Old Grinderface Barrel-Aged Barleywine
Schooner Exact Brewing Company

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a medium bronze amber with a quarter finger light khaki head that dissipates to patches with light lacing. Aroma of caramel malt, orange, toffee, apricot, oaky vanilla and woody oak. Flavor is caramel malt, toffee, orange, light stone fruit and the same oaky wood and vanilla as the aroma; finishes with somewhat astringent woody oak and toffee. Medium bodied with light creaminess. As mentioned by the previous reviewer, the malt body and initial flavor do lean towards an English barleywine and there is little overt hopping one would expect from an American style. The website description stated they started with a big IPA, which would be the typical start for a hoppy American IPA, but if so, the hops are strongly attenuated by the life in the barrel. There are light orange and citrus notes that are probably from the aged hops. The dominant flavors are big caramel malt, vanilla and wood. A barleywine that started North American and seems to have gone back to the mother country. A nice malt body and pleasant fruit profile with a good oak barrel finish. There is a little woody astringency to the oak that begs for a deeper malt flavor to support it in the finish, but overall, a well made and pleasant barleywine that does not adhere to either style.

Look: It pours amber leaning towards brown. It has a light brown head and head retention is moderate to good.

Smell: There are strong malty rich aromas. The note are bready and toast with some caramel in the mix. There is a slight hint of chocolate and the hop character is very low with some oak background elements and alcohol.

Taste: The malty rich flavors of bread and slight caramel. The oak is also a bit more pronounced in the flavor than in the aroma. The hops are a bit spicy with a slight sherry like flavor. Alcohol is noticeable, but not hot. As it warms, the caramel is noticeable, but is still on the low side.

Feel: It is full bodied, but not quite chewy. The alcohol warmth is pleasant and it finishes semi dry.

Overall: A quality barleywine with the balance clearly towards the malts. It is listed as an American Barleywine, but the lack of prominent hops has it drinking more like and English barleywine.