derryX Dogfish Head Review: Aprihop

Early in 2010, at the recommendation of John Jordan, I tried a Dogfish Head 60 Minute India Pale Ale. This came with much reluctance because I have never been a fan of IPA style beer or any beer with a decent bitterness; as a matter of fact, in the past, I got into homebrewing and decreased the intensity of the hops used in almost every recipe that I made.

There was something special about this 60 minute IPA. I couldn’t put my finger on it at the time, but, while out with my friends, I kept ordering Dogfish beers whenever I would see them on the menu. After trying a few different styles of beer by Dogfish Head Brewery, it occurred to me that they put a decent amount of effort into toying with the intrinsic concept of “beer,” and, if you visit the Dogfish Head website, you’ll come across their motto: “Off centered stuff for off centered people.”

As a result of my curiosity, I decided to do the “derryX Dogfish Head Reviews,” and, in doing so, spending a decent amount of money to seek out a number of different style Dogfish beers.

Aside from the descriptions contained herein (all of which were copied from www.dogfish.com), all comments are the opinion of derryX.

derryX Dogfish Head Review: Aprihop

Description – From www.dogfish.com:

Aprihop is our fruit beer for hopheads!

It is an American IPA brewed with Pilsner and Cystal malts massively hopped in in the continuous fashion. The flavor is complimented by the addition of Apricots.

After fermentation the beer is dry hopped with irresponsible amounts of Amarillo hops. The beer is hoppy in the aroma with the apricots playing a supporting complimentary role.

The flavor is rich with late hop flavors and it’s bitterness is tempered by just the right amount of malt sweetness and fruity undertones from the apricots.

This is one of our most popular seasonal beers and we’ve been brewing it each spring for quite a while now. We release the beer each March and you should find it on the shelves through May.

Price – $ 10.99 for a 6 pack of 12 oz bottles (Source: Latham Beverage)

Alcohol by volume – 7 %

Nose – When I took a whiff of this beer, I picked up aromas of honey, apricot, and lots of floral hops.

First Sip – The first sip was strong on the malt flavor, bright and acidic from the apricot, but not overwhelming.

As You Drink – As the beer starts to warm, the acidity from the apricot really starts to take over the palate.

Last Sip – The last sip was still sweet, but very acidic. Oddly, the malt flavor really stands out in the last sip.

Food Pairings – Grilled chicken or seafood, fruit salad, any green salad, Chinese takeout

<No pics – Sorry :-< >