Fruit-Full Fort
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

Fruit-Full FortFruit-Full Fort
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From:
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
 
Delaware, United States
Style:
Fruit and Field Beer
Ranked #30
ABV:
18%
Score:
87
Ranked #16,412
Avg:
3.88 | pDev: 13.14%
Reviews:
75
Ratings:
176
Status:
Active
Rated:
Feb 11, 2024
Added:
Nov 22, 2017
Wants:
  9
Gots:
  33
A complex ale brewed with a boatload of berries.

A twist on our beloved Fort, Fruit-Full Fort is brewed with four types of berries - Raspberry, Blackberry, Boysenberry and Elderberry! This juicy blend of dark berries creates depth and complexity reminiscent of a jammy red wine.

Along with adding a boatload of more berries this time around, we also punched up the malt bill with Munich malt to provide a firm backbone. The result provides balance to the tart flavors of a very berry blend.

Dark maroon in color, Fruit-Full Fort is swirling with notes of velvety cherry and berry sweetness for a full-bodied - and full-flavor - experience!
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by oline73:
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Rated by oline73 from Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Sep 19, 2018
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4 by jvgoor3786 from Arkansas

Feb 11, 2024
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Rated by Oktoberfest from Ohio

3.34/5  rDev -13.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
Low/no carbonation. Kind of like a boozy, murky grape juice. But not it a good way.
Jan 08, 2024
Photo of dd53grif
Reviewed by dd53grif from Michigan

3.85/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Pours a dark brown color with a minimal head that lasts quite a while. Aroma of dark fruits. Taste is sweet and fruity with a slightly sour finish. Crisp and dry.
Dec 14, 2023
 
Rated: 4 by Patches826 from Massachusetts

Nov 30, 2023
Photo of Ernald_Elbertson
Reviewed by Ernald_Elbertson from Delaware

4.25/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
2018 Bottle in wine glass.

Sediment was pretty extreme in this one, a quarter inch or so sitting at the bottom of the bottle. When poured most of it stayed behind, but a good deal was still floating in the glass. Virtually no head at all on this beer, a dark muddy red that could easily be mistaken for wine.

Similar to the look, the smell is similar to a strong fruity red. Very boozy and somewhat tart.

Taste is incredibly strong and boozy, alcohol burn is substantial but very pleasant and aromatic. Not the sickening isopropyl character you get with some strong beers. Fruit character is obvious, but fermented and rich, not super sugary and fresh like many fruited beers aim for; this may be a product of its 5 years of aging. Should be drank at room temperature most likely, I had it chilled and it got much better over time.

Mouthfeel is very thick and syrupy, though the sheer sensory experience of the high ABV keeps it from being cloying. Not nearly as sticky as you might expect.

A very good beer, though more for wine drinkers I would say. Probably would not get it again unless discounted, but it has its place as a celebratory beverage, or a beer you might buy for a wine aficionado.
Nov 25, 2023
Photo of russpowell
Reviewed by russpowell from Arkansas

4.21/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 2 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Pours a ruddy chestnut color with fast-falling tan head. Viscous, zero head retention & lacing

S: Jammy, some leafy hops, just ooozes dark fruit & jammyness as this beer warms up. Just gets better as this warms

T: Follows the nose, barrel heat& dryness, blueberries, figgy with raisins up front. Boozy Concord grapes, blueberry & barrel dryness as this beer warms. Barrel warmth in the finish, red grapes, leafy hops & figs

MF: Fairly thick body, slight carbonation & very warming

These big BA Imp Stouts with a Red Wine influence have really got to hit for me to love them, but this one is pretty solid to drink despite the considerable heft & just got better at room temperature
Oct 01, 2023
Photo of Darkmagus82
Reviewed by Darkmagus82 from Texas

4.12/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Poured from a bottle into a chalice glass
Appearance – The beer pours a slightly murky, deep mahogany red color with a small head of fizzy reddish foam. The head fades very fast, leaving a trace of lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell – The aroma is huge red wine smell mixed with berry aromas, containing blackberry, blueberry, raspberry, and boysenberry. Along with the berry comes other dark fruits of cherry and plum as well as a little bit of a musty and hay like smell.
Taste – The taste begins with a very drier malty and red wine like flavor that is matched by some of the berry fruits that were in the nose. The strawberry and raspberry are the strongest of the berry, mixing in with some lighter boysenberry. As the taste advances the wine gets stronger and is joined by some cherry and a rather sizable showing of prune and raisin. Toward the end the alcohol makes itself known, adding a little bit of a heat to the brew and with a touch of hay and oak, one is left with a warming and oak aged red berry red wine like taste to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel – The body of the brew is medium in thickness and creaminess with a carbonation level that is medium as well. Overall, for the mix of fruit, booze, and lighter sweetness the feel is great and makes for a nice slow sipper.
Overall – At first sip I was not a big fan, but as I drank, with each subsequent sip I became more and more a fan. By the end, I was thoroughly enjoying the taste (maybe the alcohol had something to do with it haha...) But regardless, it is an interesting brew and one I hope to see dogfish head brew again in the future.
Jul 05, 2022
Photo of Phyl21ca
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)

