Dogfish Head American Beauty (2013 - 2018)
More than 1,500 loyal fans of the brewery and band suggested an ingredient idea and the Dead-inspired story behind it. Our favorite was granola, from California Dead Head and craft beer lover Thomas Butler.
“The components of granola – honey, toasted grains, oats and fruit – offer a lot from a beer perspective,” says Thomas, a chemist by day, homebrewer by night. “The idea is to have a bold pale ale that highlights the oats and honey with a nice ‘dank’ hop selection.”
American Beauty is brewed with all-American malts and hops, granola and little bit of soul. It’s malty with a big hop kick, and notes of toasted almond and honey round out the flavor profile and balance out the hop bitterness.
“The components of granola – honey, toasted grains, oats and fruit – offer a lot from a beer perspective,” says Thomas, a chemist by day, homebrewer by night. “The idea is to have a bold pale ale that highlights the oats and honey with a nice ‘dank’ hop selection.”
American Beauty is brewed with all-American malts and hops, granola and little bit of soul. It’s malty with a big hop kick, and notes of toasted almond and honey round out the flavor profile and balance out the hop bitterness.
3.5
338 reviews
Milton, United States
Community reviews
1pint 9.4 Oz Flasche. Als Gratfulldead American Beauty. Goldgelbes Bier, weisser Schaum. Es duftet nach Trockenfrüchten, Banane und Kräuter. Süsslich-bitterer Antrunk. Banane, Kräuter, Hopfen. Der Alkohol ist gut eingebunden. Bitteres Finish. Lecker. Hat für mich was belgisches.
From 2013. has not aged well as expected. now very unbalanced. but, makes sense. this was a sweet beer to begin with with lots of sugar from the nuts and honey from the granola. the hop presence that balanced it is now diminished to the point that there’s only a harsh bitterness aftertaste. Curiously the body is still full and oily and the carbonation still lively. Pours deep amber with a very decent head that remains. some yeasty sediment is visible. but the signs of oxydation are there in the aroma and in the overwhelming toffee-honey-like sweetness.
Its caramel and extremely strong. I feel like it needs another flavor to lift this beer beyond what it is. Great amber malty tastes
Draft to taster at cappy’s pour light copper with thin white head. Nose dank, caramel, toffee,earthy. Taste sweeter malt up front, honey, green apple, toffee, caramel. Light bitter mid palate. Apple finish.
On tap. Pours a hazy golden orange with a one finger white head and abundant lacing. Smells of citrus and alcohol. Tastes really good with an unusual flavor, a bit unfamiliar, fruit, berries, nice malty backbone, a high alcohol taste. Smooth as silk. Leaves a nice but fairly short lived aftertaste. Impressive!
750ml bottle. Resiny caramel IIPA. Filtered butterscotch orange body. Not that impressive, a little messy for DFH. Honey tones come through. OKish.
The aroma is bread, grass. Pours a clear copper\orange with off white head mostly lasting and excellent lacing. The taste is bitter/sweet. The body is medium, creamy, the carbonation lively and the finish long. Very Good!!
Pours a nice clear amber color. Aromas of citrus and pine hops. Flavors of grapefruit and orange. Nice hop flavor with a spicy edge.
Big bottle in Seattle. Rich orange, creamy foam. Rich sweet aroma reminiscent of an American strong ale or barleywine, more than any district hops. Rich, vaguely Belgian yeasty quality, heavier beer with a lot of alc sweetness and a little burn. Clean, well put together, but better in small quantities.
Bomber to a pint... Clear golden with white head. Dank tropical hops, malted sweetness. Smooth boozy finish... Very nice.
Bottle share thanks to Toby. Slightly sour aroma hints at the rye backbone, orange/copper pour. Mild, slick, slippery, finishes quick.
Bottle share, thanks johngalt1. Golden color, small white head. Sweet malty nose, hints of corn syrup. Light bitters, some grape, very sweet.
750ml bottle thanks to Toby. pours out a hazy copper topped with a sand head. nose is berries sweetness some rich malts. taste is more of the berries some sweetness and a odd end.
