Hair of the Dog Ruth

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

12oz from Whole Foods Bowery, NYC. How funny that the odd beer out for HotD is their "normal" beer. You simply don’t expect a crisp, classic American ale from these folks. But it’s certainly as high quality as their rep suggests. Big and fizzy, with a creamy bready center and a fairly aggressive hop presence to give it a nice body and good drinkability. Just a trace of funk in there, as if it’s a farmhouse crossed with a pale. Good stuff.

Pours a fully fogged in orange gold with a nice sized off white head. Nose is sugar and funk. Fruit skins are there as well. Flavor is very hoppy, but kind of inky as well a bit? There is a real interesting edge to this one. Lots of funk. That yeast seems to be killing it a bit though. Interesting, but too much so for it’s own good. There is a fairly high carbonation coming here and the big bubbles just attack the tongue. The liquid feel is kind of odd with a weird coating of the mouth, like I just took a mouthful of liquid medicine. Overall this one is okay. I don’t think it is bad, but it’s balance is very unusual. You will either love this beer, hate it, or be dead center about it, I think. For me, I am dead center. Nice to try. Nice to be moving on.

From bottle, courtesy TopherDrinks : Pours a light, hazy carbonated apricot color, with a small foamy head that dies fast. Nose of fruits and hops and spices. Taste starts out with bitterness, then works to some of the fruity tasting malts. But overall has the feel of an APA kinda, i like it. Palate is pretty thin and very drinkable, smooth on the way down. Much enjoyed.

Very nice aroma. Fruity. Peaches and cream, pinapple, lemon, orange, tangerine, clementines and a little alcohol and some spices. Mild spices to round out the sweet fruits was nice. Taste had a faint bitterness and some earthiness to go along with the creamy delicious malty fruity goodness.

Pours a hazy orange with know head. (Lord knows I tried to make one, it just wouldn’t form!) Nose is complex with a sweetness balancing a slight bitterness. Interesting. The flavor is somewhat like sweet grapefruit. Mouthfeel is a bit creamy, but overall, just o.k.

12oz bottle. Pours a cloudy yellowish orange color with a thin white head that hangs around for a while on the brew. I put the beer to my mouth for the first drink and got a big whiff of that very sweet kind of Belgian maltiness. Taste is rather subdued. Just a crisp malt flavor really. Thin and very, very crisp with lots of carbonation. You could drink this all night but you could probably find something tastier to drink.

Pours a hazy gold with a thin head and lacing. Smells nice and hoppy, floral, sweet malts and citrus. Tastes sweet and malty, hoppy, some citrus rind, very balanced with a bitter finish. Feels light in the mouth with lively carbonation. Very drinkable.

Bottle; poured a slightly hazy yellow with large white head. Aroma had a dry hop and vegetable essence to it; citrus and grass as well. Some creaminess on what was a pretty light palate. Some sweetness and bitterness in the finish. Grass, yeast, citrus, lemon and toffee as well.