Hair of the Dog Fred from the Wood

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

What a great beer. There is so much going on with this one that I bet I could drink one every day for a month and not quite get it all. Pours a deep amber, with a pencil thin head. Aroma is pineapple and cigars, with some peppercorn thrown in. Flavor expands on the aroma, light fruit, some citrus, spice, carmel, malt, vanilla, wood, and clove. Slight booziness that adds complexity and never takes away from the taste. The fruits come in and out, sometimes coming to the forefront, and sometimes staying in the background. The addition of vanilla from the oak is welcome, although I do miss some of the yeasty characteristics found in a lot of barleywines. Hits just the right notes of hops and clove, adds both a smokey quality and a piney hoppiness. This one is flat out fantastic, I loved it. I bet this one ages like a dream!

Nice aroma, lemony and some pepper. Pours light copper, thin white head. Complex and sophisticated flavour. Cinammon, spice, alcohol and some hops. Thanks Presario.

Pours a hazy golden amber with a small bubbly white head that dissipates very quickly to a ring and leaves traces of lacing. The aroma is extremely unique for a barleywine. It’s very sweet with light fruits and the caramel malts. This is balanced by the significant boozy oak aroma which also lends a vanilla sweetness in the end. Very different aroma...like white wine. The taste has a hit of the vanilla sweetness from the oak up front before being giving way to the big caramel malt backbone. There is a big alcohol burn in the finish balanced with a citrus hop bitterness. As others have mentioned, I’d compare much of the characteristics of the taste to white wine...interesting. Mouthfeel is creamy with soft carbonation that just coats the mouth in the woody sweetness. This is a very interesting brew and one that I’m enjoying slowly. I’m very interested to see what one of these tastes like in a couple years.

12oz. Amber with good lasting head. Rich alcohol and soft spice scent. Delicious alcohol spice flavour. Soft cloud-like body. Hint of peach. Very very very good. Too good to take notes, just sit back and enjoy.

Bottle thanks to BuckeyeBoy. Thanks! Poured a murky brown color with a thin layer of head that didn’t last long. Aroma was funky for sure, sweet, fruity, and tobacco. Taste was funky and different then anything I have had before, similar to the aroma along with alcohol, oak and dark fruits. Finish was smooth and complex. Not a huge fan but glad I tried it. ***Re-Rate*** Poured murky brown with thin head. Aroma was sweet wood, and a pepper tang. Taste was wood, slight pepper, little funk, and dark fruits. Enjoyed much more then the first bottle. Tasted much more well balanced and easier to drink with not as much funk. Glad I got to Re-Rate this one.

12 oz bottle shared by swolf3, thanks wolf. Weird muddy brown color, not much head. The aroma was funky, smelled just like tobacco but fruity as well. Flavor was close to the aroma, again the tobacco flavor, touch of dark fruits, oak, vanilla, and smoke. Smooth texture. Definetely complex but to be honest just not to my liking. I am glad I tried it but wouldnt buy or even want to try it again. Just different....Hats off to Alan for trying something unique, but I will have to stick to the regular FRED! Thanks wolf for sharing! ****UPDATE*** Wolf and I just shared another bottle. This one was much more balacnced.. Taste was sweet, touch of oak, malty... Really smooth. The first one we had was such a tobbacco bomb that we couldnt even finish it. This was one great!!!!

Dark rich oak and boozy flavors. Rich with intense length. Not the easiest brew to drink. 12oz bottle Toronado SD. Much better from the Wood than the regular. Not sure what batch. Drinking well and this brew could age for a really long time.

nose of vanilla, oak, caramel, hops, and some sticky toffee apples. the mouthfeel is so thick, and satisfying. Wow, what a flavour!! SUPER smooth, some really nice vanilla, and oak flavours topped off with more of that toffee apple, with a nice hoppy finish, with a lingering caramal. wow, what an amazing beer!