Devil Dog Imperial IPA - Laughing Dog Brewing

UMNbeerhunter

Minnesota

3.58/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured into an HOtD tulip on 5/11/11.

Pours a dark honey yellow with a finger of slightly off white fluffy head. Head dissipates quickly leaving no lacing. Pretty color and head though I would have like more retention.

Smells of sweet malts and some fruit flavors. Some pine flavors as well.

Taste is of sweet malts and pine flavors, alcohol is present but really comes out when the beer warms up.

Mouthfeel is medium in weight and the resin leaves a bitter pine taste in the mouth.

Overall this is a good beer and I would like to have it again but its not a spectacular beer, mostly because it just feels that all its aspects are good but fail to shine.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2011 04:31:09 | More by UMNbeerhunter

bigred89

Maryland

3/5  rDev -21.1%

06-09-2013 23:01:55 | More by bigred89

TheBeerAlmanac

Kentucky

3.25/5  rDev -14.5%

06-08-2013 15:25:14 | More by TheBeerAlmanac

AndrewMichael

Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +18.4%

06-07-2013 21:24:03 | More by AndrewMichael

BRLockwood

Virginia

4/5  rDev +5.3%

05-27-2013 11:54:00 | More by BRLockwood

ItalianHopHead203

Connecticut

4/5  rDev +5.3%

05-21-2013 15:19:00 | More by ItalianHopHead203

TMoney2591

Illinois

2.65/5  rDev -30.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.25

Served in a Lagunitas mason jar.

I haven't tried too many of Laughing Dog's offerings since they've started coming through this area, but I'm fixing to rectify that. This case-in-point pours a clear orange-brass topped by a finger of bone foam. The nose comprises buttery biscuit, pine resin, pine needles, a hint of tobacco, and a sprig or two of mint. It's a mess of butter and clashing greenery. The taste follows suit, with a nice bit of alcohol on the back end to provide warmth and to exacerbate the battle already underway. The body is a lithe medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a sorta/kinda drying finish. Overall, this was just a mess of a beer, one that is riddled with butter and unwilling and seemingly unable to form any semblance of balance or peaceable interaction between this buttery juggernaut and the hops that seek to unseat him from power. Can't we all just get along?

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2013 01:04:01 | More by TMoney2591

infi

New York

3/5  rDev -21.1%

04-26-2013 16:26:12 | More by infi

LJC3

California

4.25/5  rDev +11.8%

04-01-2013 21:48:25 | More by LJC3

grahamboudreaux

Tennessee

4/5  rDev +5.3%

03-19-2013 10:56:58 | More by grahamboudreaux

chris1919

Florida

4/5  rDev +5.3%

03-11-2013 02:22:07 | More by chris1919

jondeelee

Massachusetts

4.31/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Devil Dog opens with a heavily sugary and citrusy nose, but with a surprisingly strong grain base that immediately speaks to a balanced and carefully crafted brew. Hops and sugars are still the most present aromas, however, mingling together in a lovely bittersweet blend of, from the former, pink grapefruit, grapefruit rind, dandelion stem, mint, anise, eucalyptus, rosewater, and lemon, and from the latter, huge rushes of orange, apricot, peach, nectarine, berry, cherry, and grape fruit esters, as well as brown sugars and thick, sticky caramel. The sheer volume and nuance of the hops and sugars is impressive, as is, despite the potency, the balance between the two, neither really overpowering the other. The rosewater, grapefruit, and sweet sugars particularly combine to create a candi sugar-like overtone, almost confectioner’s sugar-sweet in potency, but mixed with fruit esters to create a hard candy, Jolly Rancher aroma that, if it were actually made by Jolly Rancher, would probably revolutionize the industry. The grains also add Grape Nuts cereal, toast crust, and biscuit undertones, providing a sense of earthiness. As a whole, the nose is excellent, providing almost everything one could want in an Imperial IPA, and doing so in a classy manner that bespeaks a carefully vetted recipe and hours of careful labor.

