The Twelfth (2015)
Rad Brewing Co.

22 ounce bottle, 2015 vintage. Served in a DFH snifter, the beer pours dark brown/black with about an inch tan head that stuck around for a little while. There's also a good amount of lacing. Aroma is nice, the brew smells like roasted malt, caramel, bittersweet chocolate and some dark bread. The taste is similar to the aroma, but there's also some piney/earthy hops and burnt/charred malt flavors noticeable. It definitely leans more towards the bitter/burnt flavors, which I liked. Mouthfeel/body is medium/full, it's slick and a bit creamy with a moderate amount of carbonation. I thought Flat 12 put a nice spin on a barleywine. I don't recall having any black barleywines in the past, but after drinking this one I'll try and seek more out. Bomber purchased at Flat 12 Jeffersonville in early May 2016.

 

 

Pours a very dark brown, nearly black, so we're on the money for a "black barleywine" so far. Half a finger of creamy head is nice, as is the lacing it leaves behind. However, the smell is beyond roasted and into burnt bread territory. Not unpleasant, but as an augur of things to come, the aromas are more in line with this "black IPA" phenomenon than what lines up stylistically with a barleywine.

There are strong hints of malts that have seen better days, as well as a bit of vanilla and some resinous bitterness. Given the brewery's description, which utilizes the word "malt" four times and "hops" not at all, the bitterness is more a burnt, acrid character associated with being marketed as a black barleywine. It is not a reflection of any pronounced hop character that I would associate with an American style. The taste is dominated by that sharp, astringent flavor, with too little sweetness or caramel malt to balance. I get the intent and can understand the temptation, but I would not personally call this a successful experiment. Not bad, but not my cup of [black] tea.