Dogfish Head Sixty-One

Beer Name: Sixty-One
Brewery: Dogfish Head Brewing Co. (Milton, DE)
ABV: 6.5%

How sold: 12 oz. bottle (355 mL)
Where bought: John's Marketplace (Portland, OR)
Price: $2.59
IBU:60

What's on the Label: "The continually hopped India Pale Ale brewed with syrah grape must." This is basically Dogfish Head's 60-Minute IPA with grape must.

When brewed? Year-round beer.

Where distributed: Dogfish Head ships to about half the U.S. states. Surprisingly (to me), Dogfish Head does not currently ship to California.

REVIEW:

Appearance (5%): Poured light copper into a clear pint glass, the beer becoming a clear orange-copper. Some carbonation. 4/5

Smell (25%): Sweet grape mixed with hops. OK, but threw me for a loop. 3.5/5

Taste (40%): Tastes like I'm drinking grape juice with beer. Sweetness keeps any bitterness in check. Aftertaste also is mostly dry-sweet grape with hoppy notes. A little too fruity for me to drink all the time, but still OK. Great for summer. 3.5/5

Mouthfeel (10%): A light, refreshing beer. Possible the ideal beer to bring to a summer BBQ. That said, it feels too dry on the tongue for me to drink by itself; Sixty-One should be paired with appetizers or an entree. 3/5

Overall (20%): I'm not sure what to think about this beer-wine hybrid. It certainly blends the two very well, pouring a unique light copper before becoming a darker orange-copper. The beer feels and tastes lighter than it appears. Admittedly, I am not the biggest wine fan, so that probably skews the rating significantly. But I must give points for it being what it was supposed to be. I highly recommend pairing this beer with sushi or dessert. While I will probably default to the 60-Minute and 90-Minute beers for Dogfish Head, I think Sixty-One was at least worth trying. 3.25/5

Final Weighted Rating: 3.425/5