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Robert Johnson's Hellhound On My Ale
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
- From:
- Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
- Delaware, United States
- Style:
- Imperial IPA
- ABV:
- 10%
- Score:
- 88
- Avg:
- 3.93 | pDev: 13.49%
- Reviews:
- 578
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Apr 08, 2021
- Added:
- Mar 15, 2011
- Wants:
- 134
- Gots:
- 374
Hellhound is a super-hoppy ale that hits 100 IBUs in the brewhouse and 10% ABV. It's dry-hopped with 100% Centennial hops at a rate of 100 kilos per 100 barrel brew-length. Can you tell we're stoked for this mighty musical centennial?
To accentuate and magnify the citrusy notes of the Centennial hops (and as a shoutout to Robert Johnson's mentor Blind Lemon Jefferson), we add dried lemon peel and flesh to the whirlpool.
58 IBU
To accentuate and magnify the citrusy notes of the Centennial hops (and as a shoutout to Robert Johnson's mentor Blind Lemon Jefferson), we add dried lemon peel and flesh to the whirlpool.
58 IBU
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by jzeilinger:
Reviewed by jzeilinger from Pennsylvania
4.27/5 rDev +8.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
4.27/5 rDev +8.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
A - Pours a golden orange color with a mild white creamy head that dies down to a faint ring, carbonation is minimal.
S - Pungent lemon grass, biscuity caramel malt, and light grapefruit rinds. The lemons cut through and is more noticeable than the other aromas.
T - Similar to the nose with big, grassy lemon rind in the forefront followed by a bitter orange & grapefruit rind with big boozy effervescence. There's a touch of spiciness in there as well but the lemons play the biggest role on the palette.
M - Heavy medium body and almost velvet feeling on the tongue.
O - Bitterness and booziness come to mind with this beer. It's very different compared to the other DFH IPA's I've had in the past, it "reads" more like a West Coast IPA with a totally different twist. Hats off to Sam and his band of brewing bandits, I really like this one! I really like DFH's premise for brewing this beer (as read from the bottle label): "2011 marks the 100th birthday of Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson who, according to legend, sold his souldown at the crossroads in a midnight bargain and changed music forever. DFH pays tribute to this blues legend by gettin' the hellhounds off his trail and into this finely-crafted ale...To accentuate and magnify the citrusy notes of the centennial hops (and as a shout out to Robert Johnson's mentor Blind Lemon Jefferson) we added dried lemon peel... Being a guitar player of 35+ years and an avid homebrewer and lover of IPA's, this beer is the bomb. Setting everything else aside, how cool is it to draw from real people and experiences to brew a really good beer? The inspiration is really neat, and how this was pieced together was cool also. There's other greatly inspired brews out there, but this one really hits home with me because they hit on three passions: music, guitars, and brewing. I want to emphasize that my review isn't based on the fact that I love music and guitars, it's an honest assessment of the beer. I think it's underrated in this particular case.
May 18, 2011S - Pungent lemon grass, biscuity caramel malt, and light grapefruit rinds. The lemons cut through and is more noticeable than the other aromas.
T - Similar to the nose with big, grassy lemon rind in the forefront followed by a bitter orange & grapefruit rind with big boozy effervescence. There's a touch of spiciness in there as well but the lemons play the biggest role on the palette.
M - Heavy medium body and almost velvet feeling on the tongue.
O - Bitterness and booziness come to mind with this beer. It's very different compared to the other DFH IPA's I've had in the past, it "reads" more like a West Coast IPA with a totally different twist. Hats off to Sam and his band of brewing bandits, I really like this one! I really like DFH's premise for brewing this beer (as read from the bottle label): "2011 marks the 100th birthday of Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson who, according to legend, sold his souldown at the crossroads in a midnight bargain and changed music forever. DFH pays tribute to this blues legend by gettin' the hellhounds off his trail and into this finely-crafted ale...To accentuate and magnify the citrusy notes of the centennial hops (and as a shout out to Robert Johnson's mentor Blind Lemon Jefferson) we added dried lemon peel... Being a guitar player of 35+ years and an avid homebrewer and lover of IPA's, this beer is the bomb. Setting everything else aside, how cool is it to draw from real people and experiences to brew a really good beer? The inspiration is really neat, and how this was pieced together was cool also. There's other greatly inspired brews out there, but this one really hits home with me because they hit on three passions: music, guitars, and brewing. I want to emphasize that my review isn't based on the fact that I love music and guitars, it's an honest assessment of the beer. I think it's underrated in this particular case.
More User Ratings:
Rated by moodenba from New York
3.67/5 rDev -6.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.67/5 rDev -6.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Blues fan. Son bought the bottle for me.
Apr 08, 2021Reviewed by feloniousmonk from Minnesota
3.9/5 rDev -0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
3.9/5 rDev -0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Appearance: hazy, amber. lasting white head on top.
