Deluxe Organic Ale (DOA) - Hopworks Urban Brewery

MaltsOfGlory

Oregon

3.9/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I'm pretty sure the only other strong ale I have had is Arrogant Bastard. I just cracked open the bottle and it really smells nothing like Arrogant Bastard, so we shall see. Pours maybe a one finger head into my standard pint glass. The beer was fighting me in the way of head, I poured it pretty aggressively and it only gave me a little bit. The head is about 50% small bubbles, 25% big bubbles and 25% medium bubbles, not really creamy or soapy or anything like that, just looks like your standard head. It might be just a hair off white in color. We will see about lacing once I start to drink the beer, head retention is decent, but I didn't get a whole lot to start out with. The body is somewhat see through, but dark enough that I can't see all too much. The body is a dark orange with hints or red in it, I will say that it looks somewhat similar to Arrogant Bastard. Carbonation looks about medium. Like I said we will see how the lacing goes, but so far I am liking the look of this beer. The head has gone substantially but there is still a solid layer of foam on top of the body. Now that I'm smelling it for a second time....not much has changed, it still doesn't smell anything like Arrogant Bastard. It's a pretty standard ale smell, decent amount of hops, maybe a touch more malts than hops. Pretty clean smelling, refreshing, etc. Maybe some roasted or caramel malts. I do get a bit of a yeast smell in here, which is a little surprising. There isn't much in the way of alcohol on the nose, which is good. Overall it smells good, just very standard and really nothing to write home about. That's a very interesting beer, just like the last Hopworks beer I had was. It's really hitting me at all angles and I can't tell if I like it or not. There really isn't one dominating flavor, but I'll try to just start from the beginning. There are some hops in here, but they are for sure less than the malts, again though, like with the last Hopworks beer, the malts aren't super overpowering, which is good. This beer is very sweet, but not overly sweet, one thing this brewery does great is not overdoing it in any category, with that being said, they have so far underdone it a tiny bit in the hops category, this beer included. I do get a very nice like...maybe holiday spice in the background of this beer, maybe cinnamon or something like that? It's very nice, hard to identify, but it adds character to a beer that is already pretty complex. There also may be just a hair of fruit in here, but it is very small if there is any. There is more of an alcohol presence than I thought there would be, but frankly it adds a nice touch to the flavor. When I first sipped this beer I really wasn't going too nuts over it, I was thinking 3.5, but now that I've had a few more sips it's kinda growing on me, I'm thinking 4, because it's not a bad tasting beer, and it's very very complex. Maybe it even deserves more than a 4, but for now I'm not going to make any big leaps. Mouthfeel is about where it should be, the body is a little thin for my liking, but I suppose it's big enough for the style. The alcohol leaves a bite in your mouth and that really dominates the mouthfeel. Carbonation is pretty low and doesn't affect the mouthfeel much. Overall a pretty good mouthfeel. Drinkability is....eh, not bad. The alcohol is for sure more present than I thought it would be when I smelled the beer, but it's not ridiculous and it adds to the flavor of the beer nicely. It's really not a hard beer to drink, it goes down pretty well for a strong ale. Overall this is a pretty dang good beer, super complex and not a bad flavor at all. The beer really grew on me, and I can for sure give it a solid 4 for taste. As for appearance, the lacing was just like the last Hopworks beer I had, amazing to start out with, and then got very patchy, still a solid 4 because of the lacing to start out with and the good looking body. Overall a pretty good beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2011 10:18:14 | More by MaltsOfGlory

dgilks

Australia

3.48/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Clear dark amber colour with a creamy white head. Great lacing.

Nutty caramelised malt aroma. There's also some fruity yeast notes. At the same time the aroma is a touch dull.

Creamy caramel malts with a dose of earthy hops in the finish. A touch bitter but balanced towards the malt.

Medium-full body with moderate carbonation. Nice.

A decent beer but the aroma and flavour don't have anything special about them. A little dull.

Serving type: on-tap

08-08-2011 11:19:11 | More by dgilks

Beerenauslese

California

4.08/5  rDev +9.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

This beer doesn't really fit the bill of an American Strong Ale. Never gonna compete with other strong ales like Matt and Melange #3. This would be better classified as a pale ale or even a red ale.

