I forgot to grab a glass on my way into the basement, oh well, the bottle is glass enough. Glad to have Weyerbacher back in my life.
Currently drinking and taking notes on this insane barleywine for new beer weekend. Eagle Park Fuzz Lord, barleywine aged in bourbon barrels and peach brandy barrels, 17.5% abv. Comes in a cute 7.5oz can.
Lets face it folks Mdog is no longer with us. he didn't show up at the new beer weekend. He is awol. The cute little 7.5ozy can did him in. Lets look how this all started, first the deal was done in Minneapolis, yes Minneapolis again. Next I'm to blame giving him big beers Now what? Hopefully he will recover and pull out of it tomorrow sometime.
Yep, finished that beer and went to bed. 9:15 is pretty late for me! I'll post my review in NBW later.
Pretty sad that you do not see Bigfoot. I last bought Third Coast back in 2022 in Greenville, SC. Not sure if it has been distributed nationwide since then. @Whyteboar could likely comment as to the last bottling. Searching the thread, it appears it was in 2023 with some bottles still being sold in the Bells gift shop around the turn of the year.
@snaotheus sent me this in the last NBS BIF in the spring of 2024. I could drink a keg of this world class BA barleywine. 4.6/5 rDev +7.7% look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5 Pours an unfiltered dark mahogany brown color and settles in the glass the same color with a rich, creamy tan head that lingers quite a bit and provides gauzy lacing. Beautiful BA barleywine. The nose features lots of toffee, some chocolate and oak, booze, and loads of spicy rye, the later of which is inexplicably able to be even more prominent on the taste, balanced by the other flavors, especially the toffee and booze. Magnificent. The mouthfeel is rich and creamy, perfect for this exceptional and dangerously drinkable BA barleywine. I wish I had a keg of this.
2023 Pelican Mother Of All Storms. The alcohol is crazy hot up front, along with a heavy tannic presence. It’s morphing into a spirit type experience. Not quite the flavor I was imaging in my head for tonight, but should I really complain? I think I need to pick up a bunch of Lee’s. That’s the sort of mood I’m in. Otherwise, I’ll be buying yellow beers. That would be unconscionable. No local brewers are doing straight barleywine offerings, although Mortalis does make one to blend.
2003 Thomas Hardy's Ale. Zero carbonation. Excellent stuff. Leather, tobacco, toffee, bread, biscuits, figs, prunes.
I just finished drinking a 12oz can of BA Holiday Stock Ale from Explorium which is located in Greendale (Milwaukee) WI. 13.6% released in December 2025 A blend of three barrels: J.Henry Bourbon, Keeper's Heart Irish Whiskey, and Twisted Path Rum/Rye Look: very dark brown almost black body, no light passes thru. Short head that dissipated quickly leaving no lacing. Smells good, molasses brown sugar, almost no alcohol. Smooth but not a strong aroma. Taste, plenty of molasses, burnt brown sugar, hint of chocolate, raisin, a hint of rye and plenty of vanilla. There might be rum and caramel in the background. The ABV and bourbon flavor is very buried, almost no heat until it got warm. Super silky smooth. Sweet but not overly sweet. Feel is very smooth, medium thickness. It leaves a nice coating in your mouth. move your tongue in your mouth and you get the flavors again. This beer is easy drinking I had to control myself to keep from drinking it to fast. This might be the best beer I have drank from Explorium so far. 4.39+/5
Another Deep Woods from Revolution and rarely seen by me. This from 10/22. It's a bit too sweet for me.
I was under the impression (because the manager told me) that the most recent release was last year (2025) and purchased a six pack from the general store. I’ve yet to do a side by side (newer ones compared to the older ones) but hoping to get to that soon.
Tree House - Foster - Thai Barleywine 15% ABV Barleywine aged exclusively in rum barrels for 27 months before conditioning it on generous portions of wild Thai bananas and freshly toasted coconut. The resulting beer has a heavy body and tastes of overripe, caramelized banana, toffee-like spiced rum, rich dark fruits, and sweetened coconut
That sounds great. I may have to hit Tree House Saratoga Springs this fall when we are up at Lake George to buy every BW they have. Speaking of which, drinking some world class Tree of Life - Tawny Port Barrel-Aged. So. Damn. Good. Cheers! Tom
Life Unraveled from Icarus, double barrel aged, bourbon the apple brandy. This is sweet and intensely boozy, exactly what I'm in the mood for. Both the bourbon and apple brandy are noticeable, the brandy coming on strong at the finish, and they work together. There are hints of caramel and raisin, but this absolutely all about the barrels.
And speaking of double barrel Brandy barrels I'm really excited for Revolution's Peach Brandy DBVSOJ. I broke down and tavoured for the first time in years. Not sure i follow all this but... It starts out as Institutionalized barleywine aged in bourbon barrels (Straight Jacket) for 2+ years, making it a V.S.O.J.. Then parts of it sat in rum barrels (add Double Barrel to the name). That whole beer has been finishing in peach brandy barrels since November 2025. 26% – 30 month sweet component – French oak Bourbon (ex-wine) 22% – 30 month sweet component – American oak Cruzan Rum 26% – 14 month sweet component – Buffalo Trace Mash #1 Bourbon 26% – 13 month dry component – Willet Bourbon
Fair State/Central Waters collab Northern Rivals American Barleywine, 12% ABV. I rated this 3.94 a year ago. Given that I'm from Wisconsin, I suppose it's blasphemy drinking the Minnesota branded version. Not much of a fan of American Barleywines, or barleywines that are bourbon-free. Doesn't suck tho.
