Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Black & Blue

Black & Blue

 

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery in Milton, Delaware, United States 🇺🇸

  Belgian Style - Strong Ale Rotating Out of Production
Score
6.70
ABV: 10.0% IBU: 25 Ticks: 85
Black & Blue is a Belgian-style golden ale fermented with blackberries and blueberries. Because we dose Black & Blue with real berries -- rather than artificial flavoring -- the fruit comes through in the flavor, not just the aroma.

The pureed berries are added as the beer leaves the brewhouse. In fermentation, the yeast -- the same one we use in Red & White and Pangaea -- feeds on sugars from the barley and the berries, giving Black & Blue a unique complexity.

The label art for Black & Blue comes from portrait painter David Larned. David and his wife Sarah (also a painter, Sarah painted the still life for our Red & White label) are big Dogfish fans and live with their pug Weezie in Pennsylvania. David honed his craft in Florence, Italy, and at the University of Pennsylvania. David has had exhibits across the United States, but primarily works with portrait subjects on commissions in his studio.
 

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6.9
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5

Bottle at the beerbistro.
Dark ruby pour, small off white head. Aroma of random berries, blue, rasp, straw, goose., oh and not to mention a butt load of sugar. This beer has lasted the ageging, and isn’t too bad. The sugars have gone a bit wild, but its Not cloying. Very fruity, and juicy. But good god is the alcohol hidden and does it pack a punch.

Tried from Bottle on 28 Feb 2025 at 05:24


7.2
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7

Treated as a straight up fruit beer, this was poured into a pint glass.
The appearance was a glossy purple to brown color with a slight transparency about it. Floaties bounce off of carbonation rising to fill a one finger white to off white foamy head. It dissipates at a nice pace and leaves a small fairly thick ring of foamy lacing around the glass.
The smell starts off with a some blackberries and blueberries (obviously, right!) and blends into a light caramel to biscuity maltiness.
The taste was a nice mix between the blackberries and blueberries to a little bit of spiciness from the Belgian yeast. Yields more to the biscuity side than the caramel side in the taste. Its somewhat fruity in the aftertaste yet allows the spice to hit in the finish nicely.
On the palate, this one sat about a light to medium in body with a decent sessionability about it. Carbonation feels good as it is and falls in and around my tongue appropriately.
Overall, as a fruit beer, it works, with the Belgian spices snapping in and around my tongue, it wants to let you know, \"hey, I’m not just any old fruit beer.\" I’d have this again, nice beer.

Tried on 12 Nov 2015 at 08:04


5.8
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 4 | Overall - 6

Bottle at Danish Ratebeer Summer Gathering 2015, Ulfborg. Pours near clear amber with a bubbly ring off white head. Aroma of blueberry, dark berries, light veggies, malt, caramel and toffee. Flavour is moderate sweet. Medium bodied with soft carbonation. Too much alcohol.

Tried from Bottle on 14 Sep 2015 at 14:27


6.2
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Bottle, 10%. Unclear dark brown with small off-white head. Aroma is malt, caramel, toasted, berries and oxidized. Flavour is malt, caramel, fruit, berries?, toasted, little dark fruit, medium sweet and a little bitter.

Tried from Bottle on 29 Aug 2015 at 16:39


5.5
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 4 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Sampled @ Danish Summer Gathering 2015 Trübe sehr dunkel orangegoldene Farbe. Geruch trocken fruchtig, dezent süß, dunkle Beeren. Geschmack sehr süß, rote Beeren, trocken.

Tried on 29 Aug 2015 at 16:38


6
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

Dumpf fruchtiger Beginn mit herben und steigend hefigen Aromen. Geringe, dafür trockene Herbe im Mittelteil, spritzig. Nett, für den Alkoholgehalt aber eher entäuschend. 11/9/9/9/11/9

Tried on 29 Aug 2015 at 16:38


6.4
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5

Bottle @ fonefan tasting. Vintage 2007. Hazy amber with a white head. Aroma is sweet, malty and fruity. Flavor is quite sweet and light bitter. Sweet finish. 290815

Tried from Bottle on 29 Aug 2015 at 16:37


6.8
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

Sampled at 8th Danish Ratebeer Gathering, Ulfborg 2015, day 2. Slightly hazy reddish color, small white to off-white head. Smell and taste malts, dried fruits, dark fruits, a bit sweet-bitter. Average to decent body and carbonation.

Tried on 29 Aug 2015 at 16:32


6
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6

bottle. very funky - not even sure what you would consider this. Fun to share with people, not sure I could have a whole glass myself. Interesting beer

Tried from Bottle on 16 Aug 2015 at 22:20


7.2
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7

Bottle from Berts. Definite fruitiness, fruit juice sweetness, definite berry presence. Sweet nose and taste, smooth finish for a high abv fruit beer.

Tried from Bottle on 04 Jul 2015 at 22:47