Class Of '88 Barley Wine | Deschutes Brewery
Brewed by:
Deschutes Brewery
Oregon, United States
deschutesbrewery.com
Style: American Barleywine
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 10.20%
Availability: Limited (brewed once)
Notes / Commercial Description:
No notes at this time.
Added by duceswild on 04-07-2013
This beer is retired; no longer brewed.
HISTOGRAM
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Ratings: 299 | Reviews: 69
Reviews by Beeranator:
3.5/5 rDev -4.4%
Beeranator, Nov 27, 2013
More User Reviews:
3.54/5 rDev -3.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
4.05/5 rDev +10.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Poured from a 22 oz. bottle into a Surly Darkness chalice glass. Label says best by 03/07/14.
Appearance: Pours a deep copper amber orange with a moderate amount of bubbles. About two fingers of off white head that settle into a thin creamy layer. Leaves a good amount of lacing.
Smell: A juicy hop forward aroma with lots of caramel malt hints. Hoppy upfront with earthy hints of grass and hints of citrus grapefruit, orange, pineapple, tangerine, apricot, and lemon. Big balancing malt presence with hints of caramel, toffee, biscuit, grain, and yeast. Some Belgian like yeast hints along with fruit esters of banana and apple. Some sugar sweetness as well. A decent aroma.
Taste: A balanced combination of hops and bready malts with subtle fruit esters. Hops upfront with earthy, grassy, and floral notes. Citrus fruit notes of grapefruit, orange, pineapple, apricot, tangerine, and lemon. Also some fruit notes of dried banana and apple. Big bready toasted malt presence with notes of biscuit, caramel, toffee, grains, and yeast. Some sweet burnt candy sugar is in the mix as well. A pretty decent taste.
Mouthfeel: Medium to heavy body with a moderate amount of carbonation. Creamy, juicy, and somewhat chewy. Alcohol heat is pretty tame for the style.
Overall: A pretty decent take on a Barley wine. Its a kind of laid back brew considering the style and breweries involved, but it is a nice balanced taste.
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look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Poured from a 22 oz. bottle into a Surly Darkness chalice glass. Label says best by 03/07/14.
Appearance: Pours a deep copper amber orange with a moderate amount of bubbles. About two fingers of off white head that settle into a thin creamy layer. Leaves a good amount of lacing.
Smell: A juicy hop forward aroma with lots of caramel malt hints. Hoppy upfront with earthy hints of grass and hints of citrus grapefruit, orange, pineapple, tangerine, apricot, and lemon. Big balancing malt presence with hints of caramel, toffee, biscuit, grain, and yeast. Some Belgian like yeast hints along with fruit esters of banana and apple. Some sugar sweetness as well. A decent aroma.
Taste: A balanced combination of hops and bready malts with subtle fruit esters. Hops upfront with earthy, grassy, and floral notes. Citrus fruit notes of grapefruit, orange, pineapple, apricot, tangerine, and lemon. Also some fruit notes of dried banana and apple. Big bready toasted malt presence with notes of biscuit, caramel, toffee, grains, and yeast. Some sweet burnt candy sugar is in the mix as well. A pretty decent taste.
Mouthfeel: Medium to heavy body with a moderate amount of carbonation. Creamy, juicy, and somewhat chewy. Alcohol heat is pretty tame for the style.
Overall: A pretty decent take on a Barley wine. Its a kind of laid back brew considering the style and breweries involved, but it is a nice balanced taste.
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3.59/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
This Barleywine is a thick but bright orange with moderate hazing leading to translucency. Its lightly tinted head achieves half a finger of head with consistent retention and a modicum of patchy and spotty lacing.
Lots of citrus is the main focus in the nose over some malty backbone, semi-sweet overall. Orange pith, peel and flesh blend with caramel and dark fruits. Alcohol, though strong, is integrated fairly well but the fusel notes ultimately end up coming off a little strong.
