Dissenting Opinions
Ellison Brewery & Spirits

Excellent flavor and feel. Warming burst of flavor but smooth and satisfying.

On draft at the source

L - Dark brown with a thin amber/brown head.
S - Carmel, dark fruit or fig and bourbon.
T - Sweet caramel, toffee, dark fruit and oaky bourbon.
F - smooth and coating with a hot boozy finish.

16 oz can from Junior poured into North Coast nonic pint.

Murky muddy brownish red color with a creamy finger of yellowish beige head receding to 1/2 finger with sparse lacing.

Aroma is deep, rich brown sugar and dark belgian candi syrup. Slight hop fading, some barrel, all I know is that this beer makes my mouth water.

Flavor is tons of dark fruit and caramel, followed by brown sugar and faint piney hops, and then finally whiskey and bourbon and wet oak and slight alcohol.

Feel is thin to start with heat, and then it creams up to a medium body and alcohol dryness.

Overall a really good BA barleywine that I'd much rather enjoy than review it. Peace.

 

 

16 ounce can into snifter; no can dating, but is a recent release. Pours hazy nearly opaque dark brown color with a 1 finger fairly dense light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big raisin, plum, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, and brown bread; with light notes of nuttiness, molasses, cocoa, herbal, grass, and yeast/toast/oaky earthiness. Touch of booze in the aromas as it warmed, but not overwhelming. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/bready malt, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel notes; with great strength. Taste of huge raisin, plum, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, and brown bread; with light notes of nuttiness, molasses, cocoa, herbal, grass, and yeast/toast/oaky earthiness. Light herbal/grassy hop bitterness and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of dark fruit, cherry, apricot, red apple, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, brown bread, light molasses/nuttiness, herbal, grass, and yeast/toast/oaky earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel flavors; with a great malt/bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with zero cloying flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness. Light-medium carbonation and full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/velvety, and lightly sticky/sticky/tannic mouthfeel that is fantastic. Mildly increasing warmth of 11%, minimal barrel booziness lingering after the finish. Overall this is a fantastic English barleywine! All around outstanding complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the big ABV; with the mildly bitter/drying finish. Very rich malt complexity, balanced fruity yeast, and perfect barrel integration/balance. Never overly boozy, tannic, or drying. A highly enjoyable offering, and spot on style example as expected.

 

A - Pours a murky dark brown with a one finger off white head. Good amount of soapy lacing.

S - Aroma is caramel, toffe, vanilla and bourbon.

T - The taste is caramel, brown sugar, dark fruits, piney hops and bourbon.

M - Heavy body with low carbonation. Creamy mouthfeel with a sticky dry finish.

O - This is a pretty awesome BBA English Barleywine. The flavors are rich with the bourbon adding some nice alcohol heat.