Dragons & YumYums is an American Pale Ale that’s brewed by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery. For the purposes of this craft beer review, the ale was served in a shaker pint glass from a 12 oz. bottle.
Packaging art for the Dragons & YumYums by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
What You Need to Know
Like so many beers Dogfish Head produces, Dragons & YumYums isn’t typical of its style. This beer was a collaboration between the Delaware-based brewery and the musical group the Flaming Lips. More on that below.
What makes this Pale Ale special is that it has an intensely tropical fruit palate that comes from being brewed with a combination of dragon fruit, yumberry, passionfruit, pear juice, and black carrot juice. Sounds intriguing, but how was it really? Let’s get to the review.
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Appearance
This Pale Ale pours a crystal-clear rosy copper and is topped by an inch-thick cap of dense pale pink foam that shows excellent retention. The head’s reduction leaves a fine lattice of sticky lace clinging to the sides of the glass. The ale’s effervescence is visibly apparent as fine bubbles continuously stream upward.
Aroma
The aroma wafts a scent of pine and then tropical fruit as the beer warms.
Label art for the Dragons & YumYums by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery
Flavor
The palate is led by the taste of bready malt and then quickly transitions to a tropical fruit medley that’s both sweet and tart. The aforementioned fruits all come to play but it’s not so easy to pick out those individual flavors. Personally, I picked up the passionfruit, pear, and there was a hint of carrot as well. Regardless, any of the fruity sweetness is nicely countered by tart fruit with hints of hoppy pine and resin.
Mouthfeel
The feel of the Pale is smooth with a medium-light body and it has a shade over moderate carbonation that becomes slightly prickly on the back end. Its finish is lightly dry and mildly astringent.
The First Beer with its Own Theme Song
The creativity of the Dragons & YumYums inspired the Flaming Lips front man Wayne Coyne to use ingredients from the beer — dragon fruit and yumberries — as characters in two original songs, The Story of Yum Yum and Dragon and Pouring Beer in Your Ear. Indeed, this is the the first beer with its own theme song.
With the fruits in mind, Wayne wrote lyrics like: “Yum Yum and Dragon went out for a drive, but Yum Yum doesn’t have any eyes… Yum Yum and Dragon, they’re happy they’re friends…”
The psychedelic influence of the label artwork was designed by Michael Hacker as part of Dogfish Head’s Off-Centered Art Series. It was influenced by the Flaming Lips legacy and the ingredients of Dragons & YumYums shown through radiating lines, fiery movement, dancing lips, rainbows, and bright pink colors.
Overall
Sure, its pink color is outside the norm for a Pale, but just the same, this brew looks amazing in the glass. Its aroma isn’t particularly strong but it is pleasant. The palate is really quite fruity and yet there’s a nice balance of bitter and tart flavors at the finish to keep the brew from being too sweet. Its ABV is high for the style but is concealed nicely.
The Pale is crisp, tart, and effervescent. That combination makes this brew oh so refreshing and easily quaffed. While this beer really stretches the boundaries of what’s considered an American Pale Ale, Dragons & YumYums is a thoroughly enjoyable brew. It’s definitely worth a try.
Watch the Video
Check out the video from Dogfish Head founder Sam Calagione as he talks about the Dragons & YumYums Pale Ale and the collaboration between the brewery and the American rock band The Flaming Lips.
