Barleywine Appreciation Thread (2023)

Ive cross posted with #cellaruary and the northeast brewery thread, and one more for good measure...which feels a little beer karma dirty, but this beer fits everywhere!

I decided to open this bottle as I learned the brewery just closed this week.
This is Firefly Hollow Brewing out of Bristol, Connecticut. 2018 vintage of their Ye Olde Twinkler Barleywine. Ive had at least 2 other vintages of this beer and enjoyed em both. This vintage says 9% on the label. Label also says barrel aged for 10 months, but not the type of spirit the barrel was used for.

onto my review:

Im pouring this beer at cellar temp into my snifter. The beer pours a clear mahogany color with some deep ruby highlighting when I hold the glass up. A few lazy streams of carbonation rise to the surface.
A short lived beige colored dense head foams up .5 cm and fades to a wispy island and thin edging very quickly after the pour.
Aroma is malt forward with toffee and brown sugar, with hints of raisin and brown liquor...Im guessing bourbon from the nose. No real hop presence and any ABV fusol notes are hidden too.
First sip reveals a medium body with slightly sticky texture, leaves a bit of sweet residue on my lips after each sip.
Carbonation is fine and fairly gentle, but does bubble up if I swish the beer in my mouth. Feels like a nice barleywine to me.
Flavor is sweet malt as the nose advertised. I get toffee, some brown sugar, figs and raisins and again a bit of bourbon here. I get an almost maple syrup flavor, but Im sure there is no maple here. Beer does dry out a bit and let in some bitter astringency on the finish. I say from alcohol, not hops at this point. Still not a warm or hot beer, more black peppery bite.
Im really enjoying this beer and expected nothing less from a great CT brewery, sad news for sure.
I tip my glass to Dana and the crew at Firefly and hope they all land on their feet in the brewing world again soon.
didnt score, but a solid ~4.2

 

Im sharing a nice treat with y'all tonight! Barreled Souls Knob Creek Barrel aged Big Bang barleywine. This is a 14.4% brew that I have high expectations for as it enters my glass. After some cellar pulls and hanging out in the Big Stouts box, this is a nice change of pace for me!

onto my review:

Sampling a 500 ml bottle poured into my snifter at slightly below cellar temp. Bottle is #518/2022 and was bottled on 04/29/2022. Picked up at the brewery in October 2022 and in my cellar until today ( March 5 2023).

The beer pours a dark rich mahogany color with a fizzy khaki colored head of 1.5 cm. This foam fades to a sturdy edge layer soon after the pour. There is actually a lot of suspended sediment in the glass when I hold it to a light source. Interesting.
The aroma on this is bourbon forward and hints of booze. I also get figs and brown sugar and a bit of dry wood note buried under the sweeter malt character. No noticeable hop character at this point.
First sip reveals a sticky texture and medium to full body. The carbonation is very fine and prickly on my tongue. Flavor is malt forward and bourbon soaked again. I get figs, raisin and brown sugar covered with some bourbon notes and some light hints of vanilla in the background.
No booze here, bitey or warmth, well hidden ABV, which will probably hit me when I stand up from the table after typing this review!
This beer is what you would expect it to be as a bourbon barrel aged barleywine. I am starting to think I need to dig into bourbons more to see if I can get nuances between brands/varieties.
4.49 in the BA DB

 

I love that one a lot! Thankful that I have a few more.