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A Deal With The Devil
Anchorage Brewing Company
- From:
- Anchorage Brewing Company
- Alaska, United States
- Style:
- American Barleywine
- ABV:
- 17.3%
- Score:
- 100
- Avg:
- 4.53 | pDev: 8.61%
- Reviews:
- 155
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Apr 25, 2023
- Added:
- Jan 29, 2013
- Wants:
- 812
- Gots:
- 305
Barleywine style ale brewed with Galaxy Hops. A starting gravity of 37 Plato. Aged eleven months in Cognac barrels.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by GreesyFizeek:
Reviewed by GreesyFizeek from New York
4.5/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
4.5/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
Bottle brought back by my sister from Anchorage.
Pours like a thick, syrupy pile of mud. Like seriously, this stuff just crawled out of the bottle- it looks unbelievably thick. There's a thin layer of something that looks like molasses or maple syrup on the top of the beer. There's a very small layer of foam of bubbles that could pass as a head, I suppose, with a very small amount of lacing.
Smells quite sweet, with caramelized sugar, sweet caramel, cognac, vanilla, oak, toffee, and dark fruits.
The only drawback here is the intense sweetness- it's not off-putting, but it does keep it from being the absolutely god-tier barleywine I'd thought it would be. Beyond the sweet, intense caramelized sugar factor here, there's a good amount of niceties to be found underneath- molasses, maple syrup, dark fruits, a herbal character that honestly reminds me of aquavit, caramel, toffee, raisins, plums, blackberries, port, bourbon and sweet cognac. It's got a bit of sherry character that sort of suggests oxidation, but I know it can't be at this point.
If I was given this blind, I honestly wouldn't have been able to pick out the specific barrel it was in, because I got notes of cognac, sherry, bourbon, and port at different points.
This is probably the thickest beer I've ever had, it literally drinks like syrup. The mouthfeel is so sticky, so gloopy, so thick and delicious. I feel like I took a bath in maple syrup after drinking this. There's a very low level of carbonation. Despite the hefty ABV (which isn't noticeable, at all), and the intense flavors, it's very drinkable. It was not hard to split the bottle with a friend, and finish my half.
This is a really awesome achievement in brewing. If the sweetness was toned down a bit, and some of the residual sugars fermented out, this would be basically perfect. As it is, it's near perfect, though.
Jan 15, 2015Pours like a thick, syrupy pile of mud. Like seriously, this stuff just crawled out of the bottle- it looks unbelievably thick. There's a thin layer of something that looks like molasses or maple syrup on the top of the beer. There's a very small layer of foam of bubbles that could pass as a head, I suppose, with a very small amount of lacing.
Smells quite sweet, with caramelized sugar, sweet caramel, cognac, vanilla, oak, toffee, and dark fruits.
The only drawback here is the intense sweetness- it's not off-putting, but it does keep it from being the absolutely god-tier barleywine I'd thought it would be. Beyond the sweet, intense caramelized sugar factor here, there's a good amount of niceties to be found underneath- molasses, maple syrup, dark fruits, a herbal character that honestly reminds me of aquavit, caramel, toffee, raisins, plums, blackberries, port, bourbon and sweet cognac. It's got a bit of sherry character that sort of suggests oxidation, but I know it can't be at this point.
If I was given this blind, I honestly wouldn't have been able to pick out the specific barrel it was in, because I got notes of cognac, sherry, bourbon, and port at different points.
This is probably the thickest beer I've ever had, it literally drinks like syrup. The mouthfeel is so sticky, so gloopy, so thick and delicious. I feel like I took a bath in maple syrup after drinking this. There's a very low level of carbonation. Despite the hefty ABV (which isn't noticeable, at all), and the intense flavors, it's very drinkable. It was not hard to split the bottle with a friend, and finish my half.
This is a really awesome achievement in brewing. If the sweetness was toned down a bit, and some of the residual sugars fermented out, this would be basically perfect. As it is, it's near perfect, though.
More User Ratings:
Rated by jb_4226 from Texas
4.9/5 rDev +8.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5
4.9/5 rDev +8.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5
#99, so good!
Dec 31, 2021Reviewed by GreatStoutman from Texas
5/5 rDev +10.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
5/5 rDev +10.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
2014 blend 2 is drinking amazing. First time with this beer so I can’t compare it to drinking fresh, but it doesn’t seem to of lost anything. Thick and viscous, slightly boozy, and just tons of dark fruit and toffee flavors. Really incredible
Oct 13, 2021Rated by Eyedoc27 from Illinois
4.6/5 rDev +1.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
4.6/5 rDev +1.5%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
2014 edition
Dec 06, 2020Reviewed by Siriusfisherman from New Hampshire
4.24/5 rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
4.24/5 rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
L: A dark ruby red with very little head and no lacing. Slight alcohol legs.
S: Fruity, deep, rich caramel, raisin, prune, vanilla, coconut, and cognac.
T: Very rich caramel flavor, similar to aroma, raisin, vanilla, coconut.
F: Thick, full bodied, very smooth and creamy finish.
Overall: One hell of a strong beer, but very smooth considering. It drinks like it has lower abv, very little alcohol burn, although five years in the bottle certainly helped. Highly reccomended.
Dec 01, 2020S: Fruity, deep, rich caramel, raisin, prune, vanilla, coconut, and cognac.
T: Very rich caramel flavor, similar to aroma, raisin, vanilla, coconut.
F: Thick, full bodied, very smooth and creamy finish.
Overall: One hell of a strong beer, but very smooth considering. It drinks like it has lower abv, very little alcohol burn, although five years in the bottle certainly helped. Highly reccomended.
A Deal With The Devil from Anchorage Brewing Company
Beer rating:
100 out of
100 with
1133 ratings
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