Dogfish Head Raison D Extra

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

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

’07 bottle shared by Blake - thanks! Clear amber red pour with a few bubbles of tan foam. Aroma is light oxidization, thick raisin, heavy malt with a prickly edge, and some type of softness I cannot place in the finish. Taste is big raisin, thick and sweet malt, oxidization, and hot alcohol through the finish. Massive and hot sipping beer with an even mouth feel. Glad to have tried it.

After quick initial settle, there is no head. Cloudy amber. Very sweet aroma. The taste has a very sweet raison and agree there is a slight bit of peppery alcohol. I find it to be interesting and something that I have not quite found before in other beers I have had. I like the bit of heat it brings and could imagine the strength is has carried over the years. Very nice beer. Cheers Brandon, thanks for sharing!

2007 release. 12 oz bottle at Beer Bistro in Toronto, served in a snifter. Pours clear mahogany with a small tan head. The head fades to a few bubbles and leaves no lace. On the nose, there are notes of molasses, raisins, brown sugar, maple, herbs, vanilla and peppery alcohol. The flavour is moderately sweet up front with a complex malt profie but it soon acquires a balancing moderate bitterness and a slight peppery quality. The finish is long, malty and complex with notes of licorice, chocolate, pepper and hops. On the palate, it is full in body with a syrupy texture and minimal carbonation. Overall, this is a great ale similar in some respects to a barley wine but with a huge raisin presence. The whole package is very well assembled. This particular example was smooth and very well aged. 2011-12-12

Dark amber with no head. Malty with loads of fruity tones. Malt, fruit and alcohol. Full body with a long, bitter sweet finish.

UPDATED: DEC 24, 2012 (*Vintage 2007): Certainement un des plus jouissif nectar à respirer, semblable à un porto blanc. Les sucres libérés sont variés et le raisin confit a pris avec le temps, une place incroyable. L’alcool est très présente mais ça fait parti de l’expérience. Malgré que ce soit une 2007, elle est loin d’être morte.

341mL bottle shared with courez at Beer Bistro. Pours a gorgeous dark orange, and even looks "thick". Aroma has some alcohol, and lots of raisins. Taste is sweet and bursting with raisins, prunes, and raisins. Smooth flat palate. Moderately dry finish. This is closer to a fortified wine than a beer. Some nasty-looking dark sediment at the bottom of the bottle. As far as I can remember this isn’t very similar to its younger brother, Raison D’Etre. A good choice for lovers of extreme beer or fortified wine.

Appearance: muddy brown, thin fizzy tan head, syrupy legs. Aroma: booze, raisins, prunes and molasses. Taste: raisins, caramel, syrup, notes of fig and prune, hint of burnt sugar. Finish: sweet, smooth, and a little cloying. Notes: A sugar bomb of raisins and booze. The alcohol is incredibly well-hidden. Bottled on 9/20/2006, sampled on 11/20/2011. Bottle was just sitting on the shelf at Olney Beer and Fine Wine. I actually prefer the traditional Raison d’Etre, which is one of my favorite beers.

Aged 4 years. Bold version of the D’Etre. Smell of raisins and liquor. Color cloudy deep red/brown. Light carbonation. Tastes of raisins and liquor. Kind of a let down overall.

Bottle. Caramel color. Smells raisiny amd bready and winey. Tastes like brandy.

Location: Shared bottle at dbarnold’s, 10/16/11

Aroma: The nose is super sweet, and shockingly enough, has tons of raisin (quite a revelation, I know)
Appearance: This one pours a dark brown color, and it has a fairly small head and light lace
Flavor: Tastes really sweet, and, much like the nose, it is full of raisin flavors, some toffee/caramel too
Palate: The body is rather smooth and fairly full, it is just a touch cloying, and the booze are shockingly well hidden. Seriously, I couldn’t believe how little I could taste the booze in a beer that is well over 15%. Just a wow! Truly incredible. Honestly, it is based on that fact mostly that I gave the palate the highest score.
Overall Impression: It was good to finally try this one. Certainly, this has been on my list of need to try beers for a while. Nice find guys! Aged over 4 years, so I’m sure it has developed a bit. Anyway, it is a very sweet offering, and it really is a bigger version of D’Etre. I didn’t get quite as much of the D’Etre complexity from this one, but that may be due to the way it has developed into a sweetness bomb. It is still really good though. If they ever make it again, I’d be very interested to see what this one is like fresh.