Raison D'Extra - Dogfish Head Brewery

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BA SCORE
89
good
-
741 Ratings

rAvg: 3.97
pDev: 16.12%
Reviews: 569
Hads: 172

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Dogfish Head Brewery

Delaware, United States

Style | ABV
Belgian Strong Dark Ale | 18.00% ABV

Availability: Rotating. bottle (554), on-tap (14), nitro-tap (1).

Notes:
This beer is retired; no longer brewed.

A bigger, bolder version of our Raison Raison D'Être.

This is a bulbous, brown ale brewed with a bunch of malt, brown sugar and raisins.

40 IBU

Reviews

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Reviews by BeerFMAndy:

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

4.28/5 rDev +7.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a snifter.
18% ABV, Bottled on (hard to make out- '06 some time)
[Reviewed on 06-08-11 - from notes]

A - Brilliant clarity and color, Raison D'Extra has a sexy Merlot-hued dark mahogany color. Almost no head forms and the loose, effervescent tan bubbles that do are driven off by alcohol almost immediately. Legs-city!

S - Heavy boozy, solvent alcohol does a good job of burning the nostrils right off the bat. Belgian yeast undertones flourish timidly white fruity raisin and prune billow fourth. Subtle nuances are largely overrun by burning alcohol heat.

T - Surprisingly, shocking even, Raison D'Extra is much more mellow in flavor than aroma. Sweet raisin and bold caramel malt step it up and keep the hops and alcohol flavors at bay. Subtle Belgian nuances play with earth hints and light clay in the background.

M - Smooth and soft, almost all traces of carbonation have been fended off by the incredibly warm alcohol. Warm and solventy in feel but not burning at all, it's warm in the stomach and retronasally.

O - Holy crap is this a huge brew. Thankfully the extremely boozy aroma didn't make it through the to the flavor allowing tons of nuances hidden behind layers of malt to arise. This is quite and enjoyable beer but it'll take a while to finish.

Serving type: bottle

02-09-2013 21:51:24 | More by BeerFMAndy

More User Reviews:

Slatetank

Pennsylvania

4/5 rDev +0.8%

05-20-2013 22:27:54 | More by Slatetank

smithj4

New York

4.5/5 rDev +13.4%

05-19-2013 02:45:33 | More by smithj4

dbrauneis

New Jersey

4.01/5 rDev +1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A: Pours a hazy dark reddish brown in color with minimal amounts of visible carbonation and some garnet red highlights. The beer has a minimal amount of light beige head that quickly reduces to a very thin ring at the edges of the glass. Minimal amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Moderate to strong aromas of dark fruits (raisins, prunes, and plums) and candi sugar.

T: Overall this beer is pretty sweet, with moderate to strong flavors of dark fruit malt sweetness with raisin, prune, and plum all making a strong presence. There is a strong presence of candi sugar as well which contributes to the overall sweetness.

M: Full bodied with light amounts of carbonation. Syrupy with light amounts of alcohol warming.

O: It is a shame that DFH stopped making this beer and continues to make the Raison D'Etre (the watered down version of this beer) - I would love to see DFH pull this one out once every 3-5 years as it is so much better. Nice amounts of complexity but it is not the easiest beer to drink as the alcohol is not as well hidden as would appeal to the masses.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 02:44:56 | More by dbrauneis