Brewer: Dogfish Head (Milton, DE)
Type: Brown Ale
ABV: 12.0%
Four Pack: $10.99
Michael Buffer should announce this beer before you drink it. It packs that kind of punch - which isn't surprising given it's high ABV. I haven't quite found the line of demarcation between a strong beer that I can remain somewhat coherent while drinking, and the level at which I'm better off locking myself in the garage with my beer, iPod and a bucket.
I know it's below 12%.
My biggest issue with many high-content brews over time has usually been the distinct, pure-alcohol flavor or after taste. I don't mind a beer that's going to kick my ass a bit, as long as at the end of the day, it still tastes like a beer. Too many (especially the barlewyine styles) taste more like whiskey cut with cough medicine.
The first sip of DFH's Palo Santo definitely had that pure-alcohol bitterness, but to it's credit it subsided very quickly, and once your palate adjusts, it gets smoother and smoother. Picture yourself diving into a freezing pool on a 99 degree day. The initial sting can be brutal but once you get acclimated, you're refreshed and energized.
As for how the beer actually tastes, it's nothing like other Brown Ales that you may have had. It's no Newcastle, it's no Brooklyn Brown, and it certainly ain't a Sierra Nevada Harvest. The most unique quality I found was, for lack of a better word, an oak-like faintness, much like you may find in a red wine.
Did I mention it was high in alcohol?
After about 3 of them, my wife was convinced it was mushroom tea in my pint glass. Enough said there.
I know it's below 12%.
My biggest issue with many high-content brews over time has usually been the distinct, pure-alcohol flavor or after taste. I don't mind a beer that's going to kick my ass a bit, as long as at the end of the day, it still tastes like a beer. Too many (especially the barlewyine styles) taste more like whiskey cut with cough medicine.
The first sip of DFH's Palo Santo definitely had that pure-alcohol bitterness, but to it's credit it subsided very quickly, and once your palate adjusts, it gets smoother and smoother. Picture yourself diving into a freezing pool on a 99 degree day. The initial sting can be brutal but once you get acclimated, you're refreshed and energized.
As for how the beer actually tastes, it's nothing like other Brown Ales that you may have had. It's no Newcastle, it's no Brooklyn Brown, and it certainly ain't a Sierra Nevada Harvest. The most unique quality I found was, for lack of a better word, an oak-like faintness, much like you may find in a red wine.
Did I mention it was high in alcohol?
After about 3 of them, my wife was convinced it was mushroom tea in my pint glass. Enough said there.
My final report card (numbered stats on a scale of 1-10):
Bang For The Buck: 6. It's expensive, no doubt. Hard time calling it a bargain. However, the experience is well worth it. Especially if you compare it to the street value of a hallucinogen.
Taste: 8. The bitterness fades as the flavors come out.
Drinkability: 7. Very smooth for a 12%'er but it's not the smoothest of drinks.
1 Makes You Feel: Like you drank a bottle of red wine.
3 Make You Feel: That you shouldn't be engaging in any conversations.
4 Make You Feel: There is no pain you are receding, A distant ship, smoke on the horizon. You are only coming through in waves. Your lips move but I can't hear what you're saying.
Ideal Musical Companion: The Wall.
Ideal Cheeseburger: Riiiiight, you're not eating
If this beer was an athlete, it'd be: Muhammad Ali. Dances like a butterfly, stings like a bee, and at the end of the night, nobody will understand a word you're saying. 
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