Hair of the Dog Doggie Claws (2003-)

Brewed by Hair of the Dog Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Portland, Oregon USA

2003 offering. DAMN this is good. Pours a deep red-ish brown with a *very* nice head that lasts forever and leaves not a lace, but a *blanket* down the glass. I poured this and got called away for five minutes and it still had a great head. Yeah, it's that dense. Smells amazing - cloves and hops. Tastes as good, if not far better than any Barley Wine out there. It's sweet, but not like an Amber, this is far better balanced. Plenty of hops here, for sure. Wow. This is complex. Serious fruit esters abound. Mouthfeel is thick and full, yet still quite clensing. Overall, I'm really trying to find something to "ding" this as I've never given a perfect score. So help me, I can't find a flaw with this beer. Outstanding in every way. GET THIS BEER!!! As soon as I can get my hands one some cash, I'm going back for more of this. The bottle states that this beer was made to age, I can't wait to see what this is like in a few years.

Thanks Jimbo O. Pours a hazed roasted apricot color w/ a tall lasting froth. Good lacing w/ aromas of sweet, tart stonefruit nectar. Full nectar w/ a very creamy texture. Nice! Sweet and meaty w/ a defined mild tartness. Flavors from nectarines, plumbs, and apricot, including kiwi, pinapple, and caramel. The finish is long and savory. This brew has a moderate hop profile that does a good job in balancing this one out. It has an appealing milky texture that simply blows my mind. Good stuff man. Trump! This is the closest thing to Angels Share I have ever tasted.

One of the best beers I’ve had of this type. Strong, sweet, hoppy aroma, and hoppy taste.

2004 Just when i thought this brew couldn’t get any better the 2004 vintage is released. Not only is this brew absolutely amazing now, this thing could be aged for an even better taste, if thats even imaginable. Incredible hop aroma just attacks you as you open the bottle, must be all those dryhopped simcoes or something, there is also some nice spices and a faint fruitiness. The added hops to this years batch just really added to the taste and I will have to pick up more of these brews to cellar for a while. 2003 This brew is truely amazing. A dark red/brown color with a nice tan head that leaves decent lacing. The aroma is very well balanced with some sweet caramel malt and a nice light hop backing to it. Flavor has tons of roasty malts, caramel and almost a faint smokiness in the after taste. By far my favorite NW xmas brew.

12 oz bottle-trade w/after4ever-Pours a cloudy, murky orange color w/no head. Looks kind of rough. Wonderful floral fruity aroma. Very smooth, sweet, citrus, honey, spicy flavor. Long finish w/just a touch of bitterness. Very good balance, don’t really taste the alcohol at all, but it’s there! Really good stuff!! Thanks for this one!!

2005 vintage. This beer has a huge aroma of pine and hops that drifts out of the class and can be detected from over a foot a way. It fills the glass with a heavy sediment filled caramel colored solution that comes to rest under a thick cashew colored head. The head is not afraid to stick around or deposit a healthy amount of lacing on the perimeter of the glass. This beer fills the mouth with a thick, rich and sweet solution. The taste is of Hops! A hint of caramel drifts in briefly at the finish but it soon succumbs to the hops that linger on and on in the aftertaste.

2004 bottle: Dark brown color - very thick head. Deep rich aroma of hops, caramel, and sweet malts. Flavor is wonderfully smooth and balanced, notes of citrus, dark fruits, a little honey and a hint of spicyness. Seems the 2004 is at it’s peak now, can’t imaging it getting much better.

(2003 bottle) A slow pour successfully fit it all into a pint glass to reveal a beige head atop an otherwise clear garnet-brown body filled with tendrils of "smoke." As consumed, the "smoke" merges with the rest of the fluid into a murky mixture that leaves lovely lacing. Aroma is sweet, caramel, plum/raisin, grapefruit, some chocolate, pine, mint, alcohol, light smoke. Taste is sweet, chocolate, raisin/date, caramel, grapefruit, pine, some woody vinousness, light smoke, mint. The full body reveals the alcohol, but holds it very well, never letting it take over the beer. Light carbonation, resiny/sticky. Perfect for sipping. HotD has made a tremendous American-style barleywine, one they can show off with pride. Would that I could obtain this beer readily, or, at the very least, I had brought more bottles back with me from Portland.