Flying Dog Wild Dog Barrel-Aged Gonzo

Brewed by Flying Dog Brewery
Style: Imperial/Strong Porter
Frederick, Maryland USA

750ML courtesy of Dorwart. My dad was sitting next to me and he said he could smell some sour cider aroma. Also wood and the big sweet aromas from most porters. Black body with big ocean foam milk shake colored head. Flavor was good dose of sweet and sour along with a creamy milk texture to body of beer. Also some wood and some hot chocolate like you would find on top of a heated pastery. Rather smooth on the palate with alcohol warming on the body but not overwhelming. Sweet wood linders with alcohol aftertaste. Good brew thanks Jason.

750 ml Bottle - Just tried a bottle of this - think it was pretty well a fresh late ’07 bottle (no date on it). I may have rated this higher had I not just tried a 2003 regular Gonzo (which was damned incredible - better than many Stouts and even Imperial Stouts I’ve had). This poured a dark brown almost black with a nice tan head. Aroma is of wood (no shit, oak), vanilla, hops, and chocolate malt. The taste is much of the same with vanilla and wood dominating. I definitely think this could be a 5 star beer after a few years. Recommended for aging.

Big thanks to MiguelMandingo for sharing this bottle!
Pours black with a nice tan head. Smell is oaky and hoppy, and nicely aromatic. Taste is roasty and the oak character really comes in as well, along with a good bit of hopping. Rich dark chocolately and dry with a medium body. Pretty solid beer all around.

750 ml bottle. Pours black with a massive long-lasting brown head that left lots of sticky lace on the glass. Very pleasant aroma of oak, vanilla, malt, and whiskey. The flavor is dominated by oak and vanilla up front. Licorice emerges as another flavor after several seconds. The whiskey is the final flavor component, and that lingers beyond the swallow. Warming alcohol presence at the finish. Smooth.

Bottle. Pours a deep black body with a large, frothy, mocha head. The aroma consists of lactic, burnt roasty malts and a touch of bourbon. The flavour is very roasty, hoppy, lactic, with a decent level of alcohol burn. Fairly dry and moderately abrasive but still very nice and not overdone as many BA beers tend to be.

750, capped, thanks skoisirus! Pours blackish brown with a creamy tan head. Rich aroma of chocolate and oaky vanilla. Medium body. I wish I could say the taste is an improvement on the regular version, but the oak seems to come in and stomp on things, rather than supporting them. It’s not overdone, it just doesn’t seem to contribute much. Or maybe my palate has already been stomped on too much this evening?

Big ups to kkearn for the Gift Box. Pours dark brown/black with a gigantic frothy, sticky, light brown head. Smell is somewhat subdued and smells mostly of bourbon, oak, and some vanilla. I keep having to remind myself that this is a porter and not an RIS. They’re different... right? Anyway, nothing about the taste is overpowering. The flavors of the oak and the bourbon are pretty well balanced and the smokiness of the base beer still comes through. Palate is thin, and even with all the head the carbonation is still subdued. Coats the mouth a bit. Tasty brew. Worth the price? Eh, no.

Black, big tan head. Nose is cocoa, booze, chocolate bar yum, honey, caramel, wood. Nose is smoky wood, tart alcohol, woody cherries. A well done BA beer.