Hair of the Dog Cherry Adam from the Wood

Brewed by Hair of the Dog Brewing Company
Style: Traditional Ale
Portland, Oregon USA

Bottle courtesy of the generous Reino poured into a tulip. Pours dark reddish brown out of the bottle before settling in almost completely black in the glass. There is a small tan head on top that I’m convinced has hints of purple in it. The aroma is big and is an interesting mix of cherries, caramel malt, toffee, chocolate and booze. There’s certainly a sweet woody character to the nose with lots molasses sweetness in the background to balance it out. The taste does follow the nose pretty closely with a massive caramel malt base underpinning everything else. There are sweet cherries, chocolate and dark fruit. The finish has plenty of bourbon and is quite dry with a woody wine-like finish. The mouthfeel is fairly full-bodied and very sticky sweet. The wood imparts a bit of dryness that balances the massive sweetness. Another great beer from HotD and while this doesn’t quite stack up to the original Adam for me, the twists definitely make for a unique and tasty brew.

12oz Bottle from Higgins... Poured an opaque black with a thin, bubbly, khaki head. The head faded quickly and the beer just looked like flat soda pop. Aroma consisted of strong bourbon and fruit juice. A lot of dark malt notes in the initial flavors with a big alcohol punch. The cherries didn’t show through until the finish as they were a sweet counterpart to the bitter alcohol. Also a little bit of cocoa notes aided with masking the bitter bourbon-esq alcohol flavors. As it warmed the flavors had become a little more like red wine. Besides the ugly pour this was an incredible beer. [Update] Poured from a keg @ AnniBrew 2 Barrel Aged Beer Festival... A thick, beige head this time with a more smoked character overall to the beer. Bumped up the appearance rating on this one.

Thanks to Bobby91w for sharing this one. Pours a fizzy looking black with a red hue...looks like a Cherry Coke. Aroma is nice, lots of chocolate covered cherries, wood, vanilla, and a touch of dark fruit. Flavor delivers on the chocolate covered cherries, with hints of cola, vanilla, candied fruit. Balanced mouthfeel; no real stickiness. Very nice.

Pours dark brown with a bit of head. Nose is big and chocolaty with just a bit a woody character. Flavor is a blend of chocolate oak and raisin. Not sure I get a lot cherry. Med full body. Balanced finish with some heat. Thanks for sharing Bobby91w.

Bottle: Poured a deep black color ale with some reddish notes and alight foamy head with minimal retention and no lacing. Aroma of bourbon and light cherry with a well rounded malt backbone. Taste is very complex mix of bourbon, cherries, smoke and tar with a heavy dose of sweet malt. Full body with limited filtration and no carbonation and almost no carbonation. Very complex and very satisfying – another great beer coming from a very creative brewer.

Bottle sampled at WeeHeavySD’s place during J&J’s Friday the 13th Tasting. Kind of a backlogged rating, so I’ll have to check it again on the next go-around. What I have from my notes: Pours a deep brown color with a black center and mahogany edges. A light tan ring of carbonation coats the glass. Aroma is chocolate malts, earthy but restrained oak tones, and a sweet fruity element from the cherries. Smooth, easily-transitioned flavor of dark chocolate, tobacco, light leather and a sweet, mildly tart cherry finish. Both barrels lend a bit of character; I thought the Sherry was a bit more prominent. Very smooth on the palate. Overall, very good, but it will never stack up to the original Adam from the Wood.

courtesy of BA trader. What an amazing beer. Pours dark ruby with a thinly disappearing mahogany head. Aroma is just of pure enjoyment. Loaded with cherries and a strong bourbon and sherry that engulfs the nose with a good alcohol presence. Taste is full flavor cherry and sherry barrels with some bourbon and faint vanilla. There is a substantial amount of alcohol heat that covers the palate. Overly sweet with a very faint tart finish coupled with notes of malts/caramel. This was one hard bottle to put down. Complex and pure goodness to enjoy.

Bottle sampled @ Hellbilly’s Hellraiser 3.0 Tasting via psprings...WOW...PAUL ROCKS!!! Garnet in color with a small eggshell head. Flavors of prune, plum, raisin and, yes, cherry combine beautifully with leather, tobacco, and brown sugar. Aroma includes oak, bourbon, and dark ripe fruit. Medium mouthfeel...delicious!!!