Hazy IPA’s! They’re all over in the beer world. Since it’s inception the Haze Craze has given us a plethora of IPA’s and in most pubs become the dominant style of beer on the menu.  Over the years we’ve seen fruity haze, sour haze, milkshake haze and many more.  It’s a style of beer beloved by many, so it only seems fitting that a brewery like Dogfish Head would find a way to further innovate within the style. Dogfish Head has a reputation for making amazing beer, especially when it comes to IPA.  Their 60,90, and 120 minute IPA’s are among the best in the industry. Limited release beers like Aprihop and 75 minute IPA are must-buys whenever you see them on the shelf. So seeing a new IPA from Dogfish Head always catches our attention.

Hazy-O! launched in February of 2021 and is the first nationally distributed Oat-Milk Centric IPA.  The beer clocks in at 7.1% ABV and has an IBU rating of 45.  The beer features malted, rolled, and naked oats as well as oat milk all of which are chosen to add different characteristics to the beer.  Hazy-O! is also dry hopped which helps elevate the juicy qualities of this beer and really keeps its flavor profile in the IPA style. 

The beer lives up to its name. It definitely pours hazy and with a rich golden color.  Going into a teku glass, I got about a full 2 fingers of pearly cream colored head in the glass. Thich also left some nice lacing on the glass. On the nose of the beer I got a lot of what I expect from a hazy IPA.  Tropical fruits like pineapple, mango and grapefruit are nice and easy to pick out. However, you do get a nice maltiness on this beer which is not always there on an IPA.  The flavor profile on Hazy-O! features a lot of classic IPA notes, juicy citrus and tropical fruits are not lost on this beer in any way. 

Where it really differentiates itself is in its mouthfeel, finish and hop presence.  Starting with the mouthfeel; you get a light almost fluffy creaminess in this IPA, which is attributed to the oats and oat milk in the beer. This flows right into the finish. You get a nice breadiness on its backend that is loaded with a malty characteristic.  The biggest unique quality of this beer for me is how the oats really mellowed out the hops.  You can still find a hop presence here. For a lot of people I would still pour this for them if they were looking to try a hoppy beer. That being said, for an IPA, Hazy-O! definitely leans on the malty side of beers as opposed to hoppy. For me this is great. Mega-hoppy beers have their place and I get why people love them, but they’re not a style I find myself reaching for.

It’s always great to see brewers continuing to innovate their products.  Innovative brewing is one of the core reasons most of us got into craft beer.  Hazy-O! continues this tradition and is a very welcome player in the IPA market. It’s crisp and refreshing while still being approachable and flavorful.  Also, it would be an amazing beer to share with someone just getting into craft beer. Dogfish Head has earned a reputation over the years for cranking out consistently amazing beers. There is an expectation that comes along with that and Hazy-O! totally lives up to that expectation. Grab a 6 pack and check it out. It’s a nice change of pace in the middle of stout season and will likely make its way into your regular rotation.