Barleywine Appreciation Thread (2022)

Imo all of the Alaskan Barleywines I've had are incredible and are substantially better than everything else I've had.

King Street, Midnight Sun, Anchorage, Black Spruce, Girdwood, and Turnagain are the ones I'm referencing.

 

When I first joined the site, one of the most sought after "White Whale" beers was Midnight Sun's M.

 

I haven't had that one... But I've been impressed with everything from Alaska so far.

 

That gets us back into the American takes from Alaska…was trying to shine a light on their English interpretation (s), but yes - M is a whale

 

I like to drink beer, not sip it. Barleywine is an occasional divergence., usually pleasurable in small doses, but not one of my favorite styles.

 

Your post motivated me to scour the cellar for a TH Barleywine that I knew was hidden deep basement. Got it sometime late ‘20 or early ‘21. Like almost everything TH does - Tree of Light is well constructed - deep/dark mahogany color - bourbon aroma - caramel/dark fruits - leans sweet but the bitterness really shows as it warms to room temp - finishes w/pleasing booze heat. An adult beverage all the way. It’s categorized as an American Barleywine which checks out. Love the 12oz bottle which - like B-Foot and Old F-horn makes it approachable on a Friday night.

 

That was a great bloody night...if I recall correctly.

The biggest surprise was the Mother of All Storms didn't even place. I'd considered it my favorite barleywine of all time at that point. We ought to do this again @bigdaddypolite!

 

All this excellent discourse about barleywine made me pick up a 6 pack of each Bell’s Third Coast and Big Foot. The verticals have begun!

 

Bell's is a great place

 

My favorite is Third Coast Old Ale. It American so that’s how i voted.

 

There is absolutely no truth in the claim that Scottish beer was fermented cooler.than English beer. I've looked at Scottish brewing records from the 1840s to the 1980s and the fermentation temperatures are just the same as those in England. I don't know which sources Jeff Alworth has looked at, but the brewing records don't lie.

 

I've never seen a Scotch Ale recipe which contained any roasted malt at all. Most are just pale malt, maize and caramel. Scottish brewers only used roasted malt in Stout, nothing else.

And they definitely weren't fermented cool. They were pitched relatively cool - 56º-57º F - but that was just because of their high gravity and the heat which would be generated during fermentation. The temperature rose to over 60º F and usually peaked around 70º F.

I really hate the term "Wee Heavy", which the nickname of a specific beer, Fowler's 12 Guinea Ale. The correct name is Scotch Ale.

 

I know Barleywines of either style are difficult to find on the regular but I’ve been so lucky that small brewer near me called Midnight Run frequently has 1-2 on tap on the regular (none right now, I checked) and they do a very solid job with the style.

 

Looking for some advise folks - I’ve periodically picked up sixers of Bigfoot over the years and indiscriminately drawn from the growing stash for special events/NYE’s etc. An unofficial physical inventory assessment last night of my very unorganized cellar revealed a nice little 2010’s vertical shaping up: 2010/2014 and 2017. In the case of 2010 - a buddy who moved to FL last year bequeathed me two six packs. Anyway - I’m now jonesing to do my very first vertical tasting - probably with at least one other buddy. I know it’s not rocket science - but any suggestions on how to conduct? Any tips from you vertical ringers? Regarding Bigfoot - anybody ever done this and what were your impressions?

 

Ron, the latest BJCP style guidelines lists “darker grains”. Did you strike that out but Gordon decided to not eliminate it?

Also, the BJCP still list the style as “Wee Heavy”. Did you propose a change to Scotch Ale but no change was made?

FWIW I have seen recipes for Wee Heavy which included roasted malt but we can leave it at that.

Cheers!

 

Maybe it got overlooked and I didn’t see it but why has Revolution yet to be mentioned? Straight Jacket is a very nice barleywine

 

I'm dying

My inner German wants to strangle you both... ze bier can not change ze style! Or some such nonsense.