Double Bourbon Barrel-Aged Barleywine Ale Motor City Gas
Kuhnhenn Brewing Company

I believe that Kuhnhenn, roughly translated from Rotokas, means “swing big, hit big, miss big, who knows what this will taste like”. Bottle containing 12 oz with a purple foil top.

The brew is dark, very dark, with a thin ring of bubbles clinging to the edges of the glass. The nose if high fructose sugar, prune, booze. Nothing earth-shattering.

Kuhnhenn Double Barrel Aged Barleywine quiets the barrels. There’s a minimal amount of bourbon, perhaps in the 3.5 = 4.5% range, & more visible in the alcohol than actual taste. Prunes make another unwelcome appearance along with sweet, sweet brown sugar, booze, & a touch of molasses. Thick, Stout thick. One of these is somewhat more than enough.

It’s been a few years since I had a slice of heaven that is the ‘regular’ BA Barleywine, but this doesn’t even taste vaguely like the same base beer. Hoping for legendary, received meh. Decent enough.

Much like the peanut brittle barleywine I sampled, this double barrel variant is dark & headless. It is less sweet & less complex than it also. Flavors: prune, dates, raisin, a hint of caramel, a touch of vanilla, not much by way of barrel flavors & some spice. Feel: very thick & smooth, no carbonation. Very little alcohol burn. I love barleywines but overall it’s just very good.

 

 

There is an abundance of fruit here, raisins and dates along with some tart cherries that really cleave to the roof of the mouth. I get some butterscotch candies and and some charred brown sugar. The barrels shine through a boozy molasses note but I'm not sure if the second barrel here does much to separate this from the regular barrel aged version I enjoyed so much recently. There might be more tobacco char at the finish. Loving this one, cheers Dave. Here is a haiku for you.