Sxxxy Animals
3 Sons Brewing Company

Review: 2358
Name: SXXXY Animals
Brewery: 3 Sons Brewing Company
Location: Dania Beach, FL
Style: English Barleywine
ABV: 12.5%
Canned: Unknown
Date: 10 April 2025
Going back to my cellar, I opted for a Barleywine. When I bought this beer a few years back, I was in a frenzy, buying loads of beer for no good reason. I am using a tulip glass and serving the beer at 50 degrees. The pour created a frothy, airy, creamy, one-fingered, light tan head with above-average retention. The slow dissipation left no lacing on the glass. The color is dark brown, with ruby garnet hues, charting at SRM 20, and semi-opaque. This beer's appearance is above average. The pour created a beautiful beer.
Nosing the glass, I smell molasses, dried cherries, malt, dark roasted malts, treacle, leather, raisins, date, toffee, caramel, chocolate, coffee, and earthiness. Smelling the glass again, I notice coffee, bready, biscuits, figs, and a light herbal note.
Sipping the beer, I taste bread, toffee, dried prunes, raisins, dates, toffee, caramel, light chocolate, a hint of char, flower bouquet, molasses, dried cherries, apricots, dark roasted malts, leather, lightly roasted coffee, and earthiness.
The mouthfeel is chewy and smooth, finishing warm and velvety. The body is medium-plus and low carbonation.
I was surprised by this beer. It is a delightful barley wine, a great finish to a long day. I am glad I got to try this beer and enjoy it.

 

Clear, dark brown body; energetic carbonation; decent if somewhat thin head, creamy and lasting. Outstanding aroma; roasted grain, brown sugar, toffee; rich, earthy sweetness. Huge flavor; rich dark malt notes infused with raisins and molasses; mild to moderate perceived booziness. Hefty mouthfeel; velvety residual sugar; mild to moderate alcohol warmth; sticky.

A most righteous take on an English-styled barleywine and a collaborative effort. The overall sweetness is pretty bold yet the overarching complexity makes this a fine sipper. One can relax and take in the subtle elements of this beer. No barrel aging noted, and I have no idea what (if any) adjuncts were used. To me, a fine, complex strong ale with plenty of fine qualities.

Pouring temperature: 55 °F; bottling data: unknown

Murky brown pour with a tan head. Smell starts with gnarly barley paired with sweetening toffee, dried dark fruits and a hint of apricot are in the background. Taste adds a huge flavor: prune, goes amazingly well with the rich toffee, barley, and now caramel, plum, a hint of grape, light earth and brown sugar. Great balance of sweet and bitter that ultimately over time leans sweeter. Feel is medium-light bodied but plenty thick and smooth with good warmth. The wife liked it.

 

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a very dark mahogany brown with little light transmission in the glass and a fine, half finger khaki head with great retention and solid lacing; almost looks like a nitro pour. Aroma of caramel malt, plums, raisins, dates and toffee; a touch of red wine. Flavor is caramel malt, figs, raisins, dried plums, a hint of vanilla and light stone fruit. Some apricot in the finish. Medium bodied with nice, silky moderate creaminess. The aroma made me think this might be more tart fruit and maybe vinous, but although the fruit component is brighter than a tradition English barleywine, it has excellent plum and dark dried fruit as well as the caramel. A bit sweeter than expected, but not cloying. My first taste was a wow moment. Mouth feel, like the head, is as close to a nitro pour feel as I've had from a bottle (or even "nitro-pour" cans). Not traditional, but really flavorful and a fine barleywine. Wish I has another. ABV dangerously well covered.
Kudos.

A 500ML bottle of barleywine sounds like the perfect antidote to washing a mediocre IPA out of the mouth & the memory. Split with my wife.

The pour is intensely dark red, the heart of which no light passes through. The nose is an odd mix of caramel & sweet fruit. Plum? My wife thinks it’s wine-like.

Sxxxy Animals is my spirit beer, or so I’ve been told. I talk to myself a lot. The dark fruits up front are intense: plum, sweet cherries. Then there’s a pleasing mish-mash of hard-edged booze, brown-sugar infused toffee, figs, more sugar, with an unexpected bit of bittering hops on the finish. Thick, sticky, & despite the panting sweetness, I could so a bottle of this solo.

An interesting barleywine that certainly draws a line of difference with others of its purported ilk. Borderline excellent brew.