Where the fusel notes are strong in the aroma, they seem to build up to a somewhat medicinal quality in the flavor that has the overall effect of marring it in the whole. It's more doughy and sweet up front, with the caramel, citrus and dark fruits still coming on strong but after a dose of thick breads and molasses that continue through. Some leaf comes out and ends up with a woody sort of pith.
The body is nice and full, almost "chunky" and certainly what could be called chewy. It's got some heat but doesn't thin too much at the end. Crispness adds a tingly nip all the way through. It strives for smoothness, but something keeps it from reaching it fully.
1,150 characters
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
This Barleywine is a thick but bright orange with moderate hazing leading to translucency. Its lightly tinted head achieves half a finger of head with consistent retention and a modicum of patchy and spotty lacing.
Lots of citrus is the main focus in the nose over some malty backbone, semi-sweet overall. Orange pith, peel and flesh blend with caramel and dark fruits. Alcohol, though strong, is integrated fairly well but the fusel notes ultimately end up coming off a little strong.
Where the fusel notes are strong in the aroma, they seem to build up to a somewhat medicinal quality in the flavor that has the overall effect of marring it in the whole. It's more doughy and sweet up front, with the caramel, citrus and dark fruits still coming on strong but after a dose of thick breads and molasses that continue through. Some leaf comes out and ends up with a woody sort of pith.
The body is nice and full, almost "chunky" and certainly what could be called chewy. It's got some heat but doesn't thin too much at the end. Crispness adds a tingly nip all the way through. It strives for smoothness, but something keeps it from reaching it fully.
1,150 characters
4.6/5 rDev +25.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
22 oz bottle, poured into a goblet
Appearance: Pours a very pretty, hazy, almost opaque, but not quite, golden, amber color, speckled with orange and reddish highlights, and a finger of white-colored head that quickly dissolved away into a thin lacing of foam that almost completely covered the top of the beer.
Aroma: Very aromatic, with strong aromas of toasted malt, candied sugar, stone fruit, such as apricots, nectarines and plums. Finally, I get some aromas of floral, grassy, hops. Very fruity, very nice.
Taste: Very nice flavors of toasted malt candied sugar, stone fruit, such as apricots, nectarines and plums. I also get notes of honey, black pepper, and orange zest. There’s some very nice, beautifully balanced, floral, grassy hops at the finish
Mouthfeel: Slightly-chewy and very smooth as there is very little carbonation. With an ABV of 10.2%, there is a very nice, slight alcohol warmth on the palate, but overall, the alcohol is pretty well masked.
Overall: This is a very nice barleywine, with good, fruity, flavors and a very pleasant mouthfeel. Its hop/malt ratio is really well balanced, which, considering that this is an Oregon beer, is a little surprising, pleasantly so, as beers from Oregon have a reputation of being quite hoppy. I look forward to trying the Class of ’88 Barleywine from North Coast that I have to compare, as well as my bottle of Mirror, Mirror.
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look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
22 oz bottle, poured into a goblet
Appearance: Pours a very pretty, hazy, almost opaque, but not quite, golden, amber color, speckled with orange and reddish highlights, and a finger of white-colored head that quickly dissolved away into a thin lacing of foam that almost completely covered the top of the beer.
Aroma: Very aromatic, with strong aromas of toasted malt, candied sugar, stone fruit, such as apricots, nectarines and plums. Finally, I get some aromas of floral, grassy, hops. Very fruity, very nice.
Taste: Very nice flavors of toasted malt candied sugar, stone fruit, such as apricots, nectarines and plums. I also get notes of honey, black pepper, and orange zest. There’s some very nice, beautifully balanced, floral, grassy hops at the finish
Mouthfeel: Slightly-chewy and very smooth as there is very little carbonation. With an ABV of 10.2%, there is a very nice, slight alcohol warmth on the palate, but overall, the alcohol is pretty well masked.