Body is a reddish gold, with a thick sudsy head with good retention.

Smells of malt and earthy hops. Some brown sugar sweetness.

Tastes of sweet malt and earthy hops. Has a sweet malt kick on the tongue that a red ale might have. Some fruity esters too, with elements of tropical fruits/pineapple. While this has a pretty big malt bill and sweetness, the hops work to balance this out a bit, but not completely.

Body is medium, with moderate carbonation, providing a creamy mouthfeel.

A good beer, definitely liking the taste of the sweet organic malts with the fruity esters, but this remains rather sweet overall. This is a hard beer to categorize. Nevertheless, another good entry from HUB. A pretty drinkable beer, but I would move on after one of these to something less malty.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2011 02:08:40 | More by Beerenauslese

notchucknorris

California

3.28/5  rDev -12.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Slightly cloudy burnt orange color with a 1/2 finger tan head.

S: It took a lot of effort to pick up much of a smell in this one. After I put it in a snifter, I could pick up some faint aromas of dried mango, orange peel and burnt manzanita wood. There are interesting smells here, they're just hard to get to.

T: The taste was pretty thin as well. Lemon and a bit of hop sourness but not much of a hop bite. The hops seemed a bit faded to me. Big bready malts on the finish. Glad I got to try this, but I probably wouldn't rush to try another.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2011 16:57:14 | More by notchucknorris

aaron12

Washington

3.38/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

dry hops, fades into light malts... weird, i really don't know what this beer is...? american strong ale? ok, but i don't know about that. it's almost like an imperial pale ale, or a strong esb. i like it, but it's confusing. not the strongest nose, light hop smell, it smells like an ipa. you don't taste the alcohol, and the malt comes in at the end. well... for those days when you want to drink something easy, but still get a buzz, (from something that's still classy) this will do the trick.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2011 01:16:31 | More by aaron12

Jeriba

Arizona

3.93/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

After tasting their Abominable Winter Ale, I was determined to try more Hopworks brews.

A: heavy off-white head that lingers, with some good lacing. Clear cider-colored brew.

S: Lemons, apple, pine hop favors, and some fruitiness.

T: Tart apple, berry and sour citrus with a good malt balance.

M: Bubbly, crisp, but slightly watery.

D: Good, and Hopworks gets an extra point for producing a well-priced organic beer, but I would like more flavor.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2011 06:41:10 | More by Jeriba

froghop

Washington

3.03/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

pours a semi-cloudy dark amber-red a small off white head, and good lacing.

smell is of malt, a little sweetness, and caramel.

taste is slightly oily, sweet, caramel, an organic background, malt, and some hops in the back, ends with a slight organic funk aftertaste.

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2010 23:23:03 | More by froghop

beertunes

Washington

3.23/5  rDev -13.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Not really sure how a sub-7% beer gets listed as a "Strong Ale", but, whatever. This my first beer from HUB and basically this is a hoppy Red Ale. This beer has a nice copper color with just an inch of off-white head that had good retention and lacing.

A nicely hoppy aroma isn't overpowering and has a bit of malt in the background. There is a bit more of a malt presence on the tongue and the hops dominate.

The body is decent, but on the thin side of either style. Drinkabiloity was good, but I think I'd get bored quickly with this beer. Overall, a decent beer that's worth your time if you see it.

Serving type: bottle

06-27-2010 21:09:34 | More by beertunes

djbreezy

Washington

3.68/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On-tap at Gold Dust Meridian in Portland, OR. Pint glass.

appearance - pours a glowing orange, foamy head with good retention and spotty lacing

smell - sweet light hops and caramel malt

taste - honey, caramel malt, light hops, alcohol, not much complexity, a bit bitter

mouthfeel - carbonated, medium bodied, dry finish

drinkability - the alcohol presence hurts this one for me, but it's not a bad beer, although Hopworks makes much better stuff

Serving type: on-tap

05-21-2010 17:43:07 | More by djbreezy

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

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

"(Deluxe Organic Ale is) strong like bull but sweet like your momma."

