Good points

My DOT collection has been building steadily in recent months. Time for a clear-out.

Down at the lighter end of the spectrum we have the 3.9% ABV Barrel Aged Session Ale, exclusive to Redmond's off licence. DOT has done this sort of thing before and knows its way around the style. This one is a pale and hazy orange shade and smells deliciously fruity, combining botrytised dessert wine with spritzy satsuma and summery honeysuckle. It's almost a shame to have to drink it. It's quite fizzy though there's plenty of body to prevent it from seeming sharp. The flavours are subtly different to the aromas, but no less complex. Here I get ripe peaches, gooseberry and white pepper -- a bitterness and spicing that helps keep its sweetness in check. Dry tannins bring a clean finish. It's a busy little fellow, and yet everything is well integrated, making it absolutely sessionable where other beers like this can turn cloying. The can presentation makes it accessible but this would be right at home in a cork-and-cage bottle too.

DOT's second distillery-exclusive release for Teeling's landed last week: the oxymoron-sounding barrel-aged New England pale ale, Liquid Sunshine. It's 5.1% ABV and was a spendy €5 for the 33cl tin. In the glass it's a dull brownish yellow but smells sweetly fruity -- Starburst and Skittles -- so far, so average. From the first sip it seems that way too, all fluffy texture and lemon candy. It takes a second for the special effects to kick in. The barrels have given it heady perfume or aftershave flavours, with jasmine spice and an exotic buzz of cedarwood. A brush of lime zest gives the finish a bitter flourish. It all works well together, offering a twist on whiskey-barrel flavours that's fully complementary to the fruit-forward New England pale ale base. It's playful, unpretentious and very enjoyable.

A modest New England IPA follows that, Covert Convert at 5.4% ABV. Full-on custardy haze here, with the wonky head retention you always get with that, because of science, presumably. The aroma is typical: chalky, orangey, a bit of vanilla. I'm guessing this is a by-the-numbers job. Bring on the garlic then... On tasting, the garlic is faint, and accompanied by some other vegetables: sweeter courgette and aubergine. Very Mediterranean. Vic Secret hops add their signature aniseed. A big and gritty yeast bite provides the finish. OK, it's not completely typical but it's all quite savoury and not to my taste. The contrast with the sleek beauty up top couldn't be starker. DOT gives you the whole package, I guess.

Celebrating a paint job gone wrong, because lockdown does funny things to a brewer, the next one is called Barn Door. It's an IPA, Cashmere, Centennial and Simcoe, and described as "crushable" on the can though that may be a mistake as it's 6.3% ABV. Accordingly, it's thick and sweet, with lots of orange cordial in both the flavour and aroma. Beside the concentrated fruit there's a gentle peppery spice and some slightly gummy vanilla ice cream: the white rectangular kind, not the good stuff with actual vanilla. It's passable, but is one of those beers where I can't help thinking I've drank it previously, recently. DOT has turned out plenty of thoroughly unique beers over the years. This isn't one of them.

Clearly, freshness is over-rated, so it's back to the barrels for the finisher. This one is called Lock-In and was the first release to members of DOT's barrel adoption programme earlier this year. It's a blend of red and amber ales, aged separately in rum and sherry ex-whiskey casks, finishing up at a formidable 8.2% ABV. It pours a dark ochre colour, a little murky with it. The aroma is boozy and vinous, suggesting Madeira wine and something dark and sticky from the cake stand, possibly with almonds. The texture is surprisingly light, given the specs -- smooth but not heavy, the sort of nuance that Belgium's brewers have mastered but is hard come by elsewhere. That Madeira effect hangs on in the flavour: raisins, cherries, strawberry and a little chocolate. Its red ale heritage is apparent from the crunch of hard toffee in the background. A growing alcoholic warmth makes it comforting and sippable. 75cl is a lot, even consumed slowly and shared. It's excellent work, however -- the barrel adopters made the right choice.

I'm sure I've ended a previous DOT post by saying I like the barrel stuff so much more than the hoppy stuff, but here's another, and likely not the last. I'll add that you should get over to Redmond's for that Session Ale pronto.