Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron

Brewed by Dogfish Head Brewery
Style: American Strong Ale
Milton, Delaware USA

12 ounce bottle purchased at Big C Liquors Orlando, FL for $4.00 Very good!

wine and alcohol taste suspended in a heavy barley flavor like soy sauce. good body dark with small head this brew is like wine it is strong in character with a hint of cherry and it is at all not sweet.

Bottle at Oliver Twist, Stockholm. Lot of roasted aromas. Tastes of wood, hopps and roasted malts. It has a dry/tart feel to it and the alcohol is well hidden.

Looks like ink - actually very, very dark brown with barely any wisp of head. Actually a very light tannish head around edges of snifter. Aroma of sweet wood, molasses, perhaps dark plum and cherry, vanilla, roast and some alcohol. Mouthfeel smooth, almost silky. Very, very lightly carbonated. A touch sticky as it warms. Lacing consists of very fine light tan bubbles and a fine syrupy film that both melt away quickly. Flavor is initially quite chocolatey with some roast. As it warms each sip is a little different. Flavors of molasses, vanilla, wood - but not oak, chocolate, coffee roast and dark plum all make appearances at different times. Ventures a slight bit into Imp Stout territory but a little less harsh than many of those can be but at the same time probably not as complex. Some sips were marred by a light grassy finish, others were not. A little hot in finish. Might be interesting to see this with more age. Bottled on 2/11/08 and cellared for 8 mos.

This is one strong ass brown ale. This will knock you down and step on your face. Just like the 120 minute IPA does. Almost no bitterness. The sweet roasty maltness is there. Drink it on Xmas eve when you dont have to work tommorow.

Bottle: Very good. Pours dark brown with almost no head. Aroma of wood and fruits. Very smooth flavor. Alcohol is very well hidden.

Bottle shared with blankboy, jerc & mabel - my bottle, courtesy of swoopjones. Deep ruby-black with an off-white head. Aroma of wood, roast malt, caramel, vanilla, dark fruit - writing it up, it makes it sound like a lot of other beers, but there is a unique complexity that I cant quite describe, its just really nice. Smooth mouthfeel. Flavour - wow! Dry roastiness, coffee, charred wood, some sourness, hazelnut, vanilla, mild funkiness, more coffee - this is just really fucking good!

I’m always glad to see a new Dogfish Head beer on the shelf. They usually don’t disappoint, and the Palo Santo is no exception. To all appearances it is an unexceptional beer, an opaque brown with a reasonably normal tan head. But the color belies a uniquely prepared beer, aged “on” a Paraguayan wood, whose name was generously shared with the beer. As far as the aroma goes, the wood aging provides a hearty bouquet of wood, fig and chocolate covered raisins. It’s definitely a sweet smell, with the wood taking on less of an oak barrel quality and more of a cut and prepped timber dryness. The carbonation is unremarkable, but the flavor is exceptional. A fig flavor quickly works its way around the palate, aided by the adhesive tendencies of some licorice flavors. All-spice and brown sugar offer a sweeter side to the taste, helping somewhat to balance the woody dryness. A decent alcohol bite, an echoed aftertaste and a great flavor from start to finish, the Palo Santo is another success from the brewers at Dogfish Head. On a side note, I’d really love to know more about the brewing process for this beer.