Panic Switch
Platform Beer Co.

Pours a brownish copper color with well over a finger of head. The nose has a modest caramelly sweet essence but there is no hint of the barrel. The flavor profile has the classic bready sweetness upfront followed by rye whiskey notes on the finish. The mouthfeel is slightly sticky while the body is somewhat lighter than expected.

 

Look - Reddish Orangish brownish... hazy thick with a good white head and stick lacing
Smell - Rye, Sweet maltiness, a little caramel
Taste - booze, booze booze and then some rye caramel malts
Feel - Full body with a light carbonation
Overall - I think it's a great barley wine and I really like the rye in it. A little to boozy but it is a barleywine.

 

 

12oz can dated 11/28/17 poured into a snifter
A: Reddish-brown (honestly the color of the stripe above the wolve's ears on the can) with a thin head that settles quickly
S: Sweet malt, rye, light hops
T: Matches the nose. Hoppier than most barleywines, hops + sweet malt + rye spice
M: Fairly full bodied, a bit bitter, the alcohol is will integrated
O: A unique take on a barleywine, given the can this appears to be mostly Platform and they don't do that many big beers. I like the rye component but it could use more flavor

12 ounce can into snifter, canned on 11/28/2017. Pours lightly hazy reddish orange/copper color with a 1 finger fairly dense cream colored head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of big grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, peach, pear, pineapple, apricot, plum, raisin, lemon zest, orange peel, light pepper, pine, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, spicy rye, bread crust, toasted biscuit, light nuttiness/roast, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Very slight booze in the aromas as it warms. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of citrus/fruity/pine hops, dark/bready/rye malt, and light-moderate fruity yeast notes; with great strength. Taste of big grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, peach, pear, pineapple, apricot, plum, raisin, lemon zest, orange peel, light pepper, pine, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, spicy rye, bread crust, toasted biscuit, light nuttiness/roast, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Light-moderate pine/citrus peel/herbal/grassy hop bitterness and rye spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, peach, pear, pineapple, apricot, plum, raisin, lemon/orange peel, pepper, pine, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, spicy rye, bread crust, toasted biscuit, nuttiness, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of citrus/fruity/pine hops, dark/bready/rye malt, and light-moderate fruity yeast flavors; with an awesome malt/bitterness and rye spiciness balance; with zero cloying/astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from bitter/spiciness. Medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/bready/grainy, fairly sticky, and lightly resinous/rindy balanced mouthfeel that is great. Mildly warming alcohol for 11%. Overall this is an awesome American barleywine. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of citrus/fruity/pine hops, dark/bready/rye malt, and light-moderate fruity yeast flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the ABV; with the mellowly bitter/drying finish, never aggressive. Very impressive juicy citrus/fruity hop and yeast complexity; with nicely rich dark/bready/rye malt balance. Never overly sweet, some nice lingering bitter dryness. Comet and Cascade hops. A really enjoyable offering, and spot on style example.

Description: Dark honey color with a slightly off-white head and relatively clear appearance. The aroma is spice, dark fruit and vanilla with some small roasted notes. Taste is much heavier on roasted, smoky flavors and has a sweet finish. Alcohol is certainly apparent in the taste, but it’s not abrasive or overwhelming, just noticeable. Feel is smooth with low carbonation and medium/heavy body.

Overall: 3.75 (This beer is good but I would not likely drink it again) I never really know what to expect with a barleywine and this one certainly had some distinct notes. Unfortunately, the most prominent of these was the smoke/roasted notes, which by the end of the snifter got to be a little much for me. It didn’t totally dominate the beer, but it did make me think of an ashtray. If not for that and maybe a bit too much sweetness, this would have been better. As it stands, feel free to drink or pass without regrets.

 

 

From the 12 oz can in a snifter. This decent barley wine pours a
nice deep copper tinged amber with a decent head of white fading foam that
subsides to a thin ring with spotty lacing. Nose of spicy rye, sweet brown sugar malts,
some stewed apples, and moderate spicy hop notes. Flavors beat out the nose with
warmth which adds layers of complexity. Brown sugar and light golden raisins vie for dominance
over subtle apricot and spicy rye notes with herbal and citrus hops mingling in the finish with light
grapefruit and orange notes with a touch of apple. Decent mouth feel; medium full body, light carbonation
that is still sears in the booze, and a warming moderately hoppy and sweet finish.

I am a fan of both breweries, this is a pretty solid brew for the style and worth a try.

Could use a nice bottle conditioning with a cork to give it some legs. Still a nice endeavor.

Cheers

Collaboration with Wolf's Ridge Brewing. Canned on 11/28/17. 12oz can poured into a tulip. Pours glowing amber with a mild haze; bubbles racing upwards; small off-white head that falls leaving nice retention and nice lacing. The aromas are malt forward along with some caramel and citrus. The flavors follow the nose for the most part. It has a nice hop bitterness going on. Hints of orange and grapefruit. Some pine in the mix. Caramel and toffee are there. The rye is noticeable, especially in the finish giving it a subtle spiciness. Malts do their thing, but the hops seem to balance the malts out. Alcohol is well hidden. Mouthfeel is nice. Mouthfeel is full-bodied with moderate carbonation. It's fluffy, smooth and easy to drink. It's dangerously drinkable.

This is a solid barleywine. It's very crisp and clean. It's on the hoppy side. The rye comes through. It's enjoyable stuff. I like it.

What an awesome BW colab from two up and comings. I appreciate the price point, and I highly value the point that it's in 6 packs. Save it'll only be for a short while, but I'll keep buying this as long as I can.

 

 

 

Rich aroma with caramel, roast, and rye spice notes. Pours a clear caramel brown with a dusting of off white-head. The alcohol comes through a bit in the flavor with a touch of heat. There's notes of rich caramel and rye spice, with an earthy bitter finish. Mild carbonation helps lead to a full mouthfeel. Overall, it's a solid sipper for a cold night.