Barleywine style tasting March 4th

Very tasty brew!

Cheers!

 

2013 Smuttynose Barleywine

Deep amber, clear, with a one-finger head. A nice layer of bubbles linger. Brown sugar, caramel, toffee aromas. Taste is toffee, brown sugar, caramel, dried black cherries, molasses, a hint of vanilla, and a bit of resiny hop bitterness still remains. No cardboard or signs of oxidation. Finish is just a bit boozy. Mouthfeel is smooth, carbonation hasn't hardly fallen off at all. Excellent beer, and a perfect example of why we age American barleywines.

 

That's a very nice brew!

Cheers!

 

Up next a Clown Shoes Bluegrass Billionaire I picked up last year. It was bottled 5/12/16 and is a English style Barleywine aged in bourbon barrels clocking in at 12.5%. let me say this thing has amazing flavors, it does not drink like a 12.5% it is very smooth.

Appearance - Pours cloudy plum color with a tan head that has really good retention. Spotty lacing around the glass.

Aroma - There is lots of caramel and toffee mildly sweet. There is also a good amount of oak and just a kiss of bourbon

Taste - Wow really good flavors very similar to the aroma. There seems to be less caramel and toffee although they are there and more plum and raisin. The bourbon and oak are also more pronounced.

Feel - Very smooth, nice warmth from the bourbon .

Overall - I really like this, just amazing flavors and so smooth.

 

Had a 2006 in 2007, very nice brew.

Cheers!

 

Coming from the Colorado man himself! I recall reading this is my early days on BA as a quality Barleywine to try the American style. While I certainly believe my preference leans much, much heavier on the English side of the style, Old Ruffian was tasty. I'm glad I got to try it. I'll save the other three bottles for some random snow day in 2018 or beyond and see how it tastes then. Cheers.

 

Thought I had a Blithering Idiot but it seems I don't so this DFH Olde School will do. This is fresh from Jan. 18 this year. Pours a nice clear copperish red with a dense creamy off-white foam head. The smell is intense fruitiness, almost bubblegum-esque with some dried fruit and booze mixed in with some roasted caramel malts underneath a melange of figs, dates, fresh apples and pears, some grape, plum, dried apricot, maybe banana, and floral earthy herbal grassy piney hops. Tastes like big figs and dates, fresh apple, pear, grapes, plum, dried apricot, maybe banana, some spice, roasted malt, chocolate, molasses, dark caramel, toffee, brown sugar, with floral earthy herbal grassy pine. Feels smooth and creamy with moderate carbonation. Overall this is a very nice barleywine with figs and dates. I'm actually glad I tried this so soon since one of my go-to shops has 4 packs of this still laying around, and I might just pick one up to age some of these. 2 singles (now 1) simply isn't enough. Cheers all, and happy barleywine tasting!

 

Wowzas. That sounds delightful. Is that regularly produced by Clown Shoes? Thanks for sharing your notes. Cheers!

 

I have one of these.

Cheers!

 

From the basement,
2011 Harpoon Barley Wine, the last year they used the 12 oz format.
A big caramel start, lots of toffee, a slight bitterness still. Interestingly a dried pineapple and ginger element have developed. Frankly I like it, lingering hops with some time maybe migrated in this direction. Hides the alcohol well,as I recall this was very hot at time of release.
A bit thin in body but still wonderful.
Cheers all

 

Totally different than a EBWSA. It should age pretty well.

Cheers!

 

Sup, BA's?

12/11/15 bottle:

Gonna keep it short and sweet...vanilla, toffee, raisiny, and even a little coconut from the barrel. Not getting much hoppy bitterness since the bottle has a year+ on it. Pretty smooth with just a little heat as it goes down. The most interesting thing is the cherry note (as mentioned by @thebeers). I don't think I really would have pegged it, but now I'm totally getting that in a big way. Mouthfeel is medium with just enough carb to move things along and not allow it to get syrupy. The style still tends to be a bit sweet for my liking, but pretty good overall.

Cheers!

 

It said limited brewed once. I picked this one up last year while on a business trip not sure where I was. I really like Barleywines and this one is just great IMHO.

 

Pardon me, but what does EBWSA mean? I am still learning all my BA abbreviations. I guess I should've worn my training vest again

 

I am not sure where the sweet spot to drink is but I can't imagine the flavors and the beer getting much smoother or better. You are a lucky man!!!

 

Daaang. Well, it sounds absolutely delightful. It reminds me of my notes on my 2014 bottle of Mother of all Storms. Hands down one of my top 3 beers of all time in the "WOW" factor. Not many beers help me relive my first sipping of aged BCBS, but that barleywine brought back all the right memories. Cheers.

Quick edit: Should say, I had that barleywine about 3 weeks ago. So about 2 years or more of age on it and it had a huge, and beautiful presence.

 

I've had a few Clown Shoes in the past, and never had a bad one, so I took a chance on this one. It will be a while, but thanks for the heads up.

Cheers!

 

Back from a dinner break. Time for dessert.
Central Waters Brewer's Reserve bourbon barrel-aged barleywine. Per the notch on the side of the label this is the 2016 vintage, purchased early last September.

My word. This one takes things up a notch from the Anchor Old Foghorn I had earlier (too be expected as it is barrel-aged ). Except for the head...well there really was no head, even after a similarly vigorous pour. A few strands of bubbles lazily rising to the top along the inner wall of my snifter. A shade darker than the Old Foghorn and a bit murkier as well. Some small floaties suspended. Nose is only slightly amped up relative to the OF, but the flavor goes to 11. A bevy of flavors present themselves, but harmoniously so. The bourbon is present but not overly aggressive, a drying tingle on the finish and a gentle warming as it goes down. Oh so smooth. Will have to seek out a 4-pack so I can age some longer than this one.

 

Probably not too common, but a few of us know what it means on BA. English Barley Wine Style Ale.

Cheers!

 

Fuck Yeah! I've had a few of these in the past. Fuckn' Awesome Brews!

Cheers!