Bottle at tasting in remote Ulster County... You had to know the password to get down the road. Malt body and nose of same other than hints of hops. Hop finish, but sweeter malts dominate. Alcohol well hidden.
Bottle. Pour is hazy golden yellow with a medium white head. Flavor and aroma of orange zest, oats, honey, pine hops, light fruit, and yeast. Finish is yeast and fruit.
New Year's Eve. Pours a clear reddish orange. Lemony and floral spice in aroma. Taste is unique. Sweet. Fairly astringent bitterness both from the hops and the higher abv.
I bought this this year, with the 50th anniversary seal on it, because I went to the 50th Anniversary Fare Thee Well shows in Chicago. The experience was memorable. The concerts, that is. The beer, not so much. As a double IPA, it was lacking, with a somewhat vegetal malt note and some murky hops. It left me going down the road feeling bad, and I don’t want to be treated this way. Bottle.
Floral nose with light citrus and honey. Flavor a little grain, honey, fruit and alcohol. Not too shabby though the price is steep.
total crump! .. . ruby gold .. lots of healthy foam, good lacing .. nuts, spice, bread, and soggy bread .. . kind of boozy, very underwhelming, total crump indeed .. . .
It’s pretty ironic that my grandfather died in his living room.
I've tried twice to rate this beer I wrote a review for this and the app froze so this is my review.
Keg pour at NH Brewfest. Appearance is orange-golden pour without sparkle, thin white head with nice lacing. Aroma is floral but not strong. Taste is similar to nose but stronger--medium sweet with floral, hides alcohol well. Palate is medium bodied with smooth, slick texture and average carbonation Overall, this is very good with the dominant flavor of sweet versus hop bitterness.
Slight grainy taste of oats. Big honey to bring up the alcohol and an interesting hop mix with a bit of bite.
Light grain and moderate sweet malt aroma. Hazy orange color with a large white head. Moderate sweet beginning with a light bitter creamy finish.
This was poured into a snifter.
The appearance was a nice looking fairly dark hazy brown color with a one finger white foamy head that dissipated nicely.
The smell started off with a big honey sweetness. Light sweet lemon plays a nice balance and lends a slight hand to the bitterness department.
The taste was mainly sweet with a moderately bitter underneath grassy to lemon rind-like balance. There was a dry sweet to semi-bitter lemon-like aftertaste running into a quick dry sweet finish.
On the palate, this one sat about a medium on the body with a nice sipping quality about it. Carbonation runs fairly light.
Overall, as an American Strong Ale, it works, I’d have again.
Tap. Amber pour with a nice looking white head. Nuts, apricots, dried fruits, citrus, herb, spice, caramel. Medium full body. A lot of many things happening in a good way. Very approachable and hides the alcohol very well. Very nice
Pours clear amber color with a 2-finger white head. Mild aroma of citrus hops, maybe some honey. Body is full, with a moderately oily feel. Light astringency to the finish. Some honey sweetness up front, giving way to some citrus hops. Notes of almond and citrus peel in the finish.
Bottle from The Beer Shoppe in Yakima.
Aroma: Caramel, dried stone fruit (apricot) and orange plus orange zest, yeast, and light cinnamon.
Palate: Soft, rounded mouth feel.
Flavor: Similar to the aroma: Caramel, dried stone fruit (apricot) and orange plus orange zest, yeast, and light cinnamon.
Comment: Smooth, no sharp hop bite. Like a barley wine with it’s hop bitterness and extra malt dialed back. Very approachable in spite of the 9% alcohol. Tasty stuff.
27th August 2015
Lightly hazy gold beer, decent pale cream colour head. Palate is light but peppered with with good fine carbonation. Very sweet malts. Some spice. A little perfumey floralness. Fruit liqueur before piney hop and a little more hop spice. Odd but not unpleasant.
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Sample at the Tehachapi Beer & Wine Festival on 07/18/2015: Clear golden color with a medium foamy white head that recedes steadily. Stringy lacing. Aroma of piney hops, fruit and malt. Medium to full body with flavors of herbal hops, roast malt and fruit. The finish is mildly dank with a resiny hops aftertaste. Above average overall.