Lake Superior American Style Barley Wine
Lake Effect Brewing Co.

Unknown vintage; drank 6/5/20 @ the Yarchives. This was a can, so I assume a) this is still being brewed and b) this isn't from 2016.

Opaque orange rust appearance.

A violent pour yielded a huge, noisy khaki head; a thick curtain of lace.

Caramel, orange peel, mild chocolate & faint clove notes in the nose.

Thick, sticky mouthfeel.

Caramel, orange peel, oak, mild bourbon heat & faint chocolate flavors; booze heat emerged as this warmed.

This is a robust American take on a classic style; one of the better beers I've had from this brewery.

750 ml bottle into a snifter. Had 5/4/17.

Pours a medium red amber, a little hazy, with a half inch foamy head and some foamy lacing. The aroma is a little tart and a little butter at first- the butter faded quickly, malt, cherries, plums, figs, dates, some yeast. The taste was also malt forward, then figs, plums, raisins. Some sweetness, less cherries than the nose, a little alcohol, hint of tartness, no butter. Mostly smooth, a good body, well carbonated.

It may have been slightly infected or whatever, but it dissipated quickly. More like an English Barleywine, with a good flavor and aroma. Really nice overall.

 

My first time trying something from Lake Effect's "Inland Seas" series after seeing the consistent and appealing graphic design of their label art, so I'm disappointed to say that this bottle of Lake Superior tastes infected. At the very least, as it's fashionable to say these days, it's experiencing off flavors consistent with beers that have been acknowledged as infected in the past. Prominent tartness of dark cherry and yogurt that masks any hop character or barleywine sweetness. Not terrible, but there's no indication that this type of flavor is intended, so I'd say something has gone wrong here. Batch #360.