Doggie Claws - Hair of the Dog Brewing Company / Brewery and Tasting Room

zeledonia

Minnesota

4.18/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

2011 vintage. Tasted 12 August 2012, reviewed from notes.

Looks dark brown in the glass, but light behind it reveals bright rusty tones. Half-finger of yellowish head, gone pretty fast, with a bit of lacing (not much). Looks are not its strong suit.

I know they HotD says this is hopped-up, but I don't smell it. Much more on the malty side, with plums and other stone fruit. The thing is, I like that. It's sweet, but not overdone; I'd say it's right at the perfect balance point. Some light citrus hops provide a nice complement. Bit of alcohol in the back.

Taste brings the malts, and the bitterness (though I think it's more from the alcohol than the hops). Plums soaked in maple syrup and topped with brown sugar. Sweet and delicious. The alcohol comes on late, with a bite but no burn.

Heavy, heavy, heavy. Feels like a weight on my tongue - a sticky, delicious weight. Carbonation had me worried at first, but picked up half-way through to breathe some air into the dog-pile.

An excellent barleywine. Though in my opinion, it's somewhere between a typical American and English. Maybe it's that they've faded since it was brewed, but I didn't get big hop character.

Serving type: bottle

08-17-2012 06:11:38 | More by zeledonia

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