Double Dead Rise Old Bay Summer Ale
Flying Dog Brewery

Poured from the bottle into a branded Flying dog tulip/goblet glass.

Nice basic amber, almost red with a perfect looking orange body with nice clarity. Off white head at about two fingers, with a fluffy top and light retention.

Aroma is kind of odd but enjoyable. Definitely got the classic Old Bay thing going on but there's also a very misplaced seeem like hefeweizen banana ester in the mix here that really takes things just a hair sideways. Minimal hop notes a tiny touch of classic paprika, pepper, celery salt and even a touch of sweetness also.

Thick rich malted palate goes for the throat. Thick bodied malt and syrupy feeling, with classic old bay powdery spice and deliciousness. Minimal heat with touches of soft hop pine, with a good mix of faint caramel sweetness also. Sticky touches of pepper, paprika and even some honey in the mix.

Definitely an amped up Old Bay beer, not going to be everyone's cup of tea, but if you are coming here you know what you are getting in to.

9% ABV, 2022 batch.

Pours a clear yet slightly still copper color. The head is around a finger high, with a white color. The head is also creamy but relatively quick to fade. A ring of lace sticks to the glass, though no splotches are left behind.

Old Bay, of course, is prevalent on the nose. I mean...that's the whole point of the beer! What I find interesting is the peppery background that meshes well with the Old Bay. Some lemon also pops up after sitting around a bit. My only real complaint is that the malt backbone seems weak next to the spicy character.

The flavor profile is strange. Not necessarily in a good way, either. It starts off pleasantly - lots of Old Bay, lemon, and black pepper. Then it sort of fades out into a sweet, malty character. I do like the salty notes lingering throughout, but other than that, it's a bit messy and out of whack. Pity.

Heavy and lumpy on the palate, there is a bit more carbonation than I expected however. It finishes with a fuzzy astringency that really doesn't fit the aforementioned heavy, lumpy nature. Eh, at least it's not harshly boozy or anything...

Ultimately, this is kind of a gimmick. Worth a try if you're the kind of person who is completely anal about hanging the Maryland flag correctly (BLACK CORNER GOES TOP LEFT), otherwise I'd just stick with the regular Dead Rise.