Hellboy - Trevor Bruttenholm British Barleywine
Gigantic Brewing Company

 

 

Pours a tan fizzy but small head with med-low retention, a bit of lacing, nice long legs, dark mahogany to auburn molasses color

Nose brings lots of sweet malts, candy, sugar, a bit of syrup, loads of caramel and toffee, brown sugar, molasses, etc, quite fruity as well, malt-derived esters bring fig, date, a bit of red wine notes

Taste brings more sweet malts, toffee and caramel up front again, smooth caramel creams, with brown sugar and molasses notes, a bit syrupy and nutty, more dark fruits but less than the nose, fig, date, a little cherry as well, a touch of earthy hop bitterness, a hint of smooth alcohol, a barrel aging would be a nice touch to this, semi dry finish, a bit more spicy hop bitterness

MOuth is med to fuller bod, light fizzy carb, light warming alcohol

Overall not bad, good base barleywine, def could use some age to round off the sharp edges, and possibly some barrel aging as well

 

 

This is a really well made English Barleywine, on the sweet side with relatively low bitterness. Raisins, plums, and toffee up front are appropriately sweet and very appealing. The grassy, bitter tingle at the finish become stronger as it warms, perhaps a bit too strong.

Overall, this is damn satisfying and I recommended it.

Pours a murky ice tea brown with a nice tan cap that leaves spotty lacing. Aroma is mild caramel, grapes and dates. Flavor follows the nose with the grapes in the fore front. Feel is medium bodied, lightly carbonated. Overall a decent enough beer.

 

Quarantine day twenty four: my wife entered a store to get grilling meats today, breaking a streak of over three weeks without appearing in public. So now we’re drinking barleywine to kill whatever crept into us. 500ML bottle split with aforementioned wife.

The beer pours true rosewood red with evident carbonation that swiftly subsides into a modest ring around the edge of the glass. The nose is tamer than a cul-de-sac book club. Little fruit, little booze.

Hellboy – Trevor Bruttenholm kicks out an orchard of dark fruit. Carpet bomb of plum & ripe crabapple dominate the taste profile, with a touch of tilled earth, citrus, with a finish of caramel. Boozy for the ABV which, while not at the pale ale level, isn’t exactly Black Tuesday either. More like a IIPA in the mouth & drinkability than a traditional barleywine (maybe it’s just a loooooong aged IIPA? Please don’t egg my house).

Despite the lack of depth, this is slammin’, as my kids would say. I’d love to see what a barrel would do to this but as is, it’s an excellent barleywine.

 

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a medium to dark reddish orange with a thin, light khaki head that dissipates to patches with light lacing. Aroma of caramel malt, plums, raisins and orange. Flavor is mild caramel malt, dates, plums, orange, raisins, a touch of grapefruit and lemon; citrusy, earthy finish with lingering citrus rind hop bitterness. Medium bodied with light creaminess. Like others in this series, this is a oddball take on the announced style. The caramel malt is somewhat subdued, but there are the dark dried fruit I expect from an English barleywine. However those flavors are matched, if not somewhat overtaken by the lighter citrus flavors. Kind of a hybrid between the brighter, hoppier American style and an English one. The lighter citrus is more obvious initially and the darker fruit show up in the end and aftertaste. Interesting and quite enjoyable, but not a traditional "British" barleywine, as noted by other reviewers. A sturdy (9.99% as apposed to the 6.6% ABV in the rest of the series) and flavorful strong ale in some barleywine style.

500 ml bottle poured into a tulip

A- deep ruby red a two finger off white head

S- Piney, earthy, dark fruits, some citrus, touch of caramel, hint of smoke.

T- Dark fruits, plums, piney, earthy, some citrus, some caramel malts.

M- Smooth, medium to full body.

O- I like how it tastes but I really don’t feel it’s a British Barelywine, more like an American Barelywine or Strong Ale.

Tasty brew. As a British Barleywine, it is so-so. A bit too much hop, and not enough maltiness. Texture is on the thin side. Color is fine, with very little head. Other than the strength, I'm not sure that I would even identify it as an old ale.