Oak'd Barley Wine
Emmett's Brewing Company

 

Served in a cervoise at the Palatine brewpub.

Finishing off this March Madness trip to Palatine with a barreled barleywine. This is likely just virgin oak, rather than a spent spirit barrel, as they tend to refer to those barrels as such when they are used (like their upcoming bottled BA stout). It pours a partly-cloudy garnet topped by a finger of glowing off-cream foam. The nose comprises mandarin orange, orange rind, oak, light maple syrup, and very light vanilla. The taste brings in more of the same, along with a sharp-ish stab of pine needle. As things progress, the oak character almost comes across more cedar-like. The body is a solid medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a drying finish. Overall, a solid barleywine, but one that doesn't seem up to the same snuff as the non-oaked version from last year. Still, it's by no means bad, it just kinda wastes the oak in a sea of hoppy barleywine-ness.

Poured into a tulip glass, the ale is hazy brown topped with a creamy, beige head that holds great retention and leaves thick, chunky lacing as it fades down the glass. Fruity aroma with oak, vanilla, toffee, caramel, booze - bourbon perhaps. Tastes are bold with bready malt, toasted grain, caramel, vanilla, oak, booze, bourbon, toffee, raisin, hops provide ample bitterness and are piny, grassy and mildly citric. Excellent balance. Creamy & smooth; nearly full bodied, alcohol is warming on the finish. Overall, nice oak-aged barley wine; spot-on for the style. I did forgot to ask the server if it was bourbon barrel aged, but I'm pretty sure I was picking up some bourbon in there with the oak.