Barleywine Appreciation Thread (2023)

This year is going at breakneck pace. Can’t keep up.

since the last thread:


2012 Lift Bridge - Commander, bba barleywine with cardamom. I don’t think 10 years hurt it at all. Need to grab some more recent but it seems like it’s less available every year.

Bourbon County Wheatwine with a whole bunch of stuff in it. General opinion was this tasted like drink mix syrup. I found it to get a little better as it warmed.


And assorted repeats






Really, really like this last one. Really, really hate that my local places stock literally everything they (Fair State Brewing Coop) distribute except their barleywines.

 

I've had both Cuvee I and Cuvee II , both were too sweet for my liking though.

Jackie Os is still one if my favorite breweries. The Barrel Program ( For Stouts) they have is fuckin world class. I have yet to try a barleywine that i like from them though, they just get too sweet and that's the main reason i don't dig barleywine ( sorry guys) .

Yea, i know , American barleywines are different, less sweet, more balanced, , but they aren't.

I might revisit them sometime soon.

 

You just have a West Coast beer palate. It's not your fault!

 

will it play?

not sure this is contained in the Book Of Life, but this was quite reminiscent of a barleywine. perhaps not quite as naturally sweet in the base beer but the finishing cognac barrels give it a lovely, dark fruity sweetness. highest recommendations.

cheers!!

 

Starting 2023 off with my first barleywine of the year, 2022 Straight Jacket.



And damn if this isn't tasty. I don't know if it's just this year's iteration, or that I (blasphemously) seem to enjoy this fresh more than aged, but this is probably stacking up better than the recent 2021s that I've opened. Fantastic. Dark fruit balanced by a heavy malt backbone complemented by the rich bourbon characteristics. Yummy.

Cheers to (both fresh and aged) barleywines!

 

SJ is such a phenomenal BA Bw. and i’ll agree with you, i like them on the fresher side too. 2021 was an excellent year for SJ. so excellent, i couldn’t seem to set any aside to cellar.

i also think the packaging option (can) has something to do with it too. i can’t prove it with any “science” but cans just don’t age like glass. that’s just me though.

 

Interested in what others think.

Cans are great for many reasons, however, based on personal anecdotal experience, aging seems to be one of their shortcomings. And while I have a few guesses why, none seem to be supported by actual experience.

After exhausting research spanning many seconds, it appears at least one other source supports this hypothesis.

https://www.goodfood.com.au/drinks/...es-are-better-for-ageing-beer-20180809-h13qvb

edit ***. Oooo, look! Another source. Reminding self to read later.
https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/aging-beer-in-cans.558996/

 

i think it’s a mental thing for me. i’ve aged cans of SJ & Deth’s Tar, Luscious, Ten Fidy, etc and they’ve been fine. if you think about it, glass is penetrable by light and cans aren’t. in general though, i much prefer beer out of a bottle as opposed to a can.

 

After spending 9 days of 2023 without a barleywine (honestly too long), I'm back again with another barleywine after yesterday's! Again from Revolution, again delicious, though this is the 2021 Maple Jacket.



What a nice head for an adjuncted 1+ year old barleywine.

Time has mellowed the maple a bit here, which I'm quite thankful for. I know this one can be divisive as it definitely toes the line of too sweet/cloying, but I like what 1-2 years of age have done to the maple characteristics that are present (and fairly obvious), though still subdued compared to fresh.

I love me some Revolution and barleywines!

P.S. Are ryewine and wheatwine posts allowed? Asking for a friend.

 

I had a can of it on xmas eve and it was SOUR.
much prefer it in bottles

 

Enjoying my last can of Crystal Lakes Boathouse Reserve BBA Barleywine, I believe from 2020. I have been told by the beer tenderess that they haven't made this in a couple of years, personally I think its terrific as is the whole Boathouse Reserve series......oh well, I will

 

I did a 2020, 2021 and 2022 straight jacket vert around Christmas and 2022 was far and away the best for me. On the flip side, also did a 2021 and 2022 ryeway side by side and the 2021 edged out the win for me. All are amazing though.

 

Yea the can i had was awful and put me off JW Lees forever. The bottle,while good, was still too expensive for what it was