Dogfish Head Burton Baton

12oz bottled 2008. First off, this is easily one of my favorite Dogfish Head brews. Pours hazy brown with a foamy orangish white head that lingers through the glass. Nose is frankly pretty bizarre, struck me first as a pine forest just after a spring rain but as it warms I got more of just the earthiness. Body is like my favorite cereal: oatmeal, raisins and brown sugar. There is some hop and resin on the finish. Palate is awesome, fairly sticky but pretty smooth overall.

Poured from a 12oz bottle (2008 vintage) and served in a tulip. This beer poured a dark amber hue with a thin head of beige foam that quickly faded away into a few lingering bubbles. A bit of drippy lacing was left around the glass. The aroma of the beer was made up of mild mango and citrus, graham cracker, oak, and a hint of spicy pine. Pretty tame aroma for a Dogfish Head beer. The flavor was much more interesting. A nice shot of grapefruit, mango, and fresh pine was held together by a combonation of caramel, oak, and some mild alcohol. The mouthfeel was full-bodied and coated the tongue. Light carbonation. Pretty nice flavor, but the aroma just wasn’t there. Other than that, pretty good.

12 oz. bottle from the Vintage Estates haul courtesy of Naka. Pours a copper-red with a huge, two finger off white head. Nose is grassy and piny with some sugary sweet notes, maybe some caramel. Taste is odd. Lots of sugary sweetness with caramel. Hop bitterness is there, but is pretty well drowned out by the oak quality. There’s lots of alcohol hotness towards the end and into the after. Tough to describe. Quite a bit going on. Sweet, but not, bitter, but not. Alcoholy - for sure - but "balanced" by the oak, which only does this by being over the top in its own right. I like it. I think it would do well with a few months (maybe a year) on it to mellow out some of the alcohol hotness, but I’m not mad that I drank it now. Tasty. Another aggressive beer by DFH. Hey, it’s what they do. Gotta give the props.

bottle from DrJay. Thanks!
Pours a nice murky amber with a small offwhite head. Smell is very malty with caramel tones, some oak, and a hint of alcohol. Cloying from the nose alone... Taste is also incredibly overly sweet. Sugary syrupy sweetness and some oakiness with no balance whatsoever from hops. Not only a huge disappointment but one of the most undrinkable beers I’ve ever had. Perhaps this was extremely old???

hoppy aroma with grapefruit ester undertone beautiful deep red amber color somewhat sweet for an IPA with hints of caramel medium to full bodied. in all super bomb digity.

Powerfully oaky and hoppy aroma and flavor. Caramelly sweet malts balance it out.

Poured beautiful dark orange almost red with a thick ½ head. Smell of heavy, heavy hops – crisp to the nose, very fresh. Thick, sticky lacing wraps the glass. First taste - a mouthful of hops, very, very smooth, great mouth feel – lovingly bitter. Did I say, “Smooth and Hoppy”? What a nice hoppy/oak mix!<P>Very Nice. Very Nice!<P> Can you say, "General Tso, extra, extra spicy?"

On tap at Gaithersburg Dogfish; deep reddish with smallish head; smells of alcohol, IPA hoppiness; tastes well balanced and smooth, pleasant; English strong ale dominates here; difficult to pair with food but easily stands on it’s own. After additional outtings with bottles this has become one of my favorites. Marriage of yeast strains and oaking make it unique and special. I still contend it is not GREAT to pair with food but stands so well on it’s own who cares? Great brew. And so glad they keep it on the busy Dogfish Head roster every year.