Strawberry Jacket
Revolution Brewing

Strawberry Jacket, 13.0% abv $12 9 oz snifter pour (Not recorded: Date, though most likely their 2019 release, and Brewpub or Taproom Location) (Chicago, ILL)

Appearance: Brandy colored pour, light tan ring around glass. 3.75.

Aroma: Nominal strawberry and rape aroma. 3.25.

Taste: Very sweet taste, wine and strawberry. Somewhat tart, but sweetness very prevalent. 3.25.

Mouthfeel: Light body and clean mouthfeel easy drinking. 3.5.

Overall: Good pour but a little too sweet for me. 3.25.

No WBAYDN or NBS/NBW post.

Nice creamy strawberry flavor. Not too heavy considering. Obvious bourbon and oak aroma and flavor in this beer. Overall, an enjoyable barleywine that is more drinkable than most of the style.

Appearance: Pours an opaque dark amber with a one finger ecru head that fades to a ringlet and archipelago; dotty lacing

Smell: The strawberry is prominent with caramel, dried cherry, raisin and pecan supporting; the Bourbon is a subtle addition to the aromatics

Taste: The strawberry blends with the caramel, dried cherry and plum flavors; the Bourbon and pecan arrive after the swallow, but the strawberry maintains its presence right through the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation; slight warmth in the gullet

Overall: I was wary about the concept here but this is really well executed

12oz can, painted label. Bottom stamp is '11.7%ABV 06/26/25 12:52:53'.
Deep amber colored body, with a reddish tint. Brief lasting off white head, but there is a resulting mild surface storm and irregular ring. No lacing.
Aroma of caramel, oak, and dark fruit, with a hovering layer of strawberry.
Taste is much sweeter than was foretold by the nose. Flavors of caramel, brown sugar, plum, oak, and strawberry. Bourbon barrel is revealed late. The strawberry stays prominent in the aftertaste.
More than medium mouthfeel. Slight syrup texture. Low bitterness. The higher ABV% shows up as vapors, both in the nose and in the mouth as each sip is swallowed. Dry finish. Supportive carbonation.
The strawberry integrates well with the barleywine flavors, and avoids any artificiality.

 

Appearance: Pours a deep mahogany hue with a handsome, brown-tinged head that holds well.
Aroma: A layered bouquet of caramel malt and toasted oak, with subtle hints of ripe strawberries.
Taste: Rich and malt-forward, with a moderately sweet backbone that carries notes of caramel, bourbon-soaked oak, and a touch of dried fruit.
Mouthfeel: Full-bodied and smooth, with a gentle warmth from the alcohol at the end.
Overall Impression: Another standout barleywine from Revolution Brewery.

 

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a dark orange red with a fine, two finger khaki head with good retention and lacing. Aroma of caramel malt,strawberry, raisins and dried plums; and dried plums. Flavor is caramel malt, strawberry, raisins, fresh plums and a hint of bourbon and oaky vanilla. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess. The fruit character in this is much brighter than the base barleywine, with less dark dried fruit. The Strawberry is deftly handled and melds with the other fruit flavor until becoming clear in the finish with lingering strawberry flavor. A nice fruited barleywine that is not a boozy as the original, with nice flavor depth. I'm not sure if the bourbon flavor is subsumed into the the fruit character, but is less forward than Straightjacket. These guys have a way with barleywines and this one is winner.

 

Sweet brown sugar and caramel malty, faint hint of strawberries, and a subtle barrel nose on this one! Taste follows with some butterscotch/toffee covered strawberries and a balanced bourbon barrel finish. This has aged really well! The barrel and booziness have subsided and has integrated really nicely with the strawberry addition. This is tasty!

 

2021 vintage courteous of @IrishMasms

14.2% strength variant

Poured at fridge temp into a wine glass

Pours a opaque off ruddy color with a thin tan head

Strawberry and muted barrel woody aromas

Pure strawberry juice/puree, sweet and no hint of booze at all.

