Dogfish Head ApriHop

Brewed by Dogfish Head Brewery
Style: Fruit Beer
Milton, Delaware USA

Tasted on tap. Looks like an IPA, smells like an IPA, tastes like a damn fine IPA. The hint of apricot is so slight, I’m not even sure it’s there. Nice sweet hoppiness, good balance between all the components. Very nice and enjoyable ber. Not to sure it should be classified as a fruit beer, but, whatever, it’s good. Worth checking out.

Reddish-orange color. Almost no head. Aroma of apricots, some hops, a touch of caramel malt. Flavor of apricots mainly, but dry, and good hopping. A bit of caramel malt in the background. Well balanced between fruit and hops, though not much malt to speak of. Very dry and refreshing, good use of fruit. Dry, fruity finish.

First of all...crap name...Aprihop? Hmmm, I have had my doubts about DFH; granted they make some spectacularly challenging beers and have garnered a reputation as pushing the brewing envelope; but personally, I find their beers to be far too unstable for most of my tastes. I took a chance on Aprihop and bought a 4 pack from Raleigh, North Carolina’s World Market. Took out the first bottle, interested to see what this might be like. I approached with an open mind and a curious palate but simply could not get into this one. Pretty much zero smell from the head, unbalanced mouthfeel. No hop backbone to be found; and the apricot element that was supposed to be so elemental in the finish was more about stale gym sock feeling. Puckerish, dry, not interesting, and certainly not even close to what I would consider an IPA. Confusing brew.

bottle. Aroma of citrus hops and caramel malts. Medium orange amber hue with an average sized off-white head that mostly diminished and left some lace. Flavor is citrus hops, apricots, and caramel malt. Palate is med-light bodied and soft. Mildly bitter finish. I like the idea and was impressed at how the hops worked with the apricots to present a nice fruity yet hoppy bitter brew. Could drink a few on a hot day. Good summer brew.

Pours a clear, bubbly orange/amber colour with no head. Barely noticeable lacing, but virtually no head. Aroma is faint of apricots and lime- thats about it. Taste is again, tangy- citrusy, little hops, but more tang than anything. I don’t want to say sour- but something like that. Mouthfeel is light (seems to be the theme of this beer) but well rounded. Overall, I enjoyed it, i like most of what I have had from DFH, however, this could use a little more improvement in my opinion.

Pours a nice copper color. Aroma is hoppy at first with fruit, citrus and apricot. Flavor is slightly hoppy at first, but sweet with fruit and a little malt afterward. 12 oz. bottle.

12oz from Peace Street Market, Raleigh. Hmmm, not a big fan of apricots but I am a big fan of IPAs. Ultimately, this is a case where a perfectly good base beer - not unlike 60 Minute - is spoiled by the tweaking with fruit. I’m no hater of fruit beers by any means, but this just doesn’t work, as the best characteristics of both styles just cancel each other out.

Bottle. Pours a golden orange, with a thin head. Mild aroma of apricots, malt, and some hops. The flavor is sweet apricots and malt, followed by a bitter hop finish (a bit of a stretch to call this an IPA, though), with lingering tartness. Interesting and fairly tasty, but not something that I’d want more often than once in a blue moon.