Review Date 11/18/2004
Try? Re-buy?
To celebrate their 10th anniversary, the
Flying Dog Brewery released a few new brews in 2004, both a bit unusual for
them. They were lagers, a
Helles and an
Octoberfest, from
a brewery that has in the past brewed only ales. And beer lovers like myself
thought that that was great. But Denver, Colorado’s Flying Dog had more
surprises in store for beer enthusiasts. The first of these is Wild Dog
Double Pale Ale.
This is the first in a series of special brews Flying Dog has planned. Each
will be released in the months and years to come, and will be limited
edition brews with small production runs. Not all states will get them, or
so the brewery says. Here’s a bit more info from a small card attached to my
bottle:
Wild Dog Double Pale Ale marks Flying Dog’s 10th anniversary and the
launch of the Wild Dog series. A deluxe collection of limited-release beers
from our brewmaster, the series will show some of the boldest styles from
around the world. At 9% Alc by Vol and 80 IBUs, Wild Dog Double Pale Ale is
the stuff legends are made of..
All well and good, but just what is a double pale ale? In this case, it’s a souped up IPA with a higher alcohol content and oodles of malt and hops. And
it’s good. Really good. Each 750ml corked bottle is numbered; mine is number
632. It was bottled in September of 2004. The green glass they use is a
no-no, but my bottle (admittedly young) is just fine.
Wild Dog Double Pale Ale pours to a dark orange amber color with a
thick creamy head formation and an intense grassy hop nose. The nose alone
is just incredible; it’s like sticking your head inside a bag of fresh hops.
I could just sit here and smell the stuff all day. Umm, well, I can’t
support that. I just have to take a sip.
The palate is big and full bodied and packed with rich chewy caramel malt
flavors. But it’s the hops that steal the show here. While sipping, a huge
grassy hop aroma wafts from the brew and assaults my nose. Just incredible.
Then too, the beer is permeated with hop flavor, grassy, slightly piney, and
very, very bitter. There’s just tons of fresh hop flavor here, and hopheads
are really going to love this brew.
Especially the finish, where the huge hop bitterness really grabs the tongue
and just lingers and lingers. At 9% alcohol by volume, I should be getting
some alcohol warmth here, too, though I don’t notice that. The hops just
seem to drown it out. In many respects, double pale reminds me of a young
Bigfoot Barleywine , in both malt and hop profile.
I think this one will age out very nicely, though you’ll want to store your
bottles out of the light. I think the beer is overpriced at $10.99 a 750ml
bottle, but I’m glad I bought one. You should too. If future beers in the
series are as good as this one, beer enthusiasts everywhere have a lot to
cheer about.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft