Fying Dog Garde Dog

Brewery: Flying Dog Brewing Company
Style: Biere de Garde
ABV: 5.5%
Country: USA, Maryland

A new style here, the Bier De Garde is a farmhouse style ale traditionally brewed in the Northern regions of France. Color was a pale golden yellow with a big fluffy white head and a nice lace. Malty sweet aroma with grassy and herbal hop flavors. Taste was peppery up front with some bananas present with some other fruity yeast flavors. Flavor transitions over to the earthy flavors that were present in the aroma. Finish turns into plenty of biscuit and cracker malts that becomes plenty dry. Bitterness is more assertive than the other malty beers that have appeared recently. The medium body lent itself well and gave this a great mouthfeel. I'd certainly have this again. B+

Flying Dog Raging Bitch

Brewery: Flying Dog Brewing Company
Style: Belgian IPA
ABV: 8.30%
Country: USA, Maryland

Raging Bitch is the first beer from Flying Dog I've had since working my way through the variety pack. This is one of the more well known beers from Flying Dog and has been earning itself a good reputation since it was released in 2003.

Poured this into my tulip glass which has been getting plenty of use as of late. Left plenty of foamy head and a nice, lingering lace. Color was a bright and clear caramel.

Aroma had plenty of citrus hops. A Bit different from the standard grapefruit cascade hop variety. This has more of a lemon pepper aroma to it.

Sweet caramel hops with a bit of honey malt presence up front. Plenty of dark and fruity flavors throughout, raisins and apricots were the first two to come to mind. Left a nice lingering bitterness that wasn't overpowering. The body had a buttery and creamy feeling that tasted fantastic. Couldn't taste the alcohol, but it made its presence felt with a nice warming spiciness. This is a great sipper and worthy of its reputation. A-

Doggy Style Classic Pale Ale

Brewer: Flying Dog
Style: Pale Ale
ABV: 5.5%
Country: USA, Maryland

In case you hadn't figured it out at this point, I've been working my way through the Flying Dog variety pack. If you like what you've seen from it, you can find it at your local grocery store in the beer section. My local Giant carried it, should be easy to find.

This particular dog poured a bright copper color that was very clear. The aroma contained plenty of citrus hops. The primary taste was of sweet hops and malts that give way quickly to bitterness. Not too much not to little. Balance is well done between the competing flavors. The finish was nice and crisp with plenty of dryness, very refreshing. This has to be the best of the Flying Dog ales and would also be a good transitional beer for those making the transition from the world of watery, American, lite beers to real beers with actual flavor. B+

Road Dog Porter

Brewer: Flying Dog
Style: Porter
ABV: 6:0%
Country: USA, Maryland

Poured mostly dark and opaque, some caramel around the edges. Sort of like a darker Coke. A thin head recedes quickly to a ring of lace around the edges.

Has an aroma faintly suggesting coffee, caramel, and even a hint of chocolate.

Licorice, coffee, almonds and sweet caramel malts give way to a slightly spicy-bitter finish. All flavors are mild and fleeting. Less bold than a stout less sweet than other ales. Strikes a good balance between the two but leaves me wanting a bit more. C+

Tire Bite Golden Ale

Brewer: Flying Dog
Style: Kolsch
ABV: 5.1%
Country: USA, Maryland

Poured a pale, straw yellow. Clear with a small head that quickly dissipated.

Smell is not pleasant, biggest trait is sour wheat. Taste is very mild and fleeting. More of the wheat aroma is present with a bit of grass. Mild bitterness vanishes quickly. Watery and over-carbonated, this beer is bland and forgettable. There isn't enough malt flavor and the 16.5 IBUs listed is gone before you know it. A step up from a domestic lite beer, but not by much. Certainly not worth having again. D+

Snake Dog IPA

Brewer: Flying Dog
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 7.1%
Country: USA, Maryland

Beer 101: The India Pale Ale gets its name not because it was brewed in India, but because it was a pale ale that was brewed for British soldiers stationed in India during the 18th century. To survive the long sea voyage, the pale ale was loaded up with more hops (which are a natural preservative) and fermented to have a higher alcohol content (another wonderful, natural preservative). The result is a big, bold, brew with a long shelf life. An IPA will have lots of floral hop aromas and a big bitter finish (60+ IBUs). The next step in the food chain is the Imperial/Double IPA which has even more malt, more hops, and more alcohol than a standard IPA. Imperial IPAs will have IBUs over 70 and an ABVs well over 7%. This style has been recently popular among American microbreweries and is easy to find, a hophead's dream come true.


Poured a rich golden bronze. Had a thick, off-white head that left plenty of lingering lace.

The aroma was what you'd expect for an IPA. Plenty of sweet citrus notes with a bit of pine. It tasted just like it smelled which is a good thing. Big flavor with plenty of hops but no surprises. A nice bitter finish does a good job of evening out the sweet malts.

So far this is one of the better of the Flying Dog ales. This also serves as a good measuring stick to compare other IPAs to. Not boring but nothing unique. A solid B

In Heat Wheat

Brewer: Flying Dog Brewery
Style: Hefeweizen
ABV: 4.7%
Country: USA, Maryland

I'm usually not a fan of wheat beers, but it had been a long time since I've had one I decided to give one a shot.

It poured a cloudy, bright-yellow with a good, finger-sized head and a lingering lace.

Wheat is dominant in the aroma with a hint of spiciness.

The wheat is also dominant in the taste with a little bit of sweet licorice in the mix. Nearly no bitterness to speak of in the clean finish. Body is on the lighter end of the spectrum with a good amount of carbonation.

This beer went down quickly, however, the taste fades quickly as well. Not much jumps out at me from this one making it pretty forgettable. C-