Barleywine Appreciation Thread (2024)

Enjoying an American Barleywine from Jackie O's. Definitely getting tangerine from the hop bill in the finish on top of the caramel, toffee, butterscotch, and raisins. Barrel is skillfully balanced in and accents everything. Nicely done!
Cheers!
Tom

 

I had the base beer last year and quite enjoyed it, but I'm not convinced bourbon barrel aging is what it needs to elevate it lol

 

Kros Strain Barrelywine Volume 9: Bourbon, Barleywine, 13% ABV. Pours dark brownish black (or blackish brown) with a half-finger of light-brown head that left no lacing. Aroma is bourbon, chocolate, fruit, and toffee. Taste is sweet bourbon, strong chocolate, grape, and a hint of toffee, quite sweet, slightly tart, faintly bitter. Excellent mouthfeel, sticky lips, overall world-class. More complex than I expected, and like the others, let it warm a bit.

4.73/5 rDev +5.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75

Amazing, this is the fifth of the barrelywine series I've reviewed in the past three weeks, and all have been amazing. This one is second only to the VSOP/Cognac.

 

Happy barleywidnesday



JW Lees Harvest Ale - barleywine style ale matured in calvados casks

Never had any of these before and didn’t really know what to expect. Man! This is something. I think I might be alright with the smaller bottle on it though.

 

Central Waters Peach Brandy Barrel Aged Barleywine

Lovely beer. It pours a ruby-tinted brown with a half-finger of tan head that sticks around for a decent tick given the style. Nice sheets of lacing, too.

Peach, tea, brown bread and crystallized sugar chews in the nose.

Peach tea dominates the taste with a dry finish.

The mouthfeel is relatively light bodied with light fizz.

Fantastic peach presence in the one. Much drier than most barleywine these days.

 

New Park brewing: Cypress
This is crazy good! Everything the top notch barrel aged barleywines have. Raisins, figs, caramel, butterscotch, bourbon. I have a 2022 apple brandy barrel version of this that has been very hard to hold onto.

 

NBW cross-post. Lakefront Brewery Brewers' Reserve 2019 Barleywine Ale. Canned 1/24/24. 15.9% ABV. Courtesy of @cheeseheadinMinneapolis. This beer is very complex. It has a lot going on. It is delicious!

 

Been trying really hard not too drink much lately but it’s Gratitude Day .



Enjoying a pour of this year’s Sazerac-inspired variant. Need it to warm up a bit, but so far it’s very nice. Although subtle, the anise addition probably makes it a little polarizing but it works for me. I’m sure I’ll get into some more of this stuff when I get home. Cheers.

 

Here’s the deets on this year’s Gratitude for anyone interested

https://www.eastendbrewing.com/events/gratitude-day-2024

 

I'm going to be out there in 2 weeks (the daughter is touring Pitt); what are the chances they'll have cans of Gratitude available? Any version will do.

 

Have a great trip! I'm sure you'll have plenty to pick from.

Curious to read your thoughts on these new ones @adrock314 Still kicking myself for not buying more last summer.

 

They’ll have plenty available. You can still buy a mix 4 pack of last year’s variants currently. Gratitude Day is super chill compared to 15+ years ago when there used to be a lineup around the block. I think they brew much more as well. I miss those paper labeled 750’s from years ago, but love that you can get a 4pk of cans today for less.

 

Enjoying this bad boy right now. Very jealous of @adrock314 and his gratitude pull today. My wife never seems to think a 2 hour journey south for beer is a good idea.



The aroma is predominantly caramelized sugar and sweet. The flavor is caramelized sugar up front with some of fruit characteristics underneath. The fruit notes seem to temper the alcohol bite. The toasted coconut is only slightly noticeