Flying Dog Kerberos Tripel Review

Brewery: Flying Dog Brewery | Beer: Kerberos Tripel
Style: Tripel | ABV: 8.5% | IBUs: 27
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into tulip glass

While there have been a few different Flying Dog beers here on Pintlog, I have yet to review one from their Canis Major series of big beers. We're starting the series off today with Kerberos, a Tripel with a mean bite.

Believe it or not, but this is actually the first Tripel that's made it on top PintLog, meaning we have to stop for a quick description of the style. One of the traditional Trappist style, the Tripel is stronger than Enkel (now generally known as "Blond") and Dubbel, but a little weaker than the Quadrupel.

Tripels are a little darker than a Strong Golden Ale with a fuller and maltier body to match. They typically have lots of peppery phenols, citrusy esters, sweet malt, and spicy hops. They're strong in alcohol content, but usually have a sneaky masked punch you have to watch out for.

This particular Tripel is named for the hound that guards the gates of Hades in Greek mythology and seems to slot right into the middle of the IBU and ABV range for Tripels. As for ingredients, the backbone is built from Pilsener and Aromatic malts and it's hopped with Golding and Saaz hops. It's bottle conditioned for authenticity, so this dog is still kicking when you bring it home.

Flying Dog are brief with their notes, noting only that it has a "dark golden color and a sweet flavor with a dry and spicy finish." Let's see if the beer speaks for itself.

Appearance: A slightly hazy golden-amber body with less than a finger of off-white head that burns out rapidly and leaves no lacing.

Aroma: A nicely complex combination of fruit (most notably orange), spices (clove and coriander), yeast, and some bare whiffs of alcohol. It certainly smells like a Tripel, that's for sure.

Taste: A mix similar to the nose: apple, orange, pepper, and yeast all over a mild malt backbone. Alcohol is more noticeable than in the nose, but still far from brash. The finish is peppery and citrusy.

Mouthfeel: A medium body with moderate carbonation and a drying finish. At times you can detect some slickness and mild burn from the alcohol.

Drinkability: Rather easily drinkable, but the alcohol content will slow you down eventually.

Verdict: Kerberos is a tasty brew, but falls short of brilliant. Certainly not a bad showing for an American brewery without a tradition of brewing Belgian style beers.

Grade: B

Flying Dog Doggie Style Classic Pale Ale Review

Brewery: Flying Dog Brewery | Beer: Doggie Style Classic Pale Ale
Style: American Pale Ale | ABV: 5.5%
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into pint glass

Here we have Flying Dog's flagship beer, Doggie Style Classic Pale Ale. American Pale Ales are known to be hoppier and dryer than their English counterparts. Doggie Style is no different according to the brewer, as it's "dry hopped during fermentation with shit loads of Cascade hops." A shit load, of course, being a standard measurement in the Flying Dog organization. Cascade hops, an American creation, are known for their mild bitterness and floral-citrus profile.

The label features another apeshit painting by the great Ralph Steadman and a brilliant quote by his associate Hunter S. Thompson: "Good people drink good beer." I couldn't agree more, doc. It also advertises this beer as so good, "you'll lap it up like your hound laps up toilet water." Apparently, someone out there agrees, as Doggie Style has won two medals at the Great American Beer Festival: a gold in 1991 for Pale Ale and a silver in 1999 for Classic English-Style Pale Ale.

Appearance: Rich orange body with brilliant yellow highlights. Topped with an off-white, creamy head that measures two fingers and leaves decent lacing.

Aroma: Citrusy and floral Cascade hops in full effect, with biscuity malt right behind. As you'd expect, this is very similar to the brewery's IPA, Snake Dog, but with a less pronounced hop aroma.

Taste: Intense Cascade hops dominate at first. Not especially bitter, the taste is classic Cascade: clean, piney, citrusy and bright. Underneath all of the hops lies a biscuity caramel malt base. These two elements are brilliantly balanced; while the hops are intense, they are never too much for the malt. Unfortunately, like other beers in the Flying Dog stable, the taste is just a little thin. One notch more on the intensity scale, and this might be perfect.

Mouthfeel: Dry, with a medium-light body and light carbonation, this is spot on for the style. The aftertaste continues the pleasant balance, being both bitter and malty.

Drinkability: Despite having a "shit load" of hops, this beer is not so bitter that it impedes drinkability. In fact, this is a very easy to drink beer, providing you don't completely, totally hate hops.

Verdict: With true-to-style aroma, flavors, and mouthfeel, Doggie Style is a fine example of American Pale Ale. And if you happen to love Cascade hops (like I do), you're in for a real treat.

Grade: A-

Flying Dog Snake Dog IPA Review

Brewery: Flying Dog Brewery | Beer: Snake Dog IPA
Style: American India Pale Ale | ABV: 7.1%
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into pint glass

Last time, my review of a different Flying Dog offering (Dogtoberfest) left me wanting a lot more flavor. I decided that if any of their beers are going to be able to deliver on that, it would be their IPA: Snake Dog. To steal my own description about India Pale Ales (or IPAs): "The India Pale Ale style originated during the 1700s when British brewers learned that adding large amounts of hops helped protect beer on its long journey to far away colonies."

The brewer describes this as a "Colorado-style" India Pale Ale, with specialty hops from the Pacific Northwest. The label features a very surreal Steadman illustration of a snake headed dog that appears to be tripping on acid, so the beer gets some originality points before I've even loosened the cap.

Appearance: Brilliantly clear and golden-amber with a finger and a half wide high creamy off white head that settles into average lacing.

Aroma: As one would expect, glorious floral hops absolutely dominate. One can also detect citrus and biscuity malt underneath.

Taste: True to style, this beer is absolutely bitter thanks to a heaping serving of hops. Much more intense than other Flying Dog offerings I've tried, I'm glad to see they can crank it up a bit. Once you peel off all of the bitterness, you find lackluster sweet biscuit malt underneath. The booze is hidden well, but provides a welcome kick from time to time.

Mouthfeel: Silky and full-bodied with the right amount of carbonation. A delicious bitter hop aftertaste lasts well into your next sip.

Drinkability: While this beer is certainly aggressive, and I might take my time, I could certainly throw back a few of these in one sitting.

Verdict: While not earth-shakingly amazing, this is quite a tasty little IPA. While I would be happier with something a little more exciting to accompany the bitterness, those hops still have me salivating for more. As I mentioned, I'm just glad that Flying Dog can produce flavorful beer. It makes me a little more excited about the other styles waiting for review in the fridge.

Grade: B

Flying Dog Dogtoberfest Review

Brewery: Flying Dog Brewery | Beer: Dogtoberfest
Style: Märzen/Oktoberfest | ABV: 5.3%
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into pint glass

Continuing in the vein of autumnal beers from brewers with the word dog in their name, this time we turn to Flying Dog's Dogtoberfest. Flying Dog was started as a brewpub in 1990 in Aspen by two ranchers, George Stranahan and Richard McIntyre. The brewery is quite proud of its connections to gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson. Each of their labels is illustrated by none other than the good doctor's legendary illustrator, Ralph Steadman, and marketing materials prominently feature Thompson quotes. Some of their beers are even dedicated to and inspired by the man. As a huge HST fan, I think I might love this brewery already.

Dogtoberfest is a Märzen, or Oktoberfest, style beer. In the days before refrigeration, beer was not brewed during the summer. The last batch, brewed in March (German for March is Märzen), was allowed to slowly ferment over the summer months until late September. Oktoberfest (calling it Septemberfest would have been too obvious) marks the end of the off-season and is fueled by the now ready Märzen. Typically, these beers are malty, copper in color, and have a medium alcohol content.

Appearance: Light copper body with amazing orange highlights and great clarity. The head pours about one and a half fingers high and is a brilliant creamy off-white. Eventually the head settles into a ring around the edge of the glass that leaves only soapy lacing that quickly recedes back onto the surface.

Aroma: Caramel sweetness with a toasted malt body and a slight hint of hops. Somewhat thinner than I would have imagined.

Taste: Balance of sweet toasted malt and floral hop bitterness with the caramel sweetness and some nuttiness in the back. Like the nose, the taste is a lot thinner than I was anticipating. The flavors themselves are nice, although perhaps a little too bitter at times, but the problem is I'm just not getting enough of them.

Mouthfeel: Somewhat watery body with a good amount of carbonation. The aftertaste is pleasantly dry and bitter and certainly more intense than the rest of the beer would lead you to expect.

Drinkability: With the thin body, this beer is quite drinkable, though perhaps a bit boring.

Verdict: While the fundamentals of this beer seem strong (I got this line from John McCain), it's just too thin to really inspire me. If they really cranked up the malt on this beer, closer to what you'd expect in a Märzen, I think this beer would be a real winner. However, with the body as thin as it is this beer is simply an average Oktoberfest offering.

Grade: C