Batch No. 48 - Hair of the Dog Adam
Jan 18 '02 (Updated Feb 12 '02)
The Bottom Line One of the best beers in America. Makes my Top 10 list for 2001. Very highly recommended.
I was at a Trader Joe's market last month, buying some stuff, and while I was in the checkout line the lady ahead of me was asking the cashier what the difference between an "ale" and a "beer" was. I knew what she was trying to ask ("What's the difference between an 'ale' and a 'lager' beer?"), so, seeing that the cashier couldn't field the question, I tried to very briefly explain that these are two styles of beer, differentiated by the yeast used and the way they are fermented (top-fermenting yeast = ales, best served at cellar temperatures; bottom fermenting yeast = lagers, best served at cooler temperatures -- even refrigerator temps in some cases).
That brief bit of history concluded, the lady (probably in her late 50's), then asked me: "Have you ever tried that Hairy Dog beer? Or that Hair Dog, Dog Hair beer, whatever it's called?"
"Why, yes." I replied, feeling sure she meant ales from the Hair of the Dog Brewing Company of Portland, Oregon.
She continued, pulling in her chin and wearing a sour expression: "Well... that's the worst dog-gone beer I ever tried in my life. What is that stuff? Yewww. Yuck."
Me (absolutely flabbergasted): "What!!! What are you talking about?! That's one of my all-time favorite beer brands! You didn't like it???"
Just goes to show you. We all have different tastes and expectations. But Hair of the Dog beers are among my Top-10 favorite beers of all time.
Hair of the Dog Adam
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Batch No. 48. (Hair of the Dog Brewing changes batch numbers after every 5,000 bottles produced.)
This is a big, 10% alcohol by volume ale that is bottle conditioned and will actually improve with age. This ale can be laid down for a few years, if one has the patience to wait a while before drinking a good beer. (I generally don't fit into this class of drinkers.)
Adam is an Alt Beer-style (literally "old beer" -- an old German brewing style) malt bomb made using specially roasted barley, so it pours with dark garnet & brown color, and has a beautiful nose... smelling of sweet, dark chocolate with some black fruit (plum) tones. Since this beer is bottle conditioned, it does contain yeast sediments, so some may want to pour slowly and carefully. In flavor, this beer is a complex blend of roasted malt, fruit, chocolate, coffee, and caramel flavors -- all pleasingly presented -- and finishing warmly with a satisfyingly long bitter bite. Despite its sweet smell and flavor, this is a bitter beer after all, having an IBU rating of approximately 60 (about five times more bitter than Budweiser, for example), putting this beer in the low-end of the bitterness range defined by an Imperial Stout style of beer.
Price and Availability
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This beer is hard to find. Partly because its production and distribution is limited. And, too, because it is snapped up by beer enthusiasts as soon as it hits the store shelves. To date, I have only managed to find and purchase this beer at two locations: the Beverages and More super store in Brea, California (and only for a few brief weeks last summer), and at two Trader Joe's locations in Southern California.
Whenever I see this beer -- usually priced at $1.99 per 12-ounce bottle, this beer is not sold in $12 six-packs -- I buy as much as I can afford at the time. This is an excellent beer. Powerful. Complex. Flavorful.
Recommendations
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From time-to-time, I go out in the world and hunt for beer. These are not beer runs to the local 7-11 convenience store. Rather, these are drives out of town, to specialty shops that carry hundreds of hard-to-find specialty and imported beers. One day, I think I'd like to skip all the hunting and scouting around and just drive to Portland, Oregon, and buy a case of its Adam beer. It's only a two day drive... it would probably save me a lot of trouble. Now I sit here, scratching my head, trying to figure out how I am going to convince my wife that it is important for me to take a few days off for trip to Portland.
This beer, at 10% ABV, is something best enjoyed as a dessert beverage. I wrote to Hair of the Dog brewing about some aspect about this beer and I received a reply suggesting that I try this beer with a chocolate bar. Yes... I know that sounds strange, beer with chocolate, but Adam is one beer that that really pairs well with sweet dessert foods.
Hair of the Dog Brewing Company, founded 1993, is a microbrewery that ages its beer in oak barrels. Some beers, like this incredible Adam Ale, is aged in bourbon barrels.
I recommend a serving temperature of about 55-60ºF. Don't serve this beer too cold or you will miss the full range of its complex aromas and flavors.
Other Hair of the Dog beers that I enthusiastically recommend:
Fred Golden Special Ale (10% ABV, 65 IBU)
http://www.epinions.com/content_2113577092
Golden Rose Belgian Tripel Style Ale (8% ABV, 17 IBU)
http://www.epinions.com/content_1900060804
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Epinions.com ID:
4-1-1
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 - Top 50 |
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Member: Tom Carr
Location: Southern California
Reviews written: 1091
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