Big Chuck Hunter
Varietal Beer Company

And we have another Snaotheus LIF beer with this one. Now, I’ve seen heavily hopped American Barleywines before, but I’m fairly certain that this is the first one I’ve ever seen that’s been dry hopped. I’m intrigued but a bit worried about how this may turn out. Let’s dive right in

Pours an opaque light brown with 2 fingers of soapy light beige head that slowly fades to a thin cap and leaves decent lacing

It smells about as American as an American Barleywine can. I’m picking up on aromas of burnt caramel, molasses, candied nuts, earthy hops, brown sugar, black cherry, and dark toast

Surprisingly, it’s not exceedingly bitter in taste, though it certainly still packs a punch. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting black cherry, dark bread, burnt caramel, orange marmalade, earthy hops, raisin, light molasses, and brown sugar. The swallow brings notes of dark bread, leafy hops, orange marmalade, brown sugar, burnt caramel, black cherry, light raisin, and molasses

A medium body pairs with gentle carbonation, resulting in a slick beer. Finishes mostly dry with a nice bite

I actually enjoyed this much more than I had expected. I wouldn’t have guessed it was DDH if I didn’t know ahead of time