Oak Aged Old Ruffian Barley Wine
Great Divide Brewing Company

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From:
Great Divide Brewing Company
 
Colorado, United States
Style:
American Barleywine
ABV:
10.2%
Score:
91
Avg:
4.2 | pDev: 8.1%
Reviews:
6
Ratings:
16
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Sep 23, 2019
Added:
Mar 19, 2007
Wants:
  5
Gots:
  4
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 4 by teamwiggum from Wisconsin

Sep 23, 2019
 
Rated: 4.04 by jaydoc from Kansas

Jun 26, 2015
 
Rated: 4.24 by Hohnbaum from Kansas

Jun 26, 2015
 
Rated: 4.19 by gobuccos from Ohio

Jun 21, 2015
 
Rated: 3.75 by dtomes from New York

Feb 20, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by XmnwildX12 from Minnesota

Dec 05, 2013
 
Rated: 4.5 by BUNZILLA from Indiana

Jul 29, 2013
 
Rated: 4.75 by skunk242 from California

Aug 08, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by buckyp from South Carolina

Dec 29, 2011
Photo of rafjr00
Reviewed by rafjr00 from Louisiana

4.08/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Dark honey brown in color with an off white head. Nice lacing. Burnt sugar/malty smell. Also dark chocolate and alcohol. Taste of Dark chocolate, alcohol, a little bit of hops, burnt wood/wood smoke, and a little bitterness.
Mouth feel was on the creamy side with a nice chewiness to it. Nice body, had a nice weight on the tongue.
Great for a cold night.
Jan 03, 2008
Photo of akorsak
Reviewed by akorsak from Pennsylvania

4.2/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A growler from Capone's, graciously shared by Phatz during his Coffee Tasting in Paradise.

A: The ale is an amber orange color, reasonably clear (at least moreso than I expected and/or remembered from the original Old Ruff). The growler lost a good bit of carbonation, mustering up only a slight off-white foam.

S: The nose is full of malty thickness that is formidably met with a strong citrus hop aroma. Struggle as I may, I can't pick up a great deal of barrel aged characteristics.

T: Again, the thickness of the body impresses me, full of concentrated, sweet malts. Those malts are no match for the hop body, thick with grapefruit citrus bite, so much so that this could pass for an IPA/DIPA. The intensity of the hops does betray slight evidence of barrel aging, with some vanilla and pepper flavors that try to match up against the hops (to no avail).

M: The mouthfeel is a hop lovers dream, full of grapefruit strength. The barrel aging has softened up the edges a bit, but not enough to tone down the malt and hops.

D: I had a glass and a half, I'd love to try this again, as I saw very little to distinguish it from the plain ol' Old Ruffian.
Dec 09, 2007
Photo of weeare138
Reviewed by weeare138 from Pennsylvania

4.15/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap at Capones...
Appears a semi-transparent amber with a fluffy, light tan head that has nice head retention with tons of lacing. Beautiful looking beer.
Smell is of oaky vanilla, cherries, ripe mangos, red grapes, rich caramel, malt, slight hint of brandy, and a nice dose of grapefruit laden hops.
Taste mimics the aromas with sticky brown sugar and pine jumping out.
Mouthfeel is sweet and bitter with some booziness pulling through, though mostly smooth. Bitter hops of pine sap stick to the palate. Really tasty stuff.
Dec 07, 2007
Photo of Crosling
Reviewed by Crosling from Colorado

3.88/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Draught @ The Boulder Strong Ale Fest. Let me preface by saying that this is a very fine tasting beer, but I can’t encourage the use of oak chips rather than actual barrel aging by giving this beer a truly high score. This was without question better than the last Old Ruffian bottling I had (but I think that was an off batch.) Anyway, like I said, this is a fine beer, but I can’t endorse the use of chips any longer. I am sure this beer would be much, much better if it were aged in an actual barrel.
Apr 13, 2007
Photo of biking4beer
Reviewed by biking4beer from Colorado

4.05/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
On tap at the Great Divide Tap Room.

Pours a minimal whispy head. Deep red, orangish color.

Oak aging definitely imparts predominant oak characteristics enhancing the sweet aromas and quelling the hops a bit.

Taste is the same. Nice sherry/whiskey, caramel sweetness that ends with bitterness to balance things out.

Mouthfeel is oily with just the right level of carbonation. I could easily drink a couple of pints of this. I probably shouldn't, but I could.

The results are pretty much the same for this as it is for Yeti to Oak Aged Yeti. In my opinion (I typically like oak aged beers), it dulls the hops just enough and really brings out some malty characteristic. I must have if you're ever lucky enough to see it.
Mar 27, 2007
Photo of ArrogantB
Reviewed by ArrogantB from Colorado

3.63/5  rDev -13.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
I was told that this was Old Ruffian aged on oak chips for five weeks. The color was identical to the regular ruffian, orange-brown. The head was tiny and the top of the beer looked like an oil slick. The smell was very oaky and whiskey-like. The taste was very heavy on the oak and also tasted like whiskey. I had a regular ruffian side-by-side and I felt like the oak covered up the hops too much. The beer did get better as it warmed. I was told the next batch was oaked for two weeks so I will go back and see how that one turned out.
Mar 19, 2007
Oak Aged Old Ruffian Barley Wine from Great Divide Brewing Company
Beer rating: 91 out of 100 with 16 ratings