Dark Horse Double Crooked Tree IPA | Dark Horse Brewing Company
Brewed by:
Dark Horse Brewing Company
Michigan, United States
darkhorsebrewery.com
Style: American Double / Imperial IPA
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 12.00%
Availability: Spring
Notes / Commercial Description:
Have you read the description for the regular Crooked Tree yet? Well this beer is almost the same just double the flavor and alcohol. We actually took the Crooked Tree recipe and doubled all of the ingredients except the water, just the way a DOUBLE should be made. Big hops balanced with tons of malt give this beer a huge body. Although this beer is as cool as "The Fonz" when first purchased, it gets really mellow and smooth with some age. After a year or two stored in a cool dark place you'll notice the heavy caramel and malt flavors are trying to sneak past the hops. This beer is hugely delicious so it will need your undivided attention (the chores can wait....trust us).
98 IBUs
Added by putnam on 03-05-2005
View: Beers | Place Reviews | Events
Ratings: 2,839 | Reviews: 928
3.58/5 rDev -13.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured into a pint glass. Striking color out of the bottle: copper-brown with a fluffy and resilient light tan head. Nice tracks in the glass. Does not smell like a DIPA, with caramel and bready malt. The hops are there but just not out front - a bit of orange and piney resin. Malty and sweet. Bitter and the hops taste like candied fruit with some earthy notes. Warming on the finish and a bit boozy. More on the barleywine spectrum for me.
442 characters
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured into a pint glass. Striking color out of the bottle: copper-brown with a fluffy and resilient light tan head. Nice tracks in the glass. Does not smell like a DIPA, with caramel and bready malt. The hops are there but just not out front - a bit of orange and piney resin. Malty and sweet. Bitter and the hops taste like candied fruit with some earthy notes. Warming on the finish and a bit boozy. More on the barleywine spectrum for me.
442 characters
4.05/5 rDev -1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
2016 bottle
Highly boozy beer. Midwesterns might compare it to a devil dancer. Although, I think I can confidently say, this has a more smoothness to it than the devil dancer. You have to pace yourself with this kind of beer. Unfortunately, I've knocked off some points for that reason. An aftertaste with too much alcohol just doesn't suit my palette as well. When we start hitting 12% and above is when this problem often arises. This high abv IPA has done the best job I can recall of keeping the aftertaste down (120 minute ipa excluded from this discussion obviously). The flavor is complex and very enjoyable. Not as much hops as I'd expect. Big malt bomb with big bite to it. Pours a very interesting dark gold. Given its availability, price, and my taste, I'd rather drink a bonnie's. However, you definitely have to try certain high abv ipas before you die, and this is one of them. A lot of my friends very much enjoyed this.
936 characters
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
2016 bottle
Highly boozy beer. Midwesterns might compare it to a devil dancer. Although, I think I can confidently say, this has a more smoothness to it than the devil dancer. You have to pace yourself with this kind of beer. Unfortunately, I've knocked off some points for that reason. An aftertaste with too much alcohol just doesn't suit my palette as well. When we start hitting 12% and above is when this problem often arises. This high abv IPA has done the best job I can recall of keeping the aftertaste down (120 minute ipa excluded from this discussion obviously). The flavor is complex and very enjoyable. Not as much hops as I'd expect. Big malt bomb with big bite to it. Pours a very interesting dark gold. Given its availability, price, and my taste, I'd rather drink a bonnie's. However, you definitely have to try certain high abv ipas before you die, and this is one of them. A lot of my friends very much enjoyed this.
936 characters
4.89/5 rDev +18.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5
The beer is a dark golden red color, like an imperial red. Half inch head, heavy lacing.
The smell is a dank coppery smell from what i can tell (my nose isnt working great tonight)
The taste is excellent. Well balanced dank bitter piney hops with a malty backbone. And I was worried about a boozy flavor, but havent found one in this beer. Drinks incredibly smooth for a 12% to me.
Has sufficient carbonation, drinks smoothly. A hoppy aftertaste but a good one.
I'm newer to ipas, but this one impressed me. Ive had other high abv ipas, and they sometimes come off as too boozy and sweet in the aftertaste. This one just tastes like a pumped up ipa, not an ipa barleywine. I recommend it to any ipa enthusiast, but beware, it runs 20$ per 4 pack.
Update 4/11/17- I'm trying a bottle of last years batch. The year definitely calmed down the hops. It still has that good flavor, but not as much of a bite. I think I prefer it fresh, but worth the experiment for sure.
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look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5
The beer is a dark golden red color, like an imperial red. Half inch head, heavy lacing.
The smell is a dank coppery smell from what i can tell (my nose isnt working great tonight)
The taste is excellent. Well balanced dank bitter piney hops with a malty backbone. And I was worried about a boozy flavor, but havent found one in this beer. Drinks incredibly smooth for a 12% to me.
Has sufficient carbonation, drinks smoothly. A hoppy aftertaste but a good one.
I'm newer to ipas, but this one impressed me. Ive had other high abv ipas, and they sometimes come off as too boozy and sweet in the aftertaste. This one just tastes like a pumped up ipa, not an ipa barleywine. I recommend it to any ipa enthusiast, but beware, it runs 20$ per 4 pack.
