For today’s craft beer review I thought I would try my hand at tasting the Abita Turbodog produced by the Abita Brewing Company located in Abita Springs, Louisiana.

I’m steadily working my way through most of the Abita brews, however I’ve never tried the Turbodog, so I figured I better give it a whirl.

From the website, abita.com, we find this description. 

Turbodog is a dark brown ale brewed with Willamette hops and a combination of pale, crystal and chocolate malts. This combination gives Turbodog its rich body and color and a sweet chocolate toffee-like flavor. Turbodog began as a specialty ale but has gained a huge loyal following and has become one of our flagship brews.

This ale pairs well with most meats and is great served with hamburgers or sausages. It is a good match with smoked fish and can even stand up to wild game dishes. Turbodog is also great for marinating and braising meats and cooking such things as cabbage and greens. Colby, Gloucester, Cheddar and Blue cheeses go nicely with Turbodog. It’s perfect with spicy Louisiana jambalaya or Spanish paella. Some even like it paired with chocolate! 

Sounds pretty good.  Let’s try it.

This brew comes in a 12 oz. bottle and, according to the website, it has an ABV of 5.6%.

It poured a dark ruby to brown color with some brighter ruby highlights showing at the bottom and edges of the glass.  It had a very small, somewhat creamy and smooth tan head.  The retention time was minimal and the lacing was sub-par.

The nose revealed some decent roasted malts with a significant amount of nuttiness.  Something similar to walnuts and hickory nuts.  Some caramel and toffee sweetness along with light hints of chocolate and very, very light hints of molasses made for a decent smelling fragrance.  I also noticed a slight “woody” tone hiding just underneath the previously mentioned aromas.

The taste provided a bit more of the toasted nuttiness as well as some hints of freshly baked wheat bread.  The chocolate and caramel seemed to come on a bit stronger in the taste than did the aroma also.  Just a touch of bitterness was noticed, however I found a strong hint of grain as the brew began to warm.  All in all, not bad, although nothing extraordinary either.

The mouthfeel was medium bodied, smooth, but not real dry.  It had very little carbonation thus leading to a very flat mouthfeel.  Only an average amount of flavor was left behind too.

Well, this beer was alright I guess.  It was just lacking a tad in a few of the categories.  It wasn’t horrible or anything, however it wasn’t nearly as good as I thought it was going to be.  It was still relatively easy to drink and I think it would make for a decent session brew, although after one, I wasn’t really craving another.  It wouldn’t hurt to give it a try to see what your interpretation might be, but I don’t think I would go out of my way to find it.  With that being said, I primarily think of the Abita Turbodog to be mostly average to slightly above average.

Thanks for reading and commenting everyone.  I really appreciate it.

Until next time.  Cheers.

Score:  3.25 out of 5
Grade:  C+