Deschutes Brewery and Hair of the Dog - Collage (Conflux Series #1)

Deschutes website: "Deschutes Brewery and Hair of The Dog Brewing Company join forces to weave The Dissident and The Stoic and Fred and Adam into an artistic collage of cask-aging alchemy. Damn, beer is fun.
Barrel Aging: Rye Whiskey, Cognac, Sherry, Pinot Noir, Bourbon, new American Oak, and new Oregon Oak
Twelve-ounce bottles available in limited quantities starting May 15, 2012."

This is categorized as an "American Strong Ale" at 11.2% ABV. ASA is kind of a catch-all category for higher ABV beers that don't belong to a particular style, and that is definitely the case here, since this is a blend of 4 different beers of a few different styles. Deschutes' beers, The Dissident and The Stoic are a flanders brown and Belgian-style quad, respectively; Hair of the Dog's Adam is an old ale, and Fred is itself an ASA. I haven't had Fred, so I can't elaborate any further on what it is like. Nonetheless, the point is that all of these different beers have been blended together and aged to create Collage.

Appearance: Dark copper, fairly clear, with a somewhat reddish hue. Not much head, and no lacing or foam layer on top of the beer.

Smell: Strong scents of vanilla, sour cherry, and oak, with lesser hints of brown sugar, leather, and floral notes.

Taste: The Dissident seems pretty dominant at first, contributing major sour fruit notes. Then, though, many other flavors come into play, and the pinot noir barrels in particular lend the beer their characteristic tannin and oak flavors. I also taste maple and brown sugar, which contrast nicely with the upfront sour flavors. Honestly, this is a beer that is so complex that I am almost at a loss as to how to fully review it. There are so many flavors here, and those flavors mingle with each other so seamlessly that it's diffuclt for me to actually pick them all out individually. It's really unlike any beer I've ever had.

Mouthfeel: Smooth, very low in carbonation, with a moderately dry finish.

Overall: This is a very special, delicious beer that, again, if it weren't for the price (it's about $13 for a 12oz bottle) I'd want to grab tons of it. I highly recommend trying it if you see it, though, as it's unquestionably worth purchasing at least one bottle. The flavors are unique and expertly balanced and blended, and even with its higher ABV, it doesn't drink hot or heavy. Great beer.

5/5

Hair of the Dog - Blue Dot IPA

From the website: "Blue Dot Double India Pale Ale is named after planet Earth, the only blue planet in this universe, and brewed in honor of Earth Day, with organic Pilsner malt, rye malt and a combo of intense hops."

Blue Dot is a 7% ABV "rotating" release, and this is from the "Spring 2012" batch. It's pretty widely available in Southern CA when it's produced, so I was able to grab it easily at the local beer shop.

Appearance: A flat straw color, pretty cloudy, with zero head. Toward the end of the pour from the bottle, I tried pouring straight down the middle to get some foam action, but I got nothing. It looks really under-carbonated -- pretty disappointing.

Smell: Sweet, slightly floral, but not a lot of hop character. There is a hint of cracker/biscuit, and a note that almost smells like milk.

Taste: A little bitter, and a little hot tasting (meaning alcohol is noticeable.) It's kind of flat, though -- not a lot of fruit or other bright hop flavors. Again, there is some biscuit and a bit of a resin note, but the flavors are muted and heavy. Even the bitterness, which must come from the hops, is heavy-handed without being bright or contributing some kind of flavor.

Mouthfeel: Thick and smooth, but a little oily. I think it is, in fact, under-carbonated a bit. More would have lightened it up considerably.

Overall: I'm not impressed, which is unfortunate. People rave about this beer, but after all of the excellent DIPAs I've had, this one is very mediocre. I may have gotten a bad bottle, or maybe this batch isn't up to par, but I'm currently unsatisfied and not too sure what the hype is about over this one. I'll try it on tap, perhaps, to give it another shot.

2.5/5

Hair of the Dog - Adam (Batch 80)

HotD's website says Batch 80 was bottled on 02-16-10. About the beer: "Adam is a recreation of a historic beerstyle. Originally made in Dortmunder, Germany, it was the first beer [HotD] produced when [we] opened Hair of the Dog. Rich in flavor, Adam is best served as a dessert beer. It is great with chocolate or cigars, or just a warm fire and good company. It has 10% alcohol by volume and 50 IBUs."

Regarding Hair of the Dog distribution and Adam availability, my understanding is that HotD distributes mostly to the west coast, with some limited distribution back east. Adam is probably their "flagship" beer, and it's brewed year-round and is pretty easily acquired wherever one gets Hair of the Dog.

Appearance: A little lighter in the glass than comes across from the photo, but still a very dark chestnut brown. I did a very gentle pour on this so as not to disturb the yeast which had settled to the bottom of the bottle, but I got practically no head on this. There are thin patches of tan foam that shift on the top of the pour, but that's about it.

Smell: This beer smells very, very sweet. Toffee, caramel, a little bit of smoke, and vanilla. There are also notes of dark fruit, like fig.

Taste: Rich, sweet notes of chocolate, toffee, and dark fruits. There is a bit of warmth from the alcohol, but overall considering the ABV and heavy impact from the strong flavor notes, this beer is remarkably well balanced and complex. It also doesn't taste very oxidated after 2 years of age, which is nice.

Mouthfeel: It's pretty thick and slick, but actually finishes pretty dry, which is nice. It's definitely a sipper, overall though. It's very rich both in taste and in body.

Overall: If you like old ales as a style, this one is great. But it's definitely not an "easy-drinking" or very refreshing beer -- it's like dessert. 12 oz is about all I'd be able to drink of this before I started feeling overwhelmed, and truthfully, I could do just as well with about half. But none of that should be an indication that I don't like this. As I said, it's incredibly smooth and complex and tasty. It is a departure from the hoppier styles I usually prefer, but it's good to expand my horizons.

4/5