Overall: This is a very nice barleywine, with good, fruity, flavors and a very pleasant mouthfeel. Its hop/malt ratio is really well balanced, which, considering that this is an Oregon beer, is a little surprising, pleasantly so, as beers from Oregon have a reputation of being quite hoppy. I look forward to trying the Class of ’88 Barleywine from North Coast that I have to compare, as well as my bottle of Mirror, Mirror.
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4.05/5 rDev +10.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Best By 3/07/14! I bought it two weeks ago. I'm not even mad the shop left it on the shelf. It is a Barleywine after all, right?
The nose is a sweet malt citrus-orange blast. Makes me want to chomp into some dried mango and apricot chunks.
Big sweet malt taste that blends nicely with citrusy hops. I will say this beer is a bit flat. Very smooth and easy drinking for the 10 ABV but it could use some carbonation and hop kick. I have a feeling that this was one Barleywine the brewers wanted to be had fresh given the emphasis placed on the hops on the label. The flavors from the hops are still somewhat present, but something about this beer definitely feels dead. I still like it because fruity hoppy American Barleywines are my jam, but I think I would have liked it more with fresher hops... I'll never know. It was still a great drink.
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look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Best By 3/07/14! I bought it two weeks ago. I'm not even mad the shop left it on the shelf. It is a Barleywine after all, right?
The nose is a sweet malt citrus-orange blast. Makes me want to chomp into some dried mango and apricot chunks.
Big sweet malt taste that blends nicely with citrusy hops. I will say this beer is a bit flat. Very smooth and easy drinking for the 10 ABV but it could use some carbonation and hop kick. I have a feeling that this was one Barleywine the brewers wanted to be had fresh given the emphasis placed on the hops on the label. The flavors from the hops are still somewhat present, but something about this beer definitely feels dead. I still like it because fruity hoppy American Barleywines are my jam, but I think I would have liked it more with fresher hops... I'll never know. It was still a great drink.
846 characters
4/5 rDev +9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance - Pours a crystal clear, bright golden orange with an off-white, finger width head. Fair retention, leaving spotty botches of microbubbles on the surface and a ring around the edge. Strong lacing with good stick.
Smell - Sweet, sugared caramel, banana, orange and slight grainy notes round out the aroma.
Taste - Follows the nose. Sugary caramel and modest banana character upfront, while moderate citrus notes come through mid-taste, leading to a mild to moderate bitter orange pith finish with a touch of grain. Subtle hints of heat, but at an even 10%, it's does well to conceal.
Mouthfeel - Full in body with a touch of syrupy character. Moderate carbonation. Goes down smooth, especially considering the ABV.
Overall - A really odd, but unique and delicious barleywine. Taste wise, basically comes across as what I'd describe as an 'Imperial Hefeweizen' without the wheat. Sorry, it's just the best way I can describe it. Excellent balance. Don't get your head wrapped around the fact that this isn't a dark, put 'hair on your chest' type of BW. It's a solid, enjoyable beer.
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look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Appearance - Pours a crystal clear, bright golden orange with an off-white, finger width head. Fair retention, leaving spotty botches of microbubbles on the surface and a ring around the edge. Strong lacing with good stick.
Smell - Sweet, sugared caramel, banana, orange and slight grainy notes round out the aroma.
Taste - Follows the nose. Sugary caramel and modest banana character upfront, while moderate citrus notes come through mid-taste, leading to a mild to moderate bitter orange pith finish with a touch of grain. Subtle hints of heat, but at an even 10%, it's does well to conceal.
Mouthfeel - Full in body with a touch of syrupy character. Moderate carbonation. Goes down smooth, especially considering the ABV.
Overall - A really odd, but unique and delicious barleywine. Taste wise, basically comes across as what I'd describe as an 'Imperial Hefeweizen' without the wheat. Sorry, it's just the best way I can describe it. Excellent balance. Don't get your head wrapped around the fact that this isn't a dark, put 'hair on your chest' type of BW. It's a solid, enjoyable beer.
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Class Of '88 Barley Wine from Deschutes Brewery
Beer rating:
3.66 out of
5 with
299 ratings