The Fear - Flying Dog Brewery

Chaney

District of Columbia

4.28/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I've always been indifferent to Flying Dog and am not a big fan of their standard line-up. However, I tried a single bottle of this the other day and was totally blown away. I'll love to see a local brewery shine like this!

I poured into a snifter.

"Whatever THE FEAR is that consumes you, embrace it, along with this Imperial Pumpkin Ale. Only then will the true artist in you rise up."

A: The darkest pumpkin ale I've ever seen. I mean really.... wow! It looked dark brown coming out of the bottle, but once collected in the glass, it's maybe a shade or so lighter than pitch black. The head is marshmallowy and clingy.

S: Big pumpkin spice bomb with cinnamon taking the lead. I friggin love cinnamon! Of course, nutmeg and allspice are in there also.... in a very fresh, intense way.

T: The pumpkin coated alcohol attacks you first... and that booze is coat doubly with cinnamon. I also go some of Flying Dog's signature, Wild Dog series, profile in there as well.

M: Like I said, the cinnamon burns the palate and the booze is present, but it is of the candy-coated, Three Floyds-esque variety. The carbonation is light and the lacing is ridiculous.

O: If you ask me, this is of the best pumpkin ales on the market. No joke!

Serving type: bottle

10-18-2011 22:17:03 | More by Chaney

Hopfenpeter

Maryland

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

I am excited to have found this one. The beer poured a deep clear chestnut, mahogany color and builds about a finger high, tan head which has good retention and leaves lacing on the glass.
The smell reveals lots of spice, nutmeg, coriander and malt.
Tasting the beer the front is certainly marked by all the spices. In the middle actually a little pumpkin flavor works its way through along with caramel and brown sugar. At the end the alcohol is certainly making its mark, along with some flavors almost expected from whisky barrels.
A really great fall beer with a lot of character. I am glad I had a chance to taste it!

Serving type: bottle

10-16-2011 02:34:24 | More by Hopfenpeter

CraftBeerTastic

Pennsylvania

4.23/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Ba Review #77
Served On: 10/13/2011
Glassware: Snifter
Labeled ABV: 9.0%
Date/ Code: 2011

I can’t believe I ran into some of this. Perks of working right down the road from Flying Dog’s brewery in Frederick – I guess.

Look: Poured a rather dark color for a pumpkin ale. An almost porter brown consistency with a thick 1 finger tan head. Carbonation seemed rather good, but bubbles were hard to detect through the murky appearance of the brew.

Smell: The aroma made me feel like I was actually smelling pumpkin pie. No real artificial notes or extreme spices like some pumpkin ales I’ve had. Granted - spice and pumpkin meat were apparent, just not way overpowering or fake. I also got some hops and a somewhat earthy potpourri that promised some balanced sweetness. Not much booze in the nose.

Taste: First on the palate were soft notes of pumpkin meat with some typical pumpkin pie spices - like allspice and nutmeg. The middle offered more spice with pleasant alcohol warmth that confirmed the 9% ABV. Finish had an unusual bitterness mixed with lingering spices. I would have to guess the unexpected bitterness was from the Warrior and Willamette hops making up the 45 IBU’s. This beer certainly had the imperial qualities I was hoping for. What a treat!

I’m hoping I can pick up more of this. My bottle shop said distribution is extremely limited and they were only able to get in a couple cases.

___

Vintage Tasting Notes:

Ba Review #77.5
Served On: 10/17/2012
Glassware: Duvel Glass
Date/ Code: 2011

This bottle has been in my cellar since last year around this time.

Look: Poured the same very black color. Think Pumpkin Porter. Sandy head reduced down to a clump that floated around. Head lacing almost looked like flames rising up from the dank scary liquid. Alcohol legs everywhere along the sides of the Duvel glass.
Smell: It seemed as though the spice intensity was turned down a bit and replaced with some dark chocolate notes. The aroma could have reminded me of a Stout. Some of the pumpkin meat character was still vaguely noticeable.

Taste: First off was a creamy dark chocolate note that was followed by a bitterness found in the fresh version. I have to say that most of the pumpkin and spice qualities went away over the past year and left my palate with very basic Stout or Porter notes with minimal spice. Also the bitterness level seemed more intense. A slight hit of cinnamon or nutmeg did hit right before the finish. The aftertaste was just more bitterness.

I can't say that I'll over cellar a pumpkin beer again. I've heard where the spices seem to subside, and I can see first-hand that is true.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2011 22:11:53 | More by CraftBeerTastic

mcallister

Ohio

3.55/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

A lovely shade of chestnut with a large tight wound tan head that holds long retention.

Aromas of basil, pumpkin pie, all spice, cinnamon, hints of corriander, black pepper, anise, earthy hops, nutmeg and maybe more. Very dry smelling.

Light in body and full of alcohol flavors. Very dry on the finish and earthy with that same anise that was in the aroma. Pumpkin, all spice, nutmeg, and some other herbal flavors. I like where they are trying to go but just too boozy. More viscosity could have helped.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2011 21:34:17 | More by mcallister

HoppyRedskin

District of Columbia

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

I purchased a single bottle at Rodman's DC today. Pours dark brown, with a nice foamy white head. It has a fabulous aroma of pumpkin pie. It has a silky mouth feel, with a nice after taste. Not as good as the DFH Pumpkin, but a great substitute. I would recommend this beer, and would love to try it on tap.

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2011 00:07:29 | More by HoppyRedskin

chodinheaven

Maryland

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

Opaquely very dark brown, almost black in color, with ruby-brown highlights. Silky aged ivory head on top with amazing retention and rings of lacing. Pumpkin pie and cinnamon come to mind when smelling, as well as other aromas of nutmeg, allspice and other sweet spices. Pleasant.

Big and bold taste, the first thing that actually hits you is a bitterness remeniscent of a mixture of hops and coffee. After that come some pumpkin tastes that try to struggle through, but are overpowered by the alcohol and dark roasted malts. Alcohol is pretty well integrated into the beer, not being over boozy even at 9%, but it does seem to detract from some very pleasant pumpkin tastes. Spices like the cinnamon and allspice work their way through as well, but are muted compared to the pleasant aroma. Still obviously a pumpkin ale however, just an imperial one with very tasty competing flavors. Pumpkin and bitterness both linger in the aftertaste, after a creamy but prickly mouthfeel.

All that said, I still really enjoyed this beer. Its big and bold, and even though the pumpkin doesn't shine through, it does add a layer of complexity to an already complex beer. I would buy this again.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2011 03:49:36 | More by chodinheaven

taylor714914

Pennsylvania

4.28/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Quite excited to see this right next to secret stash!
Great appearance with a dark ruby brown color. A thin head sits on top of this gorgeous beer. It smells of sweet malts, pumpkin, nutmeg, and cinnamon. The first sip blows me away. It reminds me of pumking with less sweetness and more rich maltiness. As I work my way through the glass, the beer warms showing more pumpkin flavor along with the subtle spices. Nice balance between the pumpkin, malts, and light spice. Overall I found this to be an excellent beer, like a darker pumking perfect for enjoying on a cool fall evening outside around the campfire.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 04:07:22 | More by taylor714914