--H.U.B. website

Perfectly pleasing pumpkin orange with a fiery topaz-like glow when backlit with sunshine. A thick chunk of toasted oatmeal colored foam resides on top, melts slooowy, and does a fine job festooning the glass with scattered sheets of suds.

The nose is less than impressive. DOA smells like a lower alcohol 'golden' barleywine, with no distinctive darker malts or recognizable hops. Cascade, Centennial, Columbus, Simcoe, Amarillo, et al, may be done to death, but it's because they provide fantastic flavor.

This offering tastes like the nose said it would. Highly-hopped quasi-Imperial Oktoberfest works as well. Trouble is, I'm not a fan of malt bills like this and hop bitterness without good hop flavor. This is shaping up to be my least favorite H.U.B. brew so far.

The malts taste mostly pale, with something moderately toasted (Munich, Victory) lending a helping hand. The hops are orange peel-like and are otherwise unimpressive from a flavor standpoint. The absence of stronger flavors is probably the biggest reason why the alcohol isn't buried as well as it could be. The ABV seems more like 8.9% than 6.9%.

Mouthfeel (along with appearance) is the highlight of this experience. The beer has a glassy smooth richness that one doesn't often experience at less than 8.0%. Nicely integrated bubbles provide exactly the right amount of lift and life.

Keeping in mind the small percentage of their lineup that I've had so far, Hopworks Urban Brewery knows their stuff. Their IPA is some kind of amazing and Crosstown Pale Ale and Survial "Seven Grain" Stout are excellent as well. Deluxe Organic Ale seems pedestrian in comparison, but I guess 'different strokes for different folks' is what makes the world go round.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2010 14:32:14 | More by BuckeyeNation

tempest

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Split a bottle at Belmont Station. Man, this yet another great beer from Hopworks. It comes off sort of like an extra big ESB. The malt has a delicious sugar cookie taste that's backed up by a spicy hop kick. Overall this is a well-balanced strong ale with a lot of character. Check it out.

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2010 02:10:36 | More by tempest

GreenCard

Oregon

3.78/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: copper-orange, fairly clear, big layer of off-white spongey foam that stays around forever

Aroma: lush biscuity caramel and passion-fruit hops

Flavor: robust malt sweetness laced with more passion-fruit and a touch of citrus; caramel, a hit of peppery alcohol, and a pretty smooth bitterness reaching into the semisweet finish

Mouthfeel: medium body, gentle carbonation, and a slickness in the mouth

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2010 01:18:53 | More by GreenCard

bret27

California

3.53/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

bottle courtesy of guy411

Deluxe organic ale? bottle makes no statement to clarify that. This site lists it as a strong ale. Well... at least we know it's not full of chemicals.

S: bready, yeasty, floral hops

A: lite golden amber. off-white foamy head

T: honey, hops, sweet, caramel, minimal bitter hop bite.

M/D: medium/thin body. Fairly sweet and lite. Don't really taste etoh.

Overall: Kind of pale ale-ish. Seems a little off. Drinkable, but not really memorable.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2010 07:20:53 | More by bret27

illidurit

California

3.18/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle courtesy Guy411. Pours a clear dark gold/amber color with a thin beige froth. Aroma is heavy on iced tea crystal malt character, with some perfumey hops. Flavor is again crystal malt with some breadiness and vague fruity hops. Light bitterness. Drinkable but possibly not fresh.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2010 21:29:04 | More by illidurit

Wetpaperbag

Washington

3.53/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A- Golden reddish hazy brew with a good clingy lacing.

S- Caramel, chocolate, and malts. This has a huge malt presence in the nose.

T- I'm getting what I smelled, caramel and a slight bitter chocolate, with a huge bitterness in the end. But I'm getting what almost tastes like a lager yeast taste too. Not too bad of a brew.

M- Easy on the mouth, medium bodied, not thin or thick.

D- Good drinking brew, over all not too bad.

With American Strong Ale being a cluster fuck of a style it is hard to nail down any specific characteristics that help in reviewing vs other ASA. This is however different then most I've had, maltier by far.

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2010 04:51:19 | More by Wetpaperbag

PDXHops

South Carolina

4/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bomber, poured into a snifter.