Update 4/11/17- I'm trying a bottle of last years batch. The year definitely calmed down the hops. It still has that good flavor, but not as much of a bite. I think I prefer it fresh, but worth the experiment for sure.
970 characters
3.82/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
1.7/5 rDev -58.7%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.75
The beer pours dark, smells of malt and alcohol, and it hits the palate with a wallop of malt that is poorly balanced by an infinitesimal pinch of hops. The mouthfeel is flat, heavy, and sticky. It finishes with a cloying flavor I can't quite pin a name on. As others have pointed out, this may be a fine example of some other type of beer but a DIPA it is not. The beer this most reminds me of is Thomas Creek's Up The Creek IIPA which has the same no-hop/hyper-malt boozed and confused profile attempting to pass as an IPA. Unfortunately, I expect a brewer to fill the bottle with something that matches the type specified on the label. My score is based on the fact that I wanted an IPA, paid (quite a bit) for something called an IPA, and ended up with a mixed-style beverage that was too malty for me to enjoy or even tolerate. I'll save the rest for guests I guess.
873 characters
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.75
The beer pours dark, smells of malt and alcohol, and it hits the palate with a wallop of malt that is poorly balanced by an infinitesimal pinch of hops. The mouthfeel is flat, heavy, and sticky. It finishes with a cloying flavor I can't quite pin a name on. As others have pointed out, this may be a fine example of some other type of beer but a DIPA it is not. The beer this most reminds me of is Thomas Creek's Up The Creek IIPA which has the same no-hop/hyper-malt boozed and confused profile attempting to pass as an IPA. Unfortunately, I expect a brewer to fill the bottle with something that matches the type specified on the label. My score is based on the fact that I wanted an IPA, paid (quite a bit) for something called an IPA, and ended up with a mixed-style beverage that was too malty for me to enjoy or even tolerate. I'll save the rest for guests I guess.
873 characters
4.18/5 rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
3.84/5 rDev -6.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
4.76/5 rDev +15.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
This beer pours a clear pale amber with a quickly dissipating head. The aroma offers up strong pine, spice, and grapefruit, with a touch of raisin. Is does smell a bit boozy, but not in a bad way, with background notes of tea. The flavor starts with some sweet caramel, but not too much, raisin,, lots of pine, mint, grapefruit, and tangerine. The mouthfeel is surprisingly dry, with a touch of stickiness at the end. Overall this was much better than I anticipated given the high ABV - generally this can make a DIPA too sweet, but here is really works out well. The beer is boozy, but is is balanced out with hops and malts to form an excellent whole.
653 characters
look: 4.25 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
This beer pours a clear pale amber with a quickly dissipating head. The aroma offers up strong pine, spice, and grapefruit, with a touch of raisin. Is does smell a bit boozy, but not in a bad way, with background notes of tea. The flavor starts with some sweet caramel, but not too much, raisin,, lots of pine, mint, grapefruit, and tangerine. The mouthfeel is surprisingly dry, with a touch of stickiness at the end. Overall this was much better than I anticipated given the high ABV - generally this can make a DIPA too sweet, but here is really works out well. The beer is boozy, but is is balanced out with hops and malts to form an excellent whole.
653 characters
3.82/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
3.79/5 rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
4.38/5 rDev +6.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
4.24/5 rDev +2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.65/5 rDev +12.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
L: dark golden pour from the tap. Finger large head with thick lacing that clings to tulip glass.
S: floral and bitter hops are prevalent. Malt smell is mixed in well and quite sweet smelling possibly due to the flowery and grassy hops used. The description clearly does not lie about its malt characteristic.
T: hoppy flowers and grass yet malt adds a caramelly sweetness that I enjoyed a lot. Honestly, at least from tap, it is comparable to the 120 minute Dogfish head beer I've had a few times before. Booze is hidden well has just enough bite to let you know it's there.
F: medium carbonation. Good crisp and sweetly lingering body.
O: I was impressed with the similarities between this and the 120 minute. It's a outstanding beer from dark horse and exceedingly worth the purchase. Like I said I had this on tap which may differ from other reviews but this beer stands out. Well worth the purchase.
908 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
L: dark golden pour from the tap. Finger large head with thick lacing that clings to tulip glass.
S: floral and bitter hops are prevalent. Malt smell is mixed in well and quite sweet smelling possibly due to the flowery and grassy hops used. The description clearly does not lie about its malt characteristic.
T: hoppy flowers and grass yet malt adds a caramelly sweetness that I enjoyed a lot. Honestly, at least from tap, it is comparable to the 120 minute Dogfish head beer I've had a few times before. Booze is hidden well has just enough bite to let you know it's there.
F: medium carbonation. Good crisp and sweetly lingering body.
O: I was impressed with the similarities between this and the 120 minute. It's a outstanding beer from dark horse and exceedingly worth the purchase. Like I said I had this on tap which may differ from other reviews but this beer stands out. Well worth the purchase.
908 characters
Dark Horse Double Crooked Tree IPA from Dark Horse Brewing Company
4.12
out of 5
based on 2,839 ratings.
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5