Dangerously smooth and no alcohol warmth or burn

Overall a barleywine with a perfect adjunct and I wish I could have again

Canned 6/28/21

I'm always game to try any Straight Jacket variant, and adding strawberry to that sounds very odd, but I'm all about it. They did pretty well with the blackberry variant, though that's a fruit that makes more sense for the base beer, at least in my opinion. Regardless, I'm intrigued by this one so let's get into it

Pours an opaque light orange brown with 2 fingers of beige head that fades to a ring and leaves minimal lacing

The strawberry is certainly present in the nose, but it nicely compliments everything else going on. I'm picking up on aromas of dehydrated strawberry, charred oak, sweet vanilla, caramel, earthy bourbon, molasses, brown sugar, toasted pecan, and raisin

Wow, it integrates even better in taste, the strawberries really elevate the whole experience. On the front end of the sip I'm tasting strawberry ice cream, burnt caramel, molasses, brown sugar, charred oak, walnut, leather, black cherry, light raisin, and vanilla. The swallow brings notes of dehydrated strawberry, charred oak, burnt caramel, molasses, raisin, earthy bourbon, sweet vanilla, toasted pecan, and plum

A medium body pairs with gentle carbonation, resulting in a slick beer with a nice bite. Finishes mostly dry with a balanced sweetness

As far as Straight Jacket (not VSOJ) variants go, I think this is my favorite. It's ambitious and different and I love it for that. I hope to try it fresher some time, I can only imagine how strawberry forward this was when it was first brewed

Pours a ruddy brown color with rusty tinges and a tan head that sizzles and evacuates the premises instantaneously. The nose has toffee, stone fruit, some barrel notes, and loads of strawberries. Like a metric ton of strawberries.

The strawberries are preeminent on the taste, with toffee and oak and a bit of booze for good measure. I’m not a “chugger,” but I could beer bong a tall boy of this - it is that quaffable at 14.2% ABV. I almost rated this a 5.0 on taste, which I’ve only done once before (Surly Abrasive 8 or 9 years ago).

The mouthfeel is rich and slightly prickly, which I didn’t expect. What a phenomenal flavor ride this beer is.

 

 

 

 

This one pours a slightly murky dark brown color, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells like strawberry jam, honey, molasses, vanilla, and crème brûlée.

I think I like the idea of this one better than the actual execution of it. Even though it seems like they used dried barrel threads for this one, it still comes off too sweet and fruity overall. If there was less strawberry used, it could have been a subtler and intriguing note on top of a great base beer. As it is now, it certainly tastes good, but it's just out of balance, with too much strawberry flavor and not enough delicious barrel character.

This is medium bodied, slightly creamy, and not at all boozy.

This was a cool idea, and it tasted decent, but it was still a bit of a disappointment. Straight Jacket itself is so good - it's just hard to add something to it and have it be better. That balance of bold barrel character and complex malt character just got buried by the strawberry.

Pouring a cellar temp 12 oz can into my snifter. Can filled June 26, 2021
The beer pours a clear chestnut hue with some lazy streams of carbonation rising to the surface. There is a creamy beige head of 1 cm that fades to a sturdy edge layering soon after the pour.
Aroma is caramel and brown sugar with some bourbon notes and light fruity strawberry jam, not artificial at all, which is nice.
First sip reveals a medium body with soft and smooth texture. Carbonation is on the soft side with gentle rolling feel across my palate. Not nearly as boozy syrupy feeling as I thought I would get from this texture.
Flavor is sweet for sure, but not cloying or candy-like. I get brown sugar and bourbon with a bit of vanilla playing with a strawberry flavor. Again, not artificial or overpowering, definitely tastes like a dessert in a bottle. No real hint of the ABV either bite or warming, which is probably a little dangerous, but I also appreciate the ability to hide 13% ABV!
Very glad to have tried this one and would definitely drink it again.