See-thru amber with 2 fingers of fluffy cream-colored head. Nice retention and pretty good lacing.

Quite a sweet-smeeling brew, with plentiful caramel, baked apples, and a fairly strong orange/tangerine citrusy qualilty. A bit of grass and grain underneath the sweetness.

The grass and grain are more pronounced in the mouth. In combo with a plentiful caramel sweetness, this makes for quite a robust, multifaceted malt profile. The moderate citrus flavors team up with the caramel to make a nice juicy mouthfeel. Medium-bodied, moderate carbonation.

Overall impression: Solid brew from Hopworks.

Serving type: bottle

11-11-2009 20:14:53 | More by PDXHops

mjl21

California

3.68/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Purchased at Belmont Station in Portland for $4.99. 22 ounce bottle poured into a SA perfect pint glass. Comes in at 6.9%. No bottling info is given.

A-Pours a clear amber with some reddish hue. It has a one finger off white head that stays at a nice foamy/craggy layer. Leaves some nice looking lace.

S-It reminds me of a fresh hop beer with lots of grapefruit from what I assume are Cascade hops that are not over the top. There is some lightly toasted biscuit malt. I also get some bubblegum and some alcohol.

T-The grapefruit and the biscuit malt dominate the flavor equally. Grapefruit bitterness is strong in the aftertaste and there is also some noticeable booze.

M-Medium bodied, lightly carbonated, and creamy.

D-Defintely a grapefruit dominant beer. I found the booze to be distracting for a pale ale.

This is my least favorite of the HUB beers. The alcohol was too apparent. I'd rather have their IPA or Organic Red.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2009 03:34:58 | More by mjl21

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

3.95/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours out a clear, dark amber body layered with a sudsy, white head.

Smell: Aroma smelling of caramel-coated malts, hints of toast, hints of bread, citrus fruits, spicy herbs, and just a touch of standard pine.

Taste: Malty beginning with bready, faintly grainy tastes and a decidedly candied caramel sweetness. Hops display citrus, pine, and an earthy herbal quality as well as even a hint of spiciness. Medium-high bitterness present. Some additional fruitiness lurking within. Finishes bittersweet.

Mouthfeel: Just a hair above medium-bodied. Medium carbonation.

Drinkability: A bit reminiscent of Stone's Arrogant Bastard and Terrapin's Big Hoppy Monster, but that could just as easily be the deranged thoughts of a alcohol-ravaged mind. A nicely bold brew that offers plenty of malts, hops, and satisfying booze.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2009 04:17:15 | More by ChainGangGuy

Reidrover

Oregon

3.38/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22 oz bomber, Dang all froth with a careful pour..I hate these types of bottled beers. After the froth monster calms down it appears to be a murky brown ale, with still a huge tan head..thick and bubbly. Aroma? quite subdued but i get English toffee malt hints.. Taste is mainlly malty,,sweet ,caramel, fudge.Little hop in the end lucky i like sweet malt-bombs! Palate is just fine for style, thick yet smooth, goes down well ,sweetness isnt too cloying. Over all a nice enough beer but does not distinguish itself.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2009 01:19:55 | More by Reidrover

jdense

Oregon

3.98/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

22 oz. bottle into Kapittel chalice.

Amber hued brew one finger head, little lacing. Nice balance in the nose with bready malts fairly prominent. Good balance on the tastebuds, a bit more piney than citrusy. Fairly active mouthfeel, happy mouth. For the style (e.g., Arrogant Bastard), quite drinkable. Not my favorite HUB regular offering, but a close second to the exempllary IPA. Definitely worth seeking out for 'Big" Beer drinkers. Quite enjoyable, and very tasty.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2009 02:48:22 | More by jdense

Docer

Washington

4.1/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Was just at the pub, but bought a bottle of this before hand because I knew I was going to try 2 of their other offerings before this one... so I got a bomber for at home... poured into my new Hopworks full pint glass and opened with my free Hopworks keychain opener.. lol.. love the stuff..

- Nice red-ale color... dark amber, coper.. clear.. thin eggshell head.. lacing all about..

