Requiem No.1
Fox Farm Brewery

Sampling a cellar temp 500 ml bottle poured into my snifter. Bottle has been in my cellar since purchase at the brewery in spring of 2022.
The beer pours a dark cola brown to molassess color with no light passing through my glass. A fizzy beige head foams up about 0.5 cm and fades away almost instantly to nothing. There is some mild surface bubbling from rising carbonation, but it does not replenish the foam.
Aroma is noticeable form the time I pop the cap and is malt driven. A lot of brown sugar and molasses notes mixing with some bourbon and vanilla with some dark fruit as well. No hop presence, but there is a bit of fusol black peppery booze hinted at on the nose. Complex and appealing nose.
First sip reveals a medium body and sticky texture with spacious and gentle carbonation that is almost non existent on feel.
Flavor is malt driven as the nose. I get molasses and brown sugar, roasted malt notes, vanilla and bourbon with a bit of raisin mixed in for the dark fruit. Booze is present in black pepper bite, and a little warming after each swallow.
no hops anywhere and the warming makes this a sipping beer. Very complex and malty and quite a nice barleywine. Super glad to have tried this one!

500 ml bottle split with 2 friends. Poured into a wine glass. Pours a dark mahogany brown with a small head. Complex aroma/flavor with brown sugar, molasses, burnt caramel, crème brûlée, toffee, bourbon and cognac (very distinct), vanilla, and wood tannins, with hints of candied orange, coffee and dark fruit, and some baking spice I can't quite put my finger on - maybe ginger? This is a sweet beer, but not cloying, with an offsetting roasted malt bitterness. You can tell it's a big beer for sure, but it's not harsh or overly boozy; the 15.5% abv is well-integrated. Full, viscous mouthfeel, almost like a Pedro Ximénez sherry but with just enough carbonation. Overall it's a great beer and one to be slowly savored.

375ml waxed and capped bottle into a Founders snifter. Shared with schen9303.

Very little head. Spotty lace with thin legs that really cling. Nose is dried dark fruit, molasses, caramel, and booze. Rich and aromatic. Beer opens caramel, molasses, and dried dark fruit. I get caramel-covered prune and raisin. Boozy in the middle. Really get the dense grape sweetness from the cognac barrel in the back. Sweet tobacco and booze at the finish. Body is medium to full with moderate to low carbonation. Mellow on the palate but with some bubbles going down. Messy finish with a lingering aftertaste.

This one's just a touch thin. The nose and flavor are spot on though.

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

This smells like dark chocolate, bittersweet earthy caramel, spicy oak heat, vanilla, cedar, tobacco, dried raisin and dried grape, and toffee.

This is easily one of the most barrel forward Fox Farm beers yet released – it’s super hearty, with just loads of barrel character. There’s much more bourbon than cognac, with the former adding a burly warming heat to the chest, with tons of oak, some tobacco earthiness, and vanilla. The latter adds a touch of dry fruitiness and some vinous character.

This is medium bodied, with a touch of heat and booziness, while remaining pretty drinkable all the same.

This is a serious, serious barleywine, carefully constructed with just a sledgehammer of barrel character.

 

 

 

 

 

on draft at Churchkey in Washington DC. Served in snifter glass, at 54 degrees

very dark brown in color, not really any head. big bold aroma - rich malt, boozy grape. Taste is similar, and a bit hot which is not unexpected given the ABV. Not overly sweet. Medium bodied.

 

 

Batch 1 (2022) served in a Speigelau tulip. Pours a brown-mahogany hue with no head, just a tight band around the shoulders. Nose expresses a big ethanol hit, followed by stewed dark fruits, burnt brown sugar and figs. Taste is decadent and reveals butterscotch; however, the ethanol quickly takes over and there’s a slightly medicinal aftertaste (not off-putting) that lightly lingers before relinquishing itself to the figgy quality expressed in the nose. Mouthfeel is medium in body with a slightly assertive carbonation for the style and a residual ethanol burn that sits at the back of the throat between quaffs. Overall, a nice barleywine (although I’d classify it as English, not American). That said, it’s running a little hot and could use a little cellar time in my humble opinion.