Smoking Souls
The Bruery

Cellar 2 years. Opaque murky medium dark brown with a khaki ring. Smell works for me with campfire smoke, rye, barley, toasted caramel, bourbon and earth. The taste is another story: I love smoked beers and I love barleywines, but this is hot, burning and smoking earth and barley to the max, no nuance, no depth, just scorched earth to the palate with some charred rye barrels. Drinks like I am chewy on ashy wood bark, dry and smoky with booze behind.

It's an interesting beer. Using smoked malt in a barley wine is not usual. Dark, brown color. Medium-sized, beige head. Roasted caramel, rye malt, gentle notes of smoke, and bourbon in the aroma. Rich malty taste. Expected it to be sweet but it was not. well-hidden booze.

Review: 2042
Beer Name: Smoking Souls
Brewery: The Bruery
Location: Placentia, CA
Style: Rye Barrel-aged Smoked Barleywine
ABV: 14.6%
Date: 07/31/2023

I served Smoking Souls in a Tulip glass at 50 degrees. The pour created an airy, light brown, two-fingered head with poor retention. The beer is dark brown, with mahogany hues, and semi-opaque, measuring around 30 on the color chart. The quick dissipation left no lacing on the glass. The beer's appearance is average for its style.
When I nose the glass, I initially smell dark roasted malts, light smokey campfire, Maillard, and light floral. The rye barrel gives the beer a light spiciness with woody notes. The barleywine ale has a bready maltiness, light grassy notes, and a yeasty finish. The smokiness in the beer is moderate but balances nicely with the rest of the aromas.
The barley wine starts the flavors and then evolves into smokiness and rye. The malts are toasted with a bready vibe morphing to the hops profile. The hops are floral, with a bit of pine and a skosh of herbal. The barrel aging gives the beer a bit of spicyness and wood flavors throughout. The smoke is like a campfire that has burned for several hours. It is moderate, giving the beer Maillard. The combination of the barleywine, rye barrel, and smoke created a delightful yet complex beer.
The mouthfeel is chewy, and the coating finishes slightly astringent. The body is heavy and has medium-low carbonation.
Barrel Souls is a brewery that I would like to visit one day. When I saw that they collaborated with them, I wanted to try this beer. I knew The Bruery had a deft hand at brewing beer, and I was hoping this beer was no exception. Nevertheless, this is a fantastic beer to sip on a chilly Saturday morning—a perfect amount of smokiness and barrel aging. A must-try for any smoked beer fan!

From the 12.7 oz bottle in a snifter via Bluejacket74----A BIG thanks for this one!
This monster pours a muddled burnt auburn with a nice head of light tan foam that settles
to a thick ring, thin dusty layer, and sports some nice light lacing. Nose of smoke, rye,
barrel, caramel, dark dried berries, brown sugar, and char. Flavors show a deft of balance
with mellow smoke, toffee, dark raisins, dried blackberry and blueberry, rye, oak, vanilla,
and char dashed with brown sugars. Mouth feel is medium, smooth, rich, subtly
coating, warming, and finishing with a finely balanced lightly sweet smokey finish.

Overall, I am not a fan of smoked brews, but this one shows it can be done with aplomb.
Again, the masters of flavor. Balance, balance, balance!

Cheers

12.7 ounce bottle, 2023 edition, bottled 07/31/23. Served in a snifter, the beer pours a mahogany brown color with about an inch tan head that stuck around a little while. Head retention is decent enough. I like the aroma, the brew smells like caramel, rye, brown sugar, dark fruit, vanilla and some smokiness. Taste is similar to the aroma, but there's the addition of some oak, raisin and dark breadiness. All of the flavors work well together, and no one flavor overpowers the others. Kinda wish this was smokier tasting but that's just me. Also leans sweeter tasting but not too much. Mouthfeel/body is full, it's slick and a bit syrupy with a moderate amount of carbonation. I liked this one, definitely worth trying if you get the chance!