McGlynn’s Ghost Barleywine
General Lafayette Inn & Brewery

Pours a copper color, mostly clear, with little head and lacing. Sweet. The aroma and taste are both loaded with candied malts and fruits drizzled over the hops. It is boozy and sweet, and like many aged beers all the attribute run together a bit but it make for a very tasty unique experience worth seeking out.

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Cheers!

This is a 12 oz bottle of McGlynn's Ghost vintage 2003 served at the General Lafayette in a snifter.

A: The barleywine is a deep dark brown color that is hazy and pours with a decent, but not overwhelming, head.

S: The ale has a malty sweet aroma that is slightly fruity but heavy on the grains.

T: The malts are very mellow, providing hints of cereally sweetness that hides the alcohol well and provides hints of alefruit throughout.

M: Explosive mouthfeel with a smooth mellow malt flavor that finishes long.

D: The beer has aged nicely with the malts really shining through.

This was a deep, dark brown color with good clarity. It evidenced very little head but a fruity, estery nose. I experienced a definite alcohol burn on the tongue from this one. The mouthfeel was thick and full with a blend of dried fruits (think raisins, prunes, and dates) on the tongue. The finish was sweetish, reminiscent of brown sugar.

RETIRED

Enjoyed a bottle while playing billiards this afternoon and let me tell ya, this was a gem. Granted, the pour was a russet clear yet dim offering with a khaki thin rim.

Scents and flavor were mirrored. Earthy scents with a coating of apple ripe and cheddar cheese. Yes, cheddar cheese! Dairy quality erupts in an effervecent style. Berry and sweet middle. Total delight to sip. Kept my spirits up all through the trial. Yum! Berry, cheese, apple, pear...where is the chacouterie?

Totally drinkable. Good. Period!

Beer is good.

Though retired, The Ghost can be had by bottle from the vintage beer menu! They have the 2003 version in 12 oz. bottles... This was an absolutely tremendous beer experience as it was the first aged beer I've had that actually knocked me off my bar stool! Granted, I love Barleywine to begin with, but this was without question the best barleywine I have ever had in a brew pub. Reminiscent of Thomas Hardey's this beer has too many flavors going on the even try to mention them all. The nose has caramel, cognac, and dates. Strong malt, with a nice little hop bite - there is an amazing bourbon taste as well as smoky earth - almost peat like and raisins. Take my advice - try this if you like aged beer - this blew me away.

The beer pours a dark amber/ruby color with a thin white lace head. The aroma is good. It has a complex malty scent with lots of crystal and other darker malts. The taste is good. It is very malty with liquorice flavor on the finish. It goes down with ease and warms. The mouthfeel is fine. It is a full bodied beer with adequate carbonation. This is a good barleywine, although I found it to be a little too rich in the malt catagory. I'd have another for sure.

This is one special beer! Over 11% ABV and 80 IBU’s in this one. I was given a sample of this by our waitress. This looks like murky apple cider, cloudy orangey-brown without any head or trace of foam. The aroma is intensely strong and sweet with all kinds of fruity flavors and candy like notes. Strong with apple, along with licorice (actually like a strawberry twizzler), pears, fermented fruit and overall cordial-like.

The taste is an intense experience – sweet and syrupy, like strawberry jam. It’s tangy sweet like taffy candy, and finishes with a bit of hoppy grapefruit bitterness. Wow! I think this would be good on top of pancakes! The alcohol isn’t shy, but gets squeezed to the background. This is most definitely full bodied, strong, sticky and assertive.

A kick ass strong beer and all around excellent.