DuClaw Venom Pale Ale

Brewed by DuClaw Brewing Company
Style: American Pale Ale
Abingdon, Maryland USA

Serve in Lager glass, Shaker

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A footbalm growler. Clear gold yellow body with faint head. Hoppy nose with a lightly bitter finish. Hoppy body

Bottle. Appearance: slightl cloudy orange amber color with HUGE lingering frothy white head. Aroma: tangerine citrus and slight caramel malt coming thru and some orange peel. Taste: grapefruit and orange citrusy hops throughout with some caramel sweetness and a little doughiness coming thru in the middle lingering thru the end with a little bitterness. Mouthfeel: thin to medium pretty high carbonation. Overall: decently balanced and pretty tasty for the style. Very refreshing for a hop lover on a hot summer day but would gravitate more toward Sierra. Carbonation, affecting appearance and mouthfeel, is a little drawback for me.

Bottled. Was really excited for the citrus flavor described on the label but disappointed in getting more of a piney taste. Biggest complaint is there is little to no head retention. I don’t notice citrus-like aromas, more of a piney aroma as well.

12oz bottle. One of my fav local brews next to Serum. The pour is a medium amber color with a small finger of white head. Aroma of some citrus, caramel and other sweet fruitiness. Mouth is a nice splash of hoppy citrus up front like an IPA, thats balanced with some maltiness and a slight caramel finish. Kind of having an identity crisis between Pale Ale and IPA, much like Lagunita’s Pale Ale.

Bottle. Pours a bright copper color with a bright white foamy head. Nose is floral hops, lots of ripe fruits like apricots. Palate is medium with a light earthy feel, light bitter on the finish with a dirty tongue. Flavors of dirty pale malts, earthy hops, light fruitiness.

This is a really good pale ale. The most unique feature is the incredible head that spurted from the top of the bottle and folded over like a firework-snake. It is light brown and has a slight hop. Prominent over ripe orange flavor.

Draft. Pours clear, dark copper with an off-white head; decent retention and good lacing. Aroma is caramel, citrus hops, roasted malt, and faint orange peel. Flavor is heavy citrus and earthy hops with caramel malt undertones; bitter, grapefruit aftertaste. Medium body and carbonation with low warmth.

12 ounce thanks to Elwood. Is this a pale ale? Big malty and sweet. Slightly metallic mixed with caramel. Not sure about this one.

In short: A problematic messy bitter beer
How: Bottle 12oz. Consumed fresh a little over 1 month after purchase. Bottle from my BA trading buddy, thanks a lot Heath
The look: Cloudy golden-orange body topped by a medium beige head with medium retention
In long: Nose is red ruby grapefruits, dank hops, sweaty socks. Body is unpleasantly fluffy. Taste is acrid, plastic notes, biscuits, very bitter grapefruits, lemony acidity, dust, phenols, more… Impolite yeast that tries to steal the show, sharp abrasive bitterness with no reason, out of place acidity. I know my bottle was purchased only a few weeks before I drank it so I think I got a bad bottle. However if this is what’s a DuClaw Venom Pale Ale tastes like when fresh then this beer should have an "Even Worse After" date.

Draft @ Bel Air location. By far my favorite of the "regular" beers at duclaw. Orangish in color. Smells and tastes much like an IPA. Great smooth hop flavor all the way through. Big hit with me!

This was tasted at the bar in the BWI airport. I was dropping off my son after a losing effort by our Redskins. The orange colored ale with some haze had a smallish head. The bitterness of the hops was balanced with some spruce and citrus flavors. A good APA with a medium body and average carbonation.