This year's devil dancer, onion bomb?

AT $5 a bottle, I won't bother based on it being "better than last year". Last year's ruined my palate for a month. I could taste chives in every IPA I drank after that monstrosity.

 

I just had a 2012 bottle. I can't believe I used to love this beer. Extremely hot and boozy mess. No onion flavors, but extremely sweet. Founders really needs to learn to balance their beers and make them palatable. Not to mention make them affordable as well.

 

Founders doesn't need to learn anything, they're one of the best (if not THE best) breweries in America and in my opinion completely made up for last year's disaster (onion dancer was one of the worst beers I've endured) by putting out the best Devil Dancer I've had, which goes back to when they first put this out.

I generally don't start to enjoy DD until it's aged a bit, but this year's is spot on IMO. Oozing with hops with a malt backbone to balance it out with the sweetness one should expect from such a strong beer. No hint of onions anywhere. Definitely not for everyone, but if you enjoyed DD in the past, were put off (like me) by last years, it's definitely worth giving this year's a chance.

 

Haven't had a ton of Citra brews but between Kern and ZD I've never had an off note. IMO these make some of the best handful of brews I've ever tasted.

 

When I drank Devil Dancer fresh in 2011 it was the only beer I've ever had that gave me heartburn. A month or so ago I found a bottle I'd left in my friend's fridge since release... we split it and it was better, but still not very good.

 

I age my devil dancer for 2 years- it tastes perfect then. Fresh just is too much for me- takes the enamel off your teeth......(and this is coming from a big hop head)

 

Can't wait to try the 2012 bottle I have sitting in the fridge. Sometimes I need a beer to put my ass back in check.

 

Isn't GUBNA 100% Summit?... just drink one before having a devil dancer and it you shouldn't pick up on the latter's oniony flavors.

 

Gubna sucks, and it's expensive too.

 

Much better than the onion bomb from last year. I just had to review the damn thing again, since I severely dropped my score after last year's debacle.

 

Summit is disgusting, and Gubna is the worst beer on the planet.

 

Am I crazy? I loved the onion bomb last year, and people that I drank it with were lovin it as well. One of my favorite beers. Everyone on here seems to think differently though

 

Just finished my first bottle, much better than last years version. I'd like to know what they did last year to make it taste so awful.

 

More like these are the "kind hops", the hybridizations of cultivars of these hop strains are getting more and more potent just like its botanical cousin. You can also pick up cat pee in the crazy powerful ganja strains.

 

This thread makes me sad...

 

And by the way, this years was a complete turnaround, great brew, I hated the raw field onion flavor of last years.

 

I'm with you, I like the onion flavor. Haven't had Devil Dancer, but Victory Ranch 369 had hardcore onion flavor. The flavor definitely lingers so I can see why people are put off by it.

 

Dude. I loved it last year. This is a very op-onion-ated thread. This is one of my favorite beers every year.

 

Just had it on tap tonight and didn't think it was onion puree like I did last year.

 

I think this yere's DD is drinking great fresh. A fantastic way to wind down the 100 degree days we've been having here in mid-Michigan.

On a semi related note, this past weekend while helping a friend organize his cellar we opened up a 2009 Double Crooked Tree and a 2010 Devil Dancer. The aged Double Crooked Tree was incredibly tasty. The 2 YO Devil Dancer - not so much. Both smelled similar, but the old DD had an offputting bitter aftertaste.