Dogfish Head Kvasir

I was at my local beer store and picked up a 750ml bottle of the Dogfish Head Kvasir.

It is described as:

An ancient ale brewed with lingonberry, cranberry, birch syrup, honey, cranberry juice, and herbs.

It has a 10% ABV with an IBU of 13.

This brew has a tart taste when the sip enters your mouth, but it levels off quickly on the taste buds and you immediately detect the hints of the cranberry and the sweetness of the syrup and honey.

The aroma isn’t very strong, and is very tame and subtle.

At 10% ABV you would expect it to be harder to drink, but it’s actually very smooth and doesn’t have that hard punch you get out of higher ABV brews like IPAs.

When you drink the Kvasir, I highly recommend drinking it out of a snifter or tulip glass so you can get the flavors and aromas develop. Definitely let it breathe a little after pouring, and if it was in a refrigerator before pouring, it’s going to taste better if you let the pour warm up a bit.

This brew will most likely appeal to those who are primarily wine drinkers, and don’t drink much beer at all. I don’t want to call this a “dessert beer”, but it could serve as one in terms of flavor. Obviously, the 10% ABV could be a problem for some, but as I said before, it is very smooth and don’t think many would be able to tell the alcohol content range of this beer in a simple taste test.

I highly recommend trying out Dogfish Head Kvasir if you come across it. This is a Dogfish Head “Occasional Rarity” (seasonal), so if you do come across it, it’s probably best to get it.