On the tongue, the beer is far more hoppy and bitter than the nose let on, with dandelion stem, pine resin, grapefruit rind, mint, eucalyptus, pepper, and anise taking the lead to sear the tongue and soft palate, with bits of pink grapefruit and lemon oil adding touches of citrus. The sugars still bring loads of fruit esters, including orange oil, berry, cherry, and apricot, which combine with the citrusy notes to create a strange bubble gum-like overtone, which somewhat clashes with the heavy pine resins. Brown sugars and caramel add further sugary tones, balanced somewhat by toast crust, biscuit, and cereal grains. But it’s the hops that easily take the lead, the 98 IBUs biting in shark-like frenzy at the mouth, and flooding the tastebuds with bitter, citrusy, oily, piney resins. These also dominate the aftertaste, which lingers for a long time, utterly wrecking the palate for anything other than another sip of an equally hoppy brew. Mouthfeel is an oily medium to medium-strong, and carbonation is medium.

Overall, this is good beer, though fairly obviously not for the faint of heart. Anyone who’s not already a hophead will likely find this so bitter, resinous, and citrusy as to be somewhat unpalatable. Unfortunately, the sheer strength of the hops does largely overpower the other flavors, and the amount of strength the sugars lose from the nose to the tongue because of this is fairly large. Still, this is very much worth trying, as it’s difficult to imagine more hop flavor, and more varied and nuanced hop flavor at that, being shoved into a bottle. Just be aware that you’re not going to be able to taste pretty much anything else for a very long time after you’re finished.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2013 18:13:50 | More by jondeelee

Bin33chef

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%

01-15-2013 05:49:04 | More by Bin33chef

stereosforgeeks

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%

12-17-2012 22:18:44 | More by stereosforgeeks

JustDrink

4/5  rDev +5.3%

11-27-2012 01:34:22 | More by JustDrink

CHickman

New York

3.63/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Rattle-N-Hum in NYC: pours hazy amber orange with a creamy thick 1 finger white head that faded very slowly and left amazing lacing coating the sides and rings as it went down; just about perfect looking.

Smells of rich caramel, floral hops, candied sugar, hops, sweet malt, hops and light booze; not a hoppy nose per se, but still decent. It does not mask the ABV and let's it almost act as a warning.

Tastes of caramel, floral hops, dark fruit like cherry or plum, both brown and candied sugar, citrus hops, orange peel, sweet malt, grains, light yeast, grass and light booze; finish is not very bitter and trails off with a sweet cardboard flavor, and somehow manages to keep that 10% in check. More malt balance than expected for relatively easy drinkability considering the high ABV.

Mouthfeel is creamy and smooth, with average zesty carbonation, a chewy heavy body and a sweet finish that lingers like you just chewed part of an orange peel with a chuck of cardboard; it was oddly enjoyable to me.

Overall a nice slow sipper that was sweet and complex, with a strange ability to feel like it was a hop assault with a syrup like sweetness. Worth a shot, this was a unique brew.

Serving type: on-tap

10-27-2012 02:09:45 | More by CHickman

NCbeerpirate

North Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +18.4%

10-20-2012 03:44:44 | More by NCbeerpirate

DarthGuitarHero

Minnesota

4/5  rDev +5.3%

10-18-2012 17:40:55 | More by DarthGuitarHero

Ryanc23

3/5  rDev -21.1%

10-17-2012 18:52:25 | More by Ryanc23

BigTrubble

North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%

10-08-2012 00:38:02 | More by BigTrubble

Dave_Treat

Virginia

3.25/5  rDev -14.5%

09-27-2012 02:45:36 | More by Dave_Treat

penguinboat

4.25/5  rDev +11.8%

09-24-2012 17:19:26 | More by penguinboat

sansho

Tennessee

3.5/5  rDev -7.9%

09-21-2012 03:27:08 | More by sansho

ObiWanKushnobi

Minnesota

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%

09-13-2012 01:35:28 | More by ObiWanKushnobi

Mazarate

Virginia

3.5/5  rDev -7.9%

09-13-2012 00:32:29 | More by Mazarate