Double LP - Side B
Mikerphone Brewing

 

 

Beer Under Glass 2022.

 

Much better than the ratings indicate, in my opinion. To me, it checks all the boxes for a barrel aged Barleywine-strong scents and tastes of vanilla, caramel, and barrel. Big bodied, a hint of syrupyness. Excellent.

Second up is Side B which features a English barleywine. It is quite syrupy and the barrel is must less prevalent than Side A. The beer is on the boozy end and really captures the strong ales from overseas.

Sampling this 16 oz can poured into my snifter at cellar temp. Beer is courtesy of @Fbarber. thank you!!
Beer pours a rich mahogany color with creamy beige head of about 1 cm. This foam fades to a sturdy edge layer and one wispy island that spins around in the center of the glass.
the aroma is some toffee, caramel and cherry notes with a good dose of fusol alcohol. Maybe some black peppery spice that goes along with the booze. No hop character on the nose.
First sip reveals a medium to thick body with syrupy sticky texture and minimal carbonation. Physical traits make this a sipping beer due to the syrupy stickiness feel.
Flavor starts with sweetness of caramel and toffee, almost butterscotch notes. I also get a good dose of bourbon and again boozy notes with black pepper bite. Some lingering toffee and brown sugar come through after the swallow too. Never any hop presence. This barleywine is definitely a sipper based on texture and booziness. I enjoy it as I was some NFL tonight. glad to have tried this one!

Had on tap. Blackish brown opaque body with tan cap. Prune, date, and caramel lead nose but booze with cocoa has an odd twinge to it, not sure what, maybe licorice. Taste is not as good as it is much sweeter with dark fruit and sugary caramel with super boozy bourbon wave in the middle but the finish again has the twinge, almost extreme oxidation or something. Feel is warm verging on hot with smooth malts but with a syrupy finish. Wanted to like this more than I did

On tap at the Goose Island Fulton Taproom in Chicago, IL.

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

This smells quite fusel, like barleywine mixed with gasoline, really, with boozy heat, dark fruit, chocolate, and caramel.

This has some good aspects, but it’s just so unfortunately boozy and fusel – it reminds me of jet fuel. There’s lots of bourbon, too much, with not enough of base beer to come through with interesting notes. I do get some caramel and chocolate, but not enough.

This is medium bodied, super boozy, and not all that drinkable.

I don’t how this one compares to Side A, as it had kicked by the time I was here, but this one was a disappointment.

 

Released 5/20/22; drank 5/27/22 @ the Yarchives.

Opaque dark brown appearance.

A violent pour yielded a huge, noisy tan head which quickly dissipated; no lace.

New leather, caramel, faint strawberry & mild bourbon heat in the nose.

Thick, sticky mouthfeel.

Sweet caramel, bourbon heat, mild strawberry & wood flavors.

This smelled nice, but was WAY too sweet to finish. Diabetics beware.