Hair of the Dog Doggie Claws (2003-)

Brewed by Hair of the Dog Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Portland, Oregon USA

12 oz bottle. Pours a very cloudy brown - kind of like dark caramel. The bottle made very little hiss when opened and poured like it was practically flat - several big bubbles, but no real head. Swirling the glass doesn’t raise any bubbles either. The aroma is very, very sweet - but lovely and nuanced nevertheless. It smells like fruit (raisins, figs), a little spice (like a very subtle touch of nutmeg and cardamom), floral -almost perfumy- hops, alcohol, and loads of sweet malts (tons of brown sugar and caramel). The flavor starts with a touch of ethanol and lots of maltiness: molasses and caramel. The middle of the tongue picks up hints of fruit, yeast, and spice (like a glazed cinnamon bun with candied dates). The finish has a touch of fruity and bitter hops, but is predominantly malts. The mouthfeel is actually not that unpleasant considering it tastes completely flat. Crazy big brews like this can sometimes stand up to a lack of carbonation. But it is still thick and syrupy on the tongue. Overall, it isn’t bad - but the Fred was better. Maybe I just got a bad bottle that didn’t seal in the carbonation properly...

2006 12 oz. bottle. Super raw BW - some age could do this puppy wonders - I’m talkin 3-4 years. Strong alcohol notes were palate ruining, but hey - I still liked it. Really wouldn’t be able to enjoy this if you didn’t like an ass kicker of a beer. Nice succulent malty and mildly bitter hop finish...with some yeast floaties to tag along. Solid!

courtesy of fiulijn; 2005 vintage - cloudy copper colour; the foam quickly disappears; very hoppy and malty nose: herbal, yeasty with notes of nougat and caramel; very thick and oily; robust malt body, lot of carbonation and a very strong astringent bitterness; notes of burning alcohol in a long bitter finish; very flowery and yeasty - a hugely complex hop bomb

2006 bottle, courtesy of Degarth, pours orange with golden highlights, with a very minimal late forming thin ring, no lacing. Aroma is very pleasant, big sweet malts, dark fruits, caramel, bread, vanilla, and some moderate hops coming through as it warms up. Flavor is sweet malts, with the slightest of hoppiness in the finish. Palate is smooth and full, with only slight carbonation and a sweet and bready lingering finish. This is a decent barleywine, but doesn’t seem as well put together as it could be; a bit unbalanced and overly sweet...

smells really sweet, like stone fruit, almost no head at all, tastes very sweet and yeasty. alcohol is really well masked. i like it a lot.

2006 bottle. Poured a dark amber color with a thin white head. Had a nice big armoa of hops and malts with some citrus fruit as well. This was big on flavor with a lot ging on. The malts come through big time with a nice sweet flavor and then the hops come through and mellow it out. There was some citrus fruits and caramel mixed in there as well. You get a little of the alcohol warth in there, but it was really well balanced. It was nice and full on the palate and finished smooth and sweet. This was just big on taste and really well done. A great barley wine.

thanks to Juiceisloose. Hoppy aroma, with a huge malts caramel with spicy citrus hops. Pours a rich amber color with no head. Not as hoppy as it smells, rich malty flavor, heavy caramel, hints of molasses, hints of spicy hops. Very smooth and lightly carbonated.

350 ml bottle from Bottle Barn, Santa Rosa. Opaque copper brown with no head. Aroma of brown sugar, molasses, and caramel. Thick sugary palate. Sweet burnt sugar and molasses taste with more sugar taste to the finish. Alcohol well hidden.