Even the most beloved homebrewing recipes can benefit from revision, like this streamlined Barleywine recipe that cuts five malts down to one: Maris Otter.
Beginning with the Walking Tree’s Barleywine from the year prior, the 2017 barrel-aged edition of Barnacled Manatee spent eight months in French oak red wine barrels from Napa.
Here’s something homebrewers can do that the pros typically can’t: fortify. Winemakers have categories of “fortified wines,” like Port, where the addition of a spirit stops fermentation short.
What would Thanksgiving be without pumpkin pie? Here, a bourbon pie crust adds complexity, while mixing crème fraîche with an English-style Barleywine adds a touch of sweet and sour to the pumpkin.
Red beans and rice is a staple of the Creole kitchen that can be served as a side dish or a main course. This version uses a Porter pork stock to cook the beans, and it’s served over a slightly bitter IPA rice. To make this an entrée, add Barrel Wood-Smoked Quail on top.
The point of the craft beer revolution was to reestablish the reputation of beer as a quality drink, not to show how clever we can all be. The beers that will achieve that aim will be achieved by beers that are well made, not simply different.
When determining the Best of Show, four or five experienced judges and brewers grab chairs and enough glasses to run a tavern for a night. With beers flying quickly, the judges have scant moments to sniff, swirl, swallow and form an opinion.
Put a glass of Wheatwine to your nose and you get that familiar malty Barleywine aroma. But hold on. Take a sip and breathe in; you fall into a dizzy swirl of vanilla and apricot and who knows what else.
