Raison D'Être - Dogfish Head Brewery

Raynae

4/5  rDev +9%

12-31-2012 22:06:00 | More by Raynae

megamass

New Jersey

3.5/5  rDev -4.6%

05-18-2013 04:11:29 | More by megamass

SmellsofMahagony

Texas

4/5  rDev +9%

05-18-2013 02:59:24 | More by SmellsofMahagony

Honus1

Ohio

3/5  rDev -18.3%

05-18-2013 02:51:27 | More by Honus1

purppy

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -4.6%

05-18-2013 01:03:55 | More by purppy

sodensp

Virginia

3/5  rDev -18.3%

05-17-2013 06:01:25 | More by sodensp

Jsmick

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -4.6%

05-17-2013 05:04:32 | More by Jsmick

ElizabethEleanor

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +15.8%

05-17-2013 03:25:56 | More by ElizabethEleanor

Kunstman

Wisconsin

4/5  rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into a New Glarus proprietary tasting glass. Bottled 7/20/2012.

A: Brown with copper hues, no haze. One finger tan head, no lacing. Let's say 18 degrees SRM.

S: Sweet molasses, brown sugar, dark fruit - mostly raisons. Grape, maybe? For 8% ABV no alcohol detected.

T: Dark fruit, brown sugar, prune/raisin. Sweet and malty with no hops detected - in true fashion for this style.

M: Full, thick body. Not as much carbonation as I am used to with this the few examples I have had in this style. However, I enjoy the lack of ‘over carbonation'.

O: An excellent beer. I haven't had a bad Belgian Strong Dark yet, and this one is arguably my favorite.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2013 02:51:41 | More by Kunstman

Roman5150

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.25

bottle into snifter

appearance: dark brown with a ruby red hue, slight half finger white head

smell: heavy raisins, plums, dark fruits, licorice, anise, subtle roasted malt, bready notes, caramel

taste: dark fruits, plums, sort of like a watered down trappist with raisin notes. malt backbone is very sweet, not much hoppiness

mouthfeel: high carbonation with a full body

overall: A great offering from Dogfish Head, while it's hard to classify most of their beers, I would say this is their take on a trappist ale with a slight raisin touch. Very well balanced and I would buy this again in a heartbeat, if you like trappist beers, belgian strong ales, or trippels (and quads) you can find some common ground here. Great beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2013 03:39:33 | More by Roman5150

SebD

Ontario (Canada)

4.04/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

From notes

Appearance: It has a nice hazy orangy/amber color to it. It has a nice off-white head that dies down somewhat fast and leaves next to no lacing.

Smell: The aromas definitely give out hints of sweet dark fruit (raisins), brown sugar, some roasted malts and some yeast.

Taste: Like the aromas, it has a some dark fruit, roasted malts, mild chocolate, brown sugar and Belgian Candi sugar.

Mouthfeel: It has a medium carbonation with a nice overall balance and feel.

Drinkability: It's a very smooth drinkable beer accompanied with good flavors and aromas.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2013 22:55:40 | More by SebD

aLenwell

Florida

3.5/5  rDev -4.6%

05-13-2013 23:23:43 | More by aLenwell

jkball01

Kentucky

2.75/5  rDev -25.1%

05-13-2013 16:29:04 | More by jkball01

Greggggggg

New Jersey

5/5  rDev +36.2%

05-13-2013 16:14:19 | More by Greggggggg

Bonko_the_sane

North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev +2.2%

05-13-2013 05:14:39 | More by Bonko_the_sane

jokulhaps

Virginia

3.25/5  rDev -11.4%

05-13-2013 02:38:35 | More by jokulhaps

MLKincer

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +22.6%

05-13-2013 02:01:57 | More by MLKincer

seydou

South Africa

3.3/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured out of the bottle. Very little head that dissipated quickly and an uninspiring semi-see through caramel color. Smells really faintly fruity and beery.

Taste is immediately quite strong and very complex. Starts sweet, a clear taste of alcohol. Extremely bright and refuses to be ignored. Tartness appears partways through the taste. Not bad, but also not great. Almost a beer better to be sampled than a whole bottle had.

Very, very bubbly on the tongue. In a good way.

Overall, a beer that definitely stands out yet somehow remains pretty average for me. I probably wouldn't buy this again.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2013 02:00:47 | More by seydou

GFD400

New York

4/5  rDev +9%

05-12-2013 22:44:03 | More by GFD400

ShanShantheRocket

New York

4/5  rDev +9%

05-12-2013 20:37:20 | More by ShanShantheRocket

Noonan425

Ohio

4/5  rDev +9%

05-12-2013 02:01:40 | More by Noonan425

sevenarts

New York

3.25/5  rDev -11.4%

05-11-2013 22:32:31 | More by sevenarts

fredmugs

Indiana

4/5  rDev +9%

05-11-2013 15:02:27 | More by fredmugs

twenty5

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +9%

05-10-2013 17:53:23 | More by twenty5

maxcoinage

Illinois

4/5  rDev +9%

05-10-2013 06:21:45 | More by maxcoinage