- Roasted grain and malt... barley... smells earthy, grainy, and good! Nothing like the all-natural sugars for this yeast to munch on... really smells like a true ale.. bit of some mild bittering.. but seems balance is what is in store.. bit of brown sugar.. must be what it is!

- Smooth sweet grain.. caramel, bread, barley and malt mash... just a huge grain profile... seriously good, and in a way that would make a hop-head look at other alternatives for their favorite beers...

- Little dry, chewy from the grain.. light alcohol leftovers..

- Carbonated well.. almost too well.. but right for the style, so i can't say it's too much. Very drinkable as there isn't much of an alcohol burn at all. Overall a very good unique ale.. something every beer lover should try.

Must say.. today was my first Hopworks experience.. and I have lived in the Portland Metro area all my life... but I have seriously found a new favorite brewer and place to hang when i can get down there!

Serving type: bottle

06-05-2009 00:01:41 | More by Docer

warmstorage

Georgia

3.25/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: medium to dark amber, moderate off-white head, leaves moderate to significant lacing rings. Nice.

Aroma: grainy malt, a slight hint of alcohol, and very light earthy hops. Not remarkable.

Taste: distinct malty grainy sweetness, some earthiness. Minimal hop character. Kind of unremarkable.

Mouth: relatively full and flightly slick. Sticks around for a while. A small alcohol note.

Overall: meh. My least favorite of the HUB beers I've had. Kind of muddled and unremarkable. Kind of like an attempt at Arrogant Bastard, but without the hop body. Drinkable, and I wouldn't turn it down if someone offered it, but HUB has much better stuff to offer.

Serving type: on-tap

03-02-2009 22:25:17 | More by warmstorage

Magpie14

Michigan

4.22/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: amber color with red tints all around, minimal head followed by minimal lacing

S: sweet malts, acidic fruits...smoke from bar

T: bang on! smooth caramel and malt with flowery hop kick at the end. Sweetness is reminiscent of a fruits (apple, oranges) sweet. Never had this brew, never heard of it, and it has made its way to the top of my list for it's kind. Great overall body and taste with nice touch of bitterness, super well rounded. Great vibe!

M: medium body and carbonation

D: yea, great drinker, nice-nice beer!

Serving type: on-tap

10-18-2008 04:58:27 | More by Magpie14

msubulldog25

Oregon

4.22/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A pint, found on tap at Kelly's Olympian for a paltry $3.75.

A: Served with little ivory head in a chilled glass; ruby-kissed amber and a clear, almost carbonation-less appearance. Despite a minimal head, this leaves regular bands of woven lace up and down the glass.

S: Berry-like fruitiness, orange/citrus hopping, nutty caramel.

T: Strong on the spiced apple, orange pith and malt-sweet toffee with a covering of zesty green hops. Never too sweet nor too bitter.

M: Falls just short of 'syrupy', definitely has a heavier mouthfeel and body. Juicy and sticky all at once, spicy hopping dances on the tip of the tongue and gummy malt lingers in a lip-hugging ring.

D: Deceptively drinkable, dangerous. Have had this a number of times before (including a 6-month barrel-aged version just days ago); always enjoyable and certainly worthy of recommending.

Serving type: on-tap

10-17-2008 20:55:37 | More by msubulldog25

RedDiamond

Oregon

4.03/5  rDev +8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I asked my server about this beer as neither the name nor the menu listing are particularly descriptive. She fell back on the menu listing which reads, "Strong like bull but sweet like your momma." I told her my momma wasn't so sweet to which she laughed and replied, "Everybody says that."

What she served to me moments later was a pint of exceptionally clear mahogany ale with modestly strong carbonation holding up a regal cap of creamy froth. Wall-to-wall lace would soon drape the glass. I inhaled a bright candied aroma - sugary though not overly strong. The flavor was strong with elements of cherry syrup and honeysuckle. Very nice, though the alleged 55 IBU remained sequestered.

I've variously heard that this is a strong ale or an imperial red. Either moniker will do nicely though DOA also shares some qualities with a winter warmer.

Serving type: on-tap

06-13-2008 00:40:42 | More by RedDiamond