sure, great winter beer or just for taking it slow.

Bottle. Pours garnet and orange with a small white head. Aroma of vanilla, oak, Vermont maple sugar candy, roasted chocolate malt, and a touch of alcohol-soaked raspberries. Initially, rich and thick in my mouth, very smooth, with a surprising smokiness. This fades to sweet roasted malt, maple sugar, and lingers with a warming, sour boozy finish. Different from any other beer of the style that I’ve encountered, but not in a negative way. It’s nice to find a creative take on the style. Glad I’ve got a few more of these.

A dark, sweet ale. Not a barleywine in my opinion. Slight hint of the Belgian yeast, but not overdone. Syrupy, sweet, earthy, woody. Good beer. The lack of hops surprizes me, coming from Dogfish. You should try this one.

12 oz. bottle purchased at Whole Foods in Bellevue, WA. Pours a deep reddish brown color with a cream-colored head. Aroma: Smoke, vanilla, and sweet malt. Flavor: Just like the aroma, with the obvious hint of maple syrup.

Pours a deep brown with some red, decent head that fades with time, good lace. Nose is sweet malt, cherries, alcohol, grapes. Taste is sweet fruits, cherries, moving into vanilla, smoke, and very noticeable oak. Finishes with a lasting warming alcohol sensation. I love beer like this, it has a complexity to it that works, with almost no presence of hops. Delicious!

Serving: 12 oz. bottle. Appearance: Hazy, deep red with a small, foamy, off-white head. The head is pretty quick to fade. Aroma: Ripe fruit, vanilla, cherries, slight peat note, some medicinal notes, almost scotch like. Taste: Deep, ripe fruit, dark cherry, peat, oak, vanilla, dark honey. Very complex. Warming alcohol on the back end. Palate: Medium carbonation with a rich body but slightly dry mouthfeel. Dry, oaky, medium finish. Overall: This is a massive beer. As the label states, it is luscious and complex. Still, I have never been a fan of medicinal notes in my beer. It reminds me just a bit too much of an islay scotch. Would I buy it again: No. I enjoyed trying it once, but it is not a beer I will be going back to. It just isn’t my kind of beer.