Bishops Gate
Strange Land Brewery

 

Appearance: Cloudy caramel brown, with a modest, coarse tan head, which retains well. Scattered, patchy lacing adorns the glass walls.

Aroma: Notes of caramel, bourbon, and wood dominate the aroma. A maple syrup-like aroma is also present. Vinous alcohol is very prominent.

Taste: Opens with a note of bourbon and wood. Caramel is also present, but the wood and alcohol dominates, and is rather warming. While the ABV is rather high at 10.9%, it never seems harsh, or overbearing. Towards the latter half of the taste, bourbon flavors ascend. Finishes with a lingering note of wood.

Mouth feel: Very soft, exquisitely full, quite gracious on the palate.

Drinkability/notes: Really excellent, a superb cold-weather beer.

Presentation: Packaged in a standard twenty-two ounce brown glass bomber, with a pry-off crown, served in a Pilsener glass.

 

 

 

 

 

A: Pours a dark reddish/brown color that is nearly opaque. At first a two finger white head forms and gently recedes after a minute. Lots of sticky lace is left behind.
S: Up front a get a slight smoky, almost peaty aroma. At first I thought I had poured Atholl Brose, but then more of a candied sugar and sweet caramel malts come out.
T: Sweet and candied fruits with caramel/toffee like malts. A bit of smokiness, and some fusel alcohol in the finish.
M/O: A full and slightly sticky body. Moderate carbonation that is a bit smoother and rounder than other offerings I have had from them. A slow sipper with fusel like alcohol, which is to be expected with this ABV. Enjoyable, if a bit standard.

A big and sweet barleywine, much more in the English style than American. Not bad, and more enjoyable than The Last Gentleman and especially Atholl Brose. While not a top tier barleywine, it is enjoyable to try.

The color and head on this beer were fine, but where it was lacking was the taste and feel. It felt a bit too thin, while lacking some characteristic English Barleywine flavors. Together this made for a beer that felt flabby and disconnected.

Poured soon after buying into a stemmed glass from a bomber. Started drinking cold and let warm to the appropriate temperature over the course of the rating.
APPEARANCE: Very dark brown sugar coloring with light only barely able to be seen. Not too much lacing, quickly receding head.
SMELL: Definitely needs to warm up a bit (as usual for the style). Typical candied sugar with a little hop bitterness/spiciness.
TASTE: Fairly balanced with the malt sugars and some hop bitterness, but both shine through clearly. Almost rye-like spice that lingers in the mouth afterwards. Finishes dry.
FEEL: Really nice feel to it, coating the palate and tongue with a good thick viscosity. True to style.
OVERALL: I prefer a bit more malt forward Barleywine but that is personal preference. This is a solid American version if you like a slightly drier, more hopped style. Because of the hops and my preference, I think this would be incredibly interesting to age and see what happens as those hop components break down and change. Probably won't order on draft, but may get a couple bottles to age for a year or two. Certainly happy with the purchase and will check out more of Strange Land's offerings.

Happy to be the first review. Not too sweet. Which is a turn off in high ABV barley wine beers for me. Has a kinda Belgian funk smell and taste. Alcohol warms with the beer. Dark chestnut color. A little lacing. Overall a solid beer.