Aroma: mild hop approach, but plenty of fruit and citrus, lots of malt-delivered fruit-y character. Terrifically pleasant. I'm happy.
Taste: So, I'm spinning the classic Columbia album, "King of the Delta Blues Singers", from the "Thesaurus of Classic Jazz". "Rambling on My Mind" is on right now. All the lemon in this makes me stay a second, no matter how hard she treats me. We've gone through Preaching Blues and When You Got a Good Friend, and are 5 tracks away from the title that lends it's name to this ale, in a fashion, "Hellhound on my Trail". Bitter and sour, with a lean malt body, the hops and the citrus addition become primary.
As I often report from the lines of label copy on beer bottles, I know quote from the album: "Robert Johnson sang primitive blues about women, His references were earthy and only thinly disguised. He lived the life he sang about and which ultimately killed him. He was not unique in that respect. /..."
I'm still not 100% sure that this is the best beer with which to give him tribute.So the blues equal bitter, therefore a lemon-infused ale? Maybe something earthier? Richer, darker? "Hellhound" has no direct relation to lemons. Maybe I missed something?
Oct 17, 2020Aroma: mild hop approach, but plenty of fruit and citrus, lots of malt-delivered fruit-y character. Terrifically pleasant. I'm happy.
Taste: So, I'm spinning the classic Columbia album, "King of the Delta Blues Singers", from the "Thesaurus of Classic Jazz". "Rambling on My Mind" is on right now. All the lemon in this makes me stay a second, no matter how hard she treats me. We've gone through Preaching Blues and When You Got a Good Friend, and are 5 tracks away from the title that lends it's name to this ale, in a fashion, "Hellhound on my Trail". Bitter and sour, with a lean malt body, the hops and the citrus addition become primary.
As I often report from the lines of label copy on beer bottles, I know quote from the album: "Robert Johnson sang primitive blues about women, His references were earthy and only thinly disguised. He lived the life he sang about and which ultimately killed him. He was not unique in that respect. /..."
I'm still not 100% sure that this is the best beer with which to give him tribute.So the blues equal bitter, therefore a lemon-infused ale? Maybe something earthier? Richer, darker? "Hellhound" has no direct relation to lemons. Maybe I missed something?
Reviewed by GuyFawkes from Illinois
4/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Bright yellow/orange hue.
White head; nice lace.
Lemon citrus nose.
Medium mouthfeel.
A refreshing lemon citrus flavor; not too bitter.
Well done; booze is well hidden!
Apr 04, 2019White head; nice lace.
Lemon citrus nose.
Medium mouthfeel.
A refreshing lemon citrus flavor; not too bitter.
Well done; booze is well hidden!
Reviewed by MikeWard from Pennsylvania
3.86/5 rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
3.86/5 rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
1pt 9.4oz bottle into a pint glass. bottled 10/21/13, so 4 1/2 years old here. This should be interesting...
hazy bordering on murky dark amber body. with good bubbly cream colored head. slow carbonation. decent lacing.
aroma is of old malts.
taste isn't bad at all. sweet, malty, faintly lemon which gives it some bitterness. a little sour. A decent drink, given the age.
mouth closing in on full, finish bittersweet, and slightly sour on the back of the mouth.
overall, given that this is categorized as a DIPA, and it's 4 1/2 years old, this is not a terrible drink at all. in fact the longer it goes on, the more pleasing it becomes. The hops have completely faded of course, but the lemon and lemon peel still give it some residual bitterness. 10.0abv is very present, so the beer must be respected.
May 04, 2018hazy bordering on murky dark amber body. with good bubbly cream colored head. slow carbonation. decent lacing.
aroma is of old malts.
taste isn't bad at all. sweet, malty, faintly lemon which gives it some bitterness. a little sour. A decent drink, given the age.
mouth closing in on full, finish bittersweet, and slightly sour on the back of the mouth.
overall, given that this is categorized as a DIPA, and it's 4 1/2 years old, this is not a terrible drink at all. in fact the longer it goes on, the more pleasing it becomes. The hops have completely faded of course, but the lemon and lemon peel still give it some residual bitterness. 10.0abv is very present, so the beer must be respected.
Reviewed by q33jeff from New Jersey
3.82/5 rDev -2.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.82/5 rDev -2.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
**
03/02/2014
Aroma Is lemon and hops. Yellow- orange color. Tart citrus flavor with the strong caramel dry grainy English ale flavor. Alcohol present. Very ""in your face"", but a good ale."
**
Jan 17, 201703/02/2014
Aroma Is lemon and hops. Yellow- orange color. Tart citrus flavor with the strong caramel dry grainy English ale flavor. Alcohol present. Very ""in your face"", but a good ale."
**
Robert Johnson's Hellhound On My Ale from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
Beer rating:
88 out of
100 with
1882 ratings
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