Rye Barrel Brick Kiln
Jackie O's Taproom & Brewery

Poured from a bottle, the body pours a dark brown with little head. Not much lacing.

The nose is a delightful sweet mix of rye, figs, and caramel. The taste follows nose and the rye comes through in flavor, but not heat. Dark fruit flavor and the barrel join to create a luxurious flavor.

Sweet without cloying. Carbonation is light and mouthfeel is lovely.

 

 

Pours a deep, dark brown coloration with a small, fluffy head. Smells of rich caramel malt, toffee and rye bourbon, with notes of vanilla, oak and peppery spice, as well as hints of dark fruits and red berries, with notes of fig and raisin and redcurrant. Taste is an excellent balance of very slightly roasted, rich caramel malt, toffee, butterscotch, chocolate, dark fruits/red berries, with notes of raisin, date, fig, redcurrant and cranberry, as well as a distinct rye bourbon presence, with notes of vanilla, oak and peppery spice. Finishes with a medium sweetness and some toffee, butterscotch, dark fruit and vanilla lingering in the aftertaste. Full mouthfeel with a rich body and low/medium carbonation.

While this is once again just a tad too sweet for my personal taste, I can hardly fault an English Barleywine for that, while the sweetness is quite mellow and not too cloying here, with more of a toffee, butterscotch than brown sugar character. The rye bourbon barrels also come through wonderfully, again being quite mellow without feeling to boozy at all, yet imparting rich notes of vanilla, oak and peppery spice. It's that musty, earthy oak, peppery spice and hints of roasted malt and bitter chocolate which balance out the sweetness nicely here, while rich notes of dark fruit and red berries round this out very nicely. While I'm actually not a huge fan of the style, this is definitely one of the best examples of it that I've had. due to it's rich complexity and mellow balance, with a great body and mouthfeel as well.

 

Pours a small fizzy brown head that barely covers the top, little lacing, a bit of legs, dark molasses brown color

Nose is nice, rich sweet malts, slightly burnt caramel, dark caramel and toffee, molasses, dark fruits, touch of oxidation, whisky notes with a little spicy rye like character, vanilla oak, a little maple syrup like, little barrel spice

Taste brings sweet malt, a tad syrupy, molasses, toffee, even a hint of butterscotch, cooked caramelized sugar notes like molasses, but not super sweet, a bit of dark fruits, with some whiskey, mild spicy rye whiskey, barrel bringing some spice and vanilla again, and maybe buttery oak adding to that butterscotch note, light spicy hop late, smooth alcohol, semi sweet sticky finish, bit more bitterness lingering with some dark red fruits

Mouth is med to fuller bod, a bit rich chewy like, med to a bit lighter carb, very light smooth alcohol warmth

Overall pretty nice, a bit muted overall, wish the barrel and dark fruits came through more, but otherwise a pretty good barleywine

Poured at fridge temp, but allowed to warm up a little bit in the glass. Pours a very dark brown with a thin layer of head. Lots of tiny bubbles throughout. The nose is exceptional. Immediately getting brown sugar, toffee, a touch of maple, raisins, malts, rye, and some figs. The taste is fantastic. Sweet, but not too sweet. Rye whiskey comes through nicely here. It's delicate - not harsh at all. Raisins, plums, toffee, maple, a slight nutty note, and some vanilla. Really tasty. Very smooth and nicely integrated. It's sweet overall, but again not too sweet. The rye is fantastic with this one. Overall, a wonderful barleywine and another success from Jackie O's.

This is right up there with the bourbon barrel version, both are better than the rum barrel version. On the sweet side for sure but balanced and complex enough to be far from cloying. More caramel and less cocoa than I recall from the 2020 bourbon barrel version. But the raisin, leather, brown sugar, and vanilla all seem familiar if a bit muted by a rye bread note overall and a lightly nutty bitter spice at the finish. As is usual from this brewery, the carbonation is light and unobtrusive. These folks have barleywine dialed in.