Dogfish Head Red and White

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

Pours a reddish amber with modest head that fades quickly to a thin cap and leaves slight lacing. Complex nose giving indications of orange, grape, and hops. Taste is even more complex. Sweet start leads to a vague awareness of alcohol in the finish. In between there’s orange, grape, oak, and spice. Medium mouthfeel, could use a bit more carbonation. Drinkability good for this very different wit.

Capped 750 ml. brown bottle, bottling date on the shoulder of the bottle (02/12/07), sampled in a tumbler. The body definitely has a wine-like appearance, reddish brown with pink highlights and bright orange hues. The pink and white head rose quickly and fell just as quickly into a thin bubbly lacing, light amount of splotchy lace at the top of the glass. The carbonation is quite active, plentiful supply of micro bubbles just beneath the surface. There is nice sweet and sour effect going on in the smell. Orangey citric juice mixed with red grape juice gives the aroma some punchiness. Further whiffs really brings out the orange peel and grainy wheat malts. There is enough sweetness that I am wondering if oats are also being utilized. At the edges is a good combination of wine woody barrels and solvent alcohol. I am finding the smell to be very enjoyable. The buoyant carbonation provides the body with a firmly light feel, airy and softly crisp. The taste is a delectable balance between orange/lemon citric witbier flavors and Pinot noir juice, the sweet and sourness of both come to forefront. As it warms the sticky coriander and tingling spices make their presence felt. There is a mild grainy twang from the wheat malts. Mellow wine barrel and solvent alcohol flavors bring a soothing warmth to the palate. The finish is sweet and semi-dry, reminds me of some west central and southern Illinois light red wines I’ve tried. I loved the Red & White from DFH, I thought it was a concept that works, a testament to the inventiveness of the brewers.

Translucent red color with a pinkish head. Fruity soft-spicy aroma. Dry fruity taste with more fruit apparent at the finish. Unique beer and 10% abv.

I got this on tap at the Gaithersburg Alehouse. It was served in a snifter and had a brilliant red body with a perfectly white head. The smell was less powerful than I would have liked, but still a very good fruity aroma. There is a hint of the alcohol in the aroma and some in the taste as well, but that is somewhat to be expected in a 10% ABV beer. The flavor is an excellent blend of a wit and pinot noir. There is a light fruity belgian funk in there and then the smoothness of a wine blends it together. It is very light bodied and very drinkable.

Very different. Brought it to a wine party and was pleasantly surprised. Some of their experiments are off putting, but this one rose to the occassion. A pinot/yeasty nose. Slight Welchs hue to an ale. Tastes like a mix of beer and wine (duh). Spices come through as it warms, enhancing the experience.

bottled 2/9/7. drunk 10 months later...pours a very strange color...hazy red amber, not red, not brown, copper, i don’t know. but it’s topped with a foamy head that’s a pink shade of white and leaves a trail down the glass. aroma is a strange combination of yeast, berries, wood, alcohol and citrus with floral notes. smells like a cross between belgian beer and pinot champagne! flavor is, again, strange...yeasty grapey wine, wood, mineral/flint/stone, pomegranite and alcohol coming in late. the alcohol gets rather harsh as it warms. but i like how it warms my chest. finishes dry and yeasty with lingering coriander and yeasty spiciness along with some iron in the aftertaste. light to medium bodied with a nice level of dryness and active carbonation that leads to a some what creamy mouth feel. not much wit to be tasted...drinks more like a yeasty champagne. it’s definitely unique and pleases both the beer nerd and wine snob in me!!!

Bottle sampled. Pours a light copper color with a small white head. Aroma of white grapes, coriander, orange zest, and light fruits. Sweet fruity flavor with corinder, caramel malts, and notes of light oak medium to full bodied with a clean and dry finish.

25 oz bottle. Pours an odd pinkish orange body, clear, under a fizzy one inch fizzy foamy thick head. Lots of vigorous carbonation. Heavy foamy lacing. Nose is very grapey with lots of oak, heavy yeast influence, heavy syrupy malt, and alcohol vapors. Quite an odd combo. Lots of grapes up front in the flavor too, along with heavy yeast influence. Very sweet throughout but the oakiness adds a touch of dryness on the finish. The alcohol is clearly noticable. The mouthfeel is fairly thick and somewhat syrupy, but isn’t especially cloying because of the super fizzy efforvescent carbonation. Overall, this was OK, but it really didn’t stand out. Interesting concept, not so interesting result.