Adam
Hair Of The Dog Brewing Company / Brewery And Tasting Room

4.43/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
by TheBricenator from Oregon

Look: Rich dark brown on the pour and my sloppy one brings on a silky light brown head that is short-lived and finishes as a film, leaving a ring of lacing behind
Aroma: Warm brown bread, dried dark fruit notes, blackstrap molasses, wafts of chocolate, some ethanol, caramel, and slightly burnt toast
Taste: Whoa. Rich bready malt kicks it off as layers of dried dark fruit emerge and seep in – figs, dates, raisins, and prunes all in the mix. Molasses and dark baker’s chocolate spring forth and shine before rejoining the mix before caramel and ethanol guide things to a close
Mouthfeel: Full, very silky and smooth throughout, medium carbonation, and a smooth finish with a little bite from what I assume and feel is from the booze
Overall: This is awesome stuff. This is a ridiculously deep and intricate Old Ale that is bold while being smooth and tasty but also, boldly proclaiming itself as a ‘big’ beer. I can’t believe it’s probably been a decade since I last tried this and I can again see why it has the hype and subsequent high rating that it does. A great evening sipper on this chilly PNW evening. Recommended

Feb 26, 2022

4.02/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
by FBarber from Illinois

Bottled: 2/16/2010

It pours a dark dried prune brown color. Thin fizzy head forms on the beer and actually sticks around for a while. The aroma is interesting - it reminds me of an old bottle of Bigfoot. You get some dark fruit notes, along with old hop notes. There is a bit of a metallic note in the nose, some brown sugar.

Taste is more of the same - its malty up front with some old/aged hop notes. There are some dark fruits and brown sugar with a lovely warmth on the back end. Notes of leather and bready malts come through as well. Feel is lighter bodied for such a big beer. Mild carbonation. Pretty dry on the finish.

Its a very nice beer and one that has clearly aged incredibly gracefully.

Oct 18, 2021

4.44/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
by REVZEB from Illinois

Cellared bottle for 1 year. Medium brown mostly opaque body with a finger of tan foam, thick bands of lacing are left on the glass. Caramel malts, lightly roasted barley, toffee, tobacco, dried dark fruit, toast and musty yeast in the nose, more subdued than expected. Taste adds cocoa, a touch of licorice, earth and a whisper of crusty bread. Feel is smooth, medium-light bodied, yeast and malt both carry is a gentle way, booze is hidden so well. Really nice old ale that for the style is easy drinking while being nuanced and complex, a classic

Sep 18, 2021

4.21/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
by zac16125 from South Carolina

Vintage 2020 (batch 101)
Reviewed: Sept 2021

Pours very dark for an Old Ale, essentially black in the glass. Fully opaque and with a large, dense tan head that has great retention. Looks like a stout, very fine looking beer though. Aroma is very roasty, a bit herbaceous, stout like. Unsweetened bakers chocolate, subtle stale coffee, only the faintest burnt sugar. Tastes like a stout, with more prominent bitterness. Huge roasty malt, bitter black coffee, dark high cocoa% chocolate, some hoppy bittnerness. Prominent smoky char. Mouthfeel is full bodied with an appropriate carbonation. It’s a bold beer but remains very drinkable. Overall, this beer confuses me a bit as it’s very much like an imperial stout which utilizes smoked malt (it’s very reminiscent of COAST Blackbeerd for example), or maybe even a smoked porter. It’s labeled as an Old Ale but I get almost no dark fruits, very minimal sweetness, and it doesn’t really resemble anything of the typical Old Ale style. That being said, it’s categorization may be more of a BeerAdvocate issue as the label says “Old World Ale” which I guess doesn’t necessarily mean it’s intended by the brewer to be classified as the Stock Ale variety. Regardless, it’s very good and I’m excited to explore some deep vintages of this as I’m very curious as to how it has aged.

4.75/4.25/4/4.5/4.25

Sep 15, 2021

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
by mushroomcloud from Texas

Batch 101, bottled 10-24-20. Opened 6-20-21.
1 finger beige head with a tight bead. Good retention and holds fast for a period of time at 1/4".
Darkest brown almost to black with some amber at the base with a light beaming through the beer. Clingy lacing.
Leather, spice, dark fruit, nuts, earth...lots going on here, complex almost wine-like nose.
I feel like I'm smelling some leafy hops at the tail end as well.
More leather in the flavor, earthy and spicy. Bitter cocoa, raisin, prune, fig, etc...layers of flavors.
Medium body and carbonation. A little hot but still creamy in the mouthfeel.
Lengthy malty finish with a touch of sweetness.
Pretty sure I could have opened this in 2025 for a treat...wanted to dig in now - it's a doozy.
Amazing - World Class.

Jun 21, 2021

4.52/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
by bret27 from California

$5 Shelfie at casknflask San Jose.
No bottle date.
A: Very dark brown-black, minimal to moderate light tan head.
S:leather, roasty, vanilla, black liquorice, brown sugar, raisin, smoke.
T: moderately sweet with notes of leather, caramel, dark fruit, raisins, smoky, tobacco. Booze is hidden.
F: Medium-thick, smooth.
Overall: Surprised I hadn’t had this before. It’s apparently HOTD’s first beer. Pretty impressive and so complex.
It’s classified as an old ale or adambier. Either way it’s not a commonly attempted style.

Mar 20, 2021

4/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
by Sigmund from Norway

355 ml bottle, from Ølkonsortiet, Aalborg. Batch # 71. ABV is 10%. Very dark reddish brown colour, moderate beige head. Vinous aroma, notes of dark dried fruits and oak, also some initial notes of dust. Sweet and vinous flavour, notes of old port, dark dried fruits and oak, hints of chocolate and smoke, decent hops in the finish. Very good.

Mar 19, 2021

4.19/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
by MikeWard from Pennsylvania

12oz bottle Into a goblet. Batch 98, but since HOTD'S vintage list only goes to 85, no #$÷!$&! help in determining age.

Looks very good in the glass. Deep, deep burgundy body. Small off white head dissipates to a ring and faint covering. Very little in the way of lacing.

Sweet and dark fruit aroma.

On tasting, a lot going on and I will try and do it justice. Warm, dark fruit, a touch tobacco, quite bitter. Collectively a very good taste.

Mouth close to full, finish warm, sweet, with a bitter touch.

Overall, an enjoyable sipper while watching an Eagles team I haven't seen all season.

Dec 14, 2020

4.5/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
by MaltyPythonsHopCircus from Canada (BC)

Big pillowy tan head, dark fruit and tobacco on the nose. Slight burnt sugar sweetness among the smoke, leather and wood notes. Lovely old ale that I will seek out again and again

Mar 01, 2020

4.27/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
by EMV from Pennsylvania

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a Dogfish Head tulip

L: Dark, dark pour... nearly black with massive foamy tannish head. Crazy sticky lacing.

S: Rich, sweet, and malty. Dark sugars and dried fruit.

T/F: Sweet and creamy... brown sugar, toffee, and vanilla. Prune, baked raisin, and dark chocolate. Tobacco and leather. Medium to thick bodied... super creamy carbonation. Warming and a bit boozy.

O: A delicious dessert beer.... and a slow sipper. Really complex flavors and glad I got ahold of this one. Unmarked/undated bottle so no idea what the age is, but it's at least a few years. Good stuff here.

Dec 09, 2019

3.48/5  rDev -18.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3
by unlikelyspiderperson from California

Pours a dark ruby/walnut brown, very still, little to no head other than a thin rim of off white foam and a thin veil of bubbles.
Nose is big and boozy with raisins and prunes front and center, accented by tobacco and oaky woodland leaflitter as well as subtle chocolate and dark rustic black bread.
Taste is deceptively light after the bombastic nose. Somewhat like watered down brandy and prune with some of the lighter floral tobacco notes. The flavors of the aroma are here but taste very watered down, can't figure out the dating but this is batch 95 and it appears it might be from sometime in 2013 or 2014 so that might explain it. But, you don't date your bottles I have to assume it's how you intended it. Very muted taste.
Mouthfeel is also a bit thin for such a 'big' beer.
Overall I'd be really curious to try to find a fresh bottle of this because I see potential, but this is a bit of a dud. Nose is there in spades but the flavor and mouthfeel both seem muted and watery. better luck to me next time

Nov 09, 2019

4.25/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
by Spikester from Oregon

Very dark almost black with two fingers of tan head. A good amount of lacing.
Smell is dark roasted malts.
Taste is dark roasted malts with stone fruit molasses very sweet some herbal hops.
Mouthfeel is medium with decent carbonation. Finish is balanced and leans toward the sweet.
Overall a really big beer. Easy drinking for a 10% abv beer.

Sep 27, 2019

4.43/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
by Bluecrow from New York

-ebony bottle pour with a soft tan foam cap that persists. The aroma is of deep molasses, leather and a bit of smoke. The flavor is very rich and layered. Toasted malt, maple syrup, toffee and a bit of burnt cherry are noted. The finish is silky and the mouthfeel is full. This is a truly superb brew on tap or from a bottle.

Jul 26, 2019