Dogfish Head Burton Baton

Brewed by Dogfish Head Brewery
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Milton, Delaware USA

Very oaky and floral in the smell and taste, with hints of vanilla and some alcohol on the back end. A little bitter but mighty tasty.

Nose is comprised of notes of woody oak, vanilla, and some floral. A touch of alcohol and some sweet malts. Pours copper with a decent fluffy head that lasted a long time. Flavor is pretty earthy with notes of pine and light citrus, and super sweet caramel malts all cut and subdued by oak and vanilla. Alcohol is somewhat hot, body is pretty malt heavy, and some dry bitterness lingers.

Burton, an almost clear copper, pours a good straw head. It has a light sweet aroma, somewhat herbal hoppy. There is also a significant caramel note and a little biscuit. I can also detect a bit of alcohol on the nose. Ethanol itself is not volatile, so you cannot smell it. A beer smelling boozy indicates the presence of fusel alcohols, a byproduct of warm, high alcohol fermentation. It is fusels that cause really painful hangovers. Right at first you notice both a prominent bitterness and a strong sweetness. This beer is thick, and its sweetness is cloying, probably from the use of a large percentage of caramel malt. The oak certainly also adds sweetness and vanilla. The hop flavor is herbal and grassy. I think perhaps the oak and the hops are competing too much in this beer. The hop flavor is too earthy. They would be better off using a lighter, more delicate flavor hop.

Bottle way back on 4th of July. This continues my disappointment for Dogfish Head IPA’s. Considering its 90 min blending, that might tell the story. too malty, really not an IPA, but really just average after all the work put into it.

Sampled at the 2008 Great American Beer Festival. The dogfish head booth was slammed with folks trying to get Theobroma, so I opted for this. Appearance is close to an English brown ale. Some oak wood shows through the heavy dry-hop character in the aroma. Spicy hops dominate throughout the flavor, with some nuances of sweet toffee. Very enjoyable.

Pours a slight burnt amber color with a nice beige head. Aroma is peppery oak, slight citrus hops, orange rind and candied malt. Flavor is a nice combination of the oak, candied malt, lots of pepper and citrusy hops. Slightly syrupy in mouthfeel yet extremely tannic and dry from the oak. For some reason, I wasn’t expecting much but this beer is pretty good.

Bottle (sometime in ’08?, from notes and memory. ). Amber color. Lots of good flavors here. Good oak and malt flavors on the entry. Various hops come then come in to the equation and leads to a dry slightly alcoholic finish. All the malts almost make it taste like a brown ale. I really liked this one! Re sampled (2/13/09) after aging around a year or so. Pours a nice cider orange brown. with a little white head. Nose is sweet with oak. A little more subdued then fresh. Oak is predominate in the flavors. has a bit of a wine taste to it. Some souring fruit flavors to it as well. Sweet cane sugar and brown sugar flavors. Papaya and a light pineapple flavor comes in a little later. The pop of the hops is completely gone with a minor amount of resin flavors. Mouth is full, light bitter, strong dry and a strong alcohol presences. I enjoyed this beer a lot more early on but still a decent drink with new characteristics even past its maturation.

Bottle. Pours a hazy orange-brown with a thick white head, that deflates steadily. Aroma is heavy with hops, but beyond that lies bread and vanilla. Remarkably smooth with light effervescent bubbles. Tastes malty and of light ripe fruits, possibly pineapple. Finish is more hops and a healthy dose of wood.