Stormwatcher's Winterfest
Pelican Brewing Co. - Pacific City

a truly stunning specimen here, really remarkable, i cant believe this isnt barrel aged, it has all the mellow richness and complexity of a barrel aged barleywine. its quite dark from the tap, past brown even to near black, massively deep and viscous, but holds a nice tan head pretty well, and looks lively for what it is. it immediately smells different to me, raisins and dried cherries, molasses and rum and maple syrup, coal and slate minerality, birch and hickory woodiness, chocolate and coffee, its all here, not even all the boozy in the nose, just a bit warm. sweet for sure, but also roasty and grounded and balanced, really compelling! sweet up front in the taste, brown sugar and long boiled grain richness, like this was cooked all day, bready and hearty, but also decadent. notes of root beer and vanilla come up, some light black pepper and anise spiciness, and enough round boozy sweet character to make it seem like it was aged in whiskey barrels. heavy date and fig and raisin, prune too, but less and less sugary as it moves along. light fusel alcohol, wet soil, and gorgeous grain richness to finish, i cannot believe how massive and complex yet how refined this is, really expert stuff, and one i had somehow never heard of before i had one. i would say this is the best beer i have ever had from pelican, and would choose it even over their most notable and famous offerings. this is special beer, one of a kind, cant wait to have more!

Far too sweet! Drain pour.

Opened a 2010 vintage next to a 2010 MoaS on 12/06/17. Was definitely a little faded but still very good; the MoaS was way better but that was to be expected. A lot of carbonation left and raisins, dark fruity malts, brown sugar, and toasted malts.

A good beer; would love to try it again soon fresh.

 

Look: It pours very dark brown with a light brown head. Head retention is low. There are also legs evident.

Smell: It has a strong malt aroma featuring caramel, toffee, and sherry like notes. There are some light marmalade like notes and strong alcohol notes. There is also a bit of roast and toasty elements.

Taste: It is very malty rich with bread, dark caramel and molasses. There are some nutty elements and a slight musty element as well.

Feel: It is full bodied to the point of being chewy. It has a smooth alcohol warmth to it with low carbonation.

Overall, it is a strong alcohol display that highlights malty flavors from start to finish.

 

 

 

 

Dated 2009 - From the 'cellar' archives...

Barley wine bottle share on 1/31. Reddish brown color with a little head. Aroma of malt, caramel and rye, sweetness and alcohol. Flavor of sweet malt, alcohol and caramel. Ends up bitter and with a nice warming finish from the alcohol.

Picked up a 2014 bomber from the Belmont Station in late August for $14.55. Thrilled to try the base brew for MOAS!

Beer poured a deep mahogany brown with a very nice off white head on the initial pour.

Nose is dark fruits forward, very nice!

Taste is dark fruits and toffee finishing just a touch on the sweet side. Slight off taste in the finish that i cannot put my finger on.

Feel is full and very satisfying!

Overall not a bad beer but a tad bit too sweet for me. This brew could handle a bit more hopping and not get too far off point from the English BW style.

 

2009 bottle. Seems young for its age, a pleasant surprise; cellared properly since release, but I still expected that it might be over the hill. Pretty much archetypal English barleywine with some moderate aged character - caramelized malt, with dried fruit character along the lines of dates and raisins, a surprisingly good (while fully integrated) dose of spicy-grassy hops, with subtle black tea- and tobacco-like notes. A nice streak of freshness, and no overt oxidization; if anything this could have benefited from additional years in the cellar. Similar on the palate, fairly sweet but it works, with the caramelization/toastiness, slight savoriness, and slight remaining hop bitterness complementing and balancing the sugar. Explicit alcohol, but it works well with the beer's general profile and doesn't stick out. Silky texture with very tiny bubbles; really top notch in this regard. Not amazingly complex for an aged barleywine, but far from overly overly simple; solid, quite enjoyable.

 

 

I know this beer is supposed to good, so I'm disappointed in this go round. It pored flat with smallest head, smell and taste were good. Figs, dark fruits, plums raisins, caramel and toffee. Hint of tobacco. Mouthful was sticky, full body, fair carbonation. This was a 2012 bottle opened 3/16. Perhaps my cellaring was subpar? Either way,good stuff but not amazing.