Skeleton Crew
Eighty-Eight Brewing Co.

330 ml bottle from the cellar - no date but 6-7 years on this (2019 or 2020).
Pours a murky orange amber with a largely failed effort at a head - scant tawny bubbles that disappear immediately - age will do that.
The nose is initially fruity with notes of toffee, brown sugar, raisin bread, fig.
Tastes of sweet bready malt, raisin, brown sugar, toffee and vanilla with some fruity esters that hit the nose immediately less pronounced - a hint of booziness.
Smooth medium full mouthfeel with muted but decent carbonation - softly sweet fruitiness lingers.

Poured from a 355 ml can into an old mason jar I had lying around. Thick and rich mouthfeel. Nose is a perfect fig newton, they absolutely nailed this. Taste is rich toffee and stone fruit, sweet with light carbonation. Really enjoyed this, but I don’t think I would want more than one at a time. If you see this as a single on the shelf pick it up!

Poured at fridge temp. Pours reddish brown with little head. Nose is full of toffee, figs, plums, slight citrus, honey. The taste is super interesting. Burnt toffee, malts, leather, citrus peel, plums, peaches, apple. Very nice.

330ml bottle poured into tulip.

Pours a hazy deep orange with a thin cap of beige head that leaves a bit of sudsy lace as it recedes.

Smells of a freshly opened package of fig newtons, chocolate sauce, candied orange peel, raisin bread, spiced rum, and a ghostly whiff of earthy hops.

Tastes of fig pudding, dried orange slices, gooey caramel malt, chocolate chip raisin bread, more spiced rum and more earthy, woodsy hops.

Feels thick and sticky. Full bodied with mild carbonation. Finishes sweet and chewy.

Verdict: Vigorously recommended. A big thick dessert of a beer, perfect for movie night.

What the leaddog said

A fig newton barleywine.

Sweet/Dreams

Appearance - Pours a deep amber with three fingers of frothy velvety off-white head.

Smell - earthy, leafy, and floral hops, fig, raisin, oak, woody aromas, bready malts, caramel, and earthy yeast.

Taste - earthy, leafy, and floral hops upfront then quickly goes into the fig, raisin, oak, and woody aromas. The bready malts, caramel, and earthy yeast round out the brew.

Mouthfeel - Medium to full bodied with moderate carbonation. Finishes sticky with the fig, oak, and woodiness lingering.

Overall - A solid American barleywine that displays exactly what they were setting out to do. It's a nice balance between the fig, raisin, and oakiness. This one is a dangerous sipper which isn't bad considering it's only a 500ml bottle. Worth a go if you spot this.