Hair of the Dog Doggie Claws (2003-)

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

2006 12-ounce bottle. Bottle conditioned did this bottle good. Very cloudy with no head. Aroma of hops, malt, honey, and yeast. Flavor was superb. Hops, citrus, bread, honey, and malt. The palate was smooth, especially given the alcohol content. Alcohol warmed on the way down and did not interfere with the flavors. A truly amazing Barely Wine.

I love this beer but the 06’ version had little to no carbonation in the bottle. I have heard this attributed to a problem with the capping and also that it was deliberate. Regardless it tastes delicious with smooth carmel flavors and spicy hops and alcoholic backbone. Very complex and smooth. The 2005 version was even better.

2005 12 oz. bottle via trade with IrishBoy - Pours a slightly hazy amber color with a big two and a half finger thick off white head that lasted awhile. Nice lacing. Has a spicey floral hop, toasted bread malt, and ester aroma. The flavor is wonderful. Lightly sweetened malt and a wide range of esters. All blended nicely. Medium to full body. Nice mouthfeel. Alcohol is well hidden. An excellent beer all around. Thanks Richard.

Bottle courtesy of Jasonmech: Cloudy copper colored pour with a big light tan head. Aroma, Herbal and earthy hop notes, some citrus honey and caramel in there as well. Flavor, honey and caramel up front, a great herbal and earthy bitterness to it, there was some spicing in there as well. Very good beer. Thanks Jason!

300th Rating!!! 2003 Vintage (11.5%), 12 oz bottle via trade with Kramer17801, many thanks Jason. I’ve been saving this for a while, and I have a 04 bottle that I may very well age another year to see if it tastes like this bad boy. Upon opening the bottle the aroma came right out and greeted me like a fruit beer or a big double IPA does, just with a different smell. Pours cloudy dirty red with orange hues. There is a thin parshly bubbly white head that is ends up like a big rignt. The aroma is nice and full with notes of dried fruit, smell like I expect a BW to smell. Taste is sweet with a large hoppyness in the forefront, it is a little hoppier than I usually prefer but this is certainly a solid brew, the alchol is well hidden and the mouth feel is quite nice. Another successful brew by HotD.

Copper colour with no head. No carbonation. Aroma of fruit, hops, honey and alcohol. Strong malty flavour with much bitterness and alcohol. Finish like a good wine. Sip this. Good with chocolate.

Am a big h.o.t. dog fan, but this a little disappointing, bottle. fruity aroma with hops, brandy, honey. definite strawberry flavor after the wash of too sweet, some bitternes lingers, an off note I can’t define, alcohol warming soon. this is flat even for a barley wine, and dries out patches of my tongue.

2004 vintage, bottle says 11.5% ABV. Poured a nice copper color with some thin off-white head. The aroma was full of caramel, dark fruits, alcohol, and a bit of hops. The taste was pretty sweet up front, with the dark fruits and some toffee prevailing at first, followed by alcohol, and finishing with subtle hops. The mouthfeel was rather smooth and there wasn’t all that much carbonation. I definitely think the age on this bottle has mellowed the hops quite a bit, which is fine by me. Despite the alcohol being pretty evident here, I enjoyed this barleywine quite a bit, more than the Old Horizontal anyway. A quality barley wine in my book.