4/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Bottle: Poured a murky brown color ale with a medium off-white foamy head with good retention and light lacing. Aroma of caramelized malt notes with some residual sugar notes and some jammy notes of blackberry. Taste is a mix of heavy caramelized malt notes with some residual sugar notes with some jammy notes of blackberry. Body is quite full with good carbonation with some warming alcohol notes perceptible. Unique brew with a good mix of flavors.
May 31, 2022
Photo of TMoney2591
Reviewed by TMoney2591 from Illinois

3.35/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
Served from the bottle in a Lagunitas mason jar.

Pours a brackish pomegranate juice (maybe with a touch of spiced apple cider thrown in there) topped by a bit of dirty off-khaki foam. The nose comprises raspberry, blackberry, and some mild booze. The taste brings in more of the same, the vague booze being replaced by a rich brandy, and some musty wheat getting itself tossed in for good measure. The body is a hefty medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a smooth-ish feel. This didn't hit me as well as regular Fort, but it is still an interesting libation to take down, at least once.
Mar 21, 2022
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Reviewed by JohnniEMc from Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
One twelve ounce brown bottle poured into a clear glass Imperial pint mug should be enough. What is seen is a dark mahogany colored brew, dark brown with reddish tints. It's opaque and somewhat dull in appearance. There's virtually no head, but the bubbles atop seem to be some sort of violet. It smells like something fruity that has been cask aged. The taste is rich and sweet, in a barleywine way. The swallow is warming, as with a brandy. Yet, it is richly malted and nicely smooth, like a good imperial stout. Of course it's sweet, with an abundance of berry inclusion and an obvious malt presence. But it's not cloying, likely due to the malt and very high ABV. Far from being a session beer, there are times, say after a nice meal, this may make a nice slow drinking conclusion. Pounding a six pack is not recommended.
Jan 29, 2022
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Reviewed by Radome from Florida

3.98/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Poured from a 12 oz bottle that's labeled as being bottled in 2018.

L- Medium brown color; hazy. Almost no head, just a small amount of light tan bubbles on the surface, and a few that rise up through the beer.

S - Lovely, rich berry aromas hide any from malt. A whiff of sweet alcohol in the background.

T - Berry fruit flavors are sharper than the aromas imply, turning tart toward the finish. The fruit tastes fresh and clean, but it doesn't have as much depth of flavor as I hoped. Malt is not very evident. Alcohol seems to lend a sweet note in the finish, but it is not boozy to me.

F - Medium body with moderate to high carbonation. Moderate hops bitterness. Strong alcohol burn, as you might expect for the 18% ABV, but I wouldn't call it boozy and it doesn't seem as high-alcohol as the number states.

O - I enjoyed this beer, but not as much as the original Fort. Although the fruit is very nice in this one, I perceive less malt "roundness" than I remember in the original, despite the description talking about the addition of Munich malt. The alcohol seems less prominent than I remember in the original, which is a good thing.
Jan 13, 2022
 
Rated: 4 by freewill35 from Indiana

Dec 03, 2021
 
Rated: 3.75 by mothman from Minnesota

Aug 24, 2021
 
Rated: 3.84 by tpeters from Maryland

Aug 23, 2021
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Reviewed by jkblr from Indiana

3.65/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
12oz bottled 07/18/18 (over three years ago) poured into a DFH branded teku glass at 61° Fahrenheit no ABV listed on label. The beer pours opaque medium brown in color with minimal light brown head. The head recedes to a thin ring and leaves no lacing. The aroma is mild with brown malt, nondescript berry, and ethanol. The taste is hot, berry-centric, and boozy. Minimal bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with average carbonation and a dry finish. Overall, not great. This old stock just hit our local stores and it tastes like it sat for 3 years in blazing heat and direct sunlight. I'd try it again fresh or if I knew it were aged properly.
Aug 23, 2021
 
Rated: 3.47 by cbuzz24 from Mississippi

Jul 28, 2021
 
Rated: 3.73 by Blogjackets from Ohio

Jul 20, 2021
 
Rated: 4.5 by archero from Texas

May 22, 2021
 
Rated: 4.23 by _Adam_ from Maryland

May 14, 2021
Fruit-Full Fort from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
Beer rating: 87 out of 100 with 176 ratings