Monolith
Bissell Brothers Brewing Co.

Batch # 5 (2026 bottle). Poured at fridge temp. Pours a really thick (almost syrupy) dark brown with minimal head. The nose is amazing. Toffee for days....followed by bourbon, vanilla, maple, honey, plums, raisins. Absolutely lovely.

The taste is magical. This reminds me a bit of the best days of Pelican's MoaS and Firestone's Sucaba. Just a classic English barleywine aged in bourbon. Bursting with notes of toffee, bourbon, vanilla, oak, plums, figs, maple, honey, brown sugar, a hint of cinnamon, and cake batter.

The mouthfeel is medium to thick, with a wonderfully balanced aftertaste of toffee, bourbon, and vanilla. These must have been really active barrels, as there is so much flavor imparted by them. Overall, one of the best barleywines I have had in the last couple of years.

Poured from a 500 ml bottle dated 1/2025 - Batch #4 into the test glass
A - Deep mahogany color, nice clarity, carbonation wnders up the inside wall of glass. Short assembly of thin ring is persistant.
S - Some dark fruit, a bit of vanilla, rich malt thread, some peppery esters, caramel, and fig.
T - Leans more into the malt elements, with the caramel and toffee coming in a strong second. The bourbon barrel treatment is more on display here. A fine vanilla, and oak component help frame out the flavors.
M - Thick, a bit slick, with a full body. The Sweet(ish) lean does not cross over to cloying. Linger is lasting and again a bit peppery
O - A very good Barleywine, barrel treatment is deft and adds elements without dominating. Well done

Pours a light fizzy off-white head with very low retention, no lacing, dark mahogany molasses brown color

Nose is very nice, big bourbon barrel, sweet bourbon, vanilla and buttery oak, sweet toffee, caramel, molasses, a bit of dried sweetened fruits like date, fig, a little butterscotch,

Taste brings more of everything, sweet malts, caramel, toffee, butterscotch, a bit nutty, lots of juicy bourbon, vanilla barrel and buttery oak, a bit of baking spices, more sweetened dried fruits like fig and date, even some sweet plum and raisin, vanilla ice cream with brown sugar and candy bar drizzle, a bit of warming semi smooth alcohol, mild bitterness, a bit more booze on the finish which is a bit drier than expected

Mouth is fuller bod, a touch syrupy but not really, fair warming alcohol almost tingly but not quite

Overall very nice beer, great base barleywine more English style, great bourbon barrel influence, a bit boozy but otherwise very nice, need to find more of this next time

 

 

Look - Dark brown with nice initial rimming that mostly fades but lacing
Smell - caramel fig toffee
Taste - same as the smell but sweeter with a slight booziness
Feel - Medium full body with a crisp light carb
Overall - really nice BA BW

500ML bottle with borderline black-and-white aesthetic, with a bit of blue thrown in. & no wax to punch through, thanks!

The pour is a dark, flirty red with a head that barely sticks around. The nose pings all over, from cherries to cough syrup to sophisticated fusel alcohol. It promises a lot.

Monolith. The previous barleywine I had from Bissell meant I was going to snap up the next one I saw, no questions asked. And it delivers. Hard, shot-like alcohol lights up the palate immediately, followed by more alcohol in the bourbon uptake. Light dark fruit & wood linger with the booze but do not lessen its right jab impact. Almost effervescent for a barleywine, this goes down easy.

I've done a lousy job describing this excellent brew. The breath of alcohol/bourbon defines it in a magnificent way. Excellent beer.

Pitch dark brown with a medium brown cap. Nose is barley and barrel forward with accents of oak, cocoa, and gooey slightly burnt caramel. Taste more complex, adding dark fruit, molasses, and licorice. Feel is very warm with booze and barley, would age a bit if I had another bottle given the warmth.

 

 

 

 

 

From a 500 ml. bottle with no noticeable bottling date but acquired on June 24, 2023. Served about 50 degrees

The appearance is darker than many barleywines I have tried with its dark brown to almost black color. Modest, diminishing head.

Vibrant rich aromas of dark roast, caramel, barley grain, molasses, wood, dried fruit, and little to no booze considering its ABV.

Cream, smooth, medium or better mouthfeel.

The taste is rich dark roasted barley, cream, vague chocolate, and some alcohol with an earthy and warming finish. Not a 5 out of 5 but still a remarkable take on one of my favorite styles. Considering Bissell Brothers is best known for their IPAs, this is a great alternative offering.

 

This one pours a fairly dark black color, with a small head, and a little bit of lacing.

This smells like chocolate, caramel, dark fruit, oak, toffee, and some light spicing.

This is maybe a little bit sweet, but it’s still super smooth, creamy, and with basically no boozy flavor. There’s some nice dark chocolate here, almost stout-like, with lots of caramel, dark fruit, and toffee.

This is medium bodied, not super thick, but definitely creamy and rich, with very little boozy heat.

I really love how Bissell has moved from being a hop factory to making really tasty barrel aged beers.