Flying Dog Wild Dog Schwarz

Brewed by Flying Dog Brewery
Style: Smoked
Frederick, Maryland USA

Sampled August 2009
A careful pour into my 25cl tulip glass produces an almost four-finger thick, lightly browned, tan colored head. The body is a black color with a hint of brown to it, when held up to the light it shows a hint of amber around the edges but remains an opaque black hue. The aroma smells of dark, roasted malt and smoked grain. The smoke is a bit on the soft side, though readily apparent, and when combined with the roasted, bitter dark grain aromatics it seems to lose the richness that many smoked beers have. Burnt bread like aromas, a touch of charcoal, toasted whole grain bread crust notes and a touch of burnt plum are all found in the nose as well. The aroma is not overly complex, but it is fairly nice any way. I do wish the aroma had more of a rich smokiness to it as well as a bit more malt complexity (some rich caramelized sweetness might be nice).

Despite sitting in my glass for over 10 minutes this is still quite frothy, foamy and overly effervescent as it first hits my tongue; luckily some vigorously swirling released the excess carbonation. This has a rich texture to it, it is viscous and has a malt heft to it that I found lacking in the aroma; dark cocoa notes and a rich dark malt sweetness up front is offset by bitter roast (almost has a dark cocoa bitterness to it) grain, a light smoky richness and even a touch of bitter hops are found in the finish. There almost seems to be a cherry like character in the finish at times as well. This beer is actually not really sweet, it does have a rich, complex, savory malt character to it that is boosted by the soft smokiness though. The flavor is much more integrated and complexly balanced than the nose was.

The excessive carbonation can be a bit annoying at first, luckily some persistent, aggressive swirling brings this down to a reasonable level. The initial, hard carbonation accentuates a burnt, roast vegetal note (that I find in some roasted grain / malt heavy beers) that is a touch off putting, but remains fairly light and does disappear as the carbonation does. In the end this beer is quite enjoyable, I like how the light smokiness makes this a rich tasting brew (even though the aroma is a touch too flat, though still enjoyable). Definitely another solid Wild Dog beer from this brewery.

Corked bottle
Black color, small head. It has a nice smokey and roasted malt aroma. Good body, good roasted malt flavor, with delicate smoke, creamy, almost fruity. Perfect bitterness. One of the most drinkable ones, very good.

Pours black, but not thick. Aroma is smoke and the typical reminders of bacon you often get from a smoked beer. Faint alcohol when you really huff at it. Flavor is of course dominated by smoke, but on the finish there is a faint chocolate note that keeps this from being a total one note beer. Actually not bad, and I suspect the smoke fanatics will love this, but it isn’t my favorite style typically. Still, this is quite a beer to go out on a limb with for a brewery, so I’m pleased to see Flying Dog going this direction.

750 ml bottle corked and caged shared by Tmoney99. Pours a clear dark brown with garnet highlights and a medium beige head. The aroma has a strong smoky aroma accompanied by roasted malt and chocolate. The flavor is nicely roasted and smoky. There is a chocolate component I enjoy. If it were a little thicker it would be like chewing on smoked meat. This turned out to be a very solid offering and a bit unexpected.

Tap at Blind Tiger. Deep amber beer. Thin head. The aroma is intensely smoky. Rich sweet beechwood smoke and some heavy sweet chewy cocoaish malts. Ther eis a soft clean dark maltiness. It’s actually quite clean and well-lagered. There is a lightly cocoaish character and a bit of salty/rich maltiness. It’s actually very tasty with a great balance of roast, chocolate and smoke. Very tasty smoked beer.

Pours dark brown with an off white head. Smells of sweet malt, some fruity undertones, spicy. Tastes of chocolate, some roasted malt. Enjoyable.

Courtesy of the man who couldn’t smell beer. Pours clear dark brown. Smell is sweet, tart, smoky and soy sauce. Taste is roasty, smoky, and nice. Medium to full body and normal carbonation. Pretty solid and an enjoyable beer.

Bottle. Pours a black color with a small tan head. Has a slightly sweetish roasted malty aroma with some hints of smoke. Also hints of alcohol in the aroma. Sweetish roasted malty licorice and caramel flavor with hints of smoke. Has a roasted malty licorice finish with smoky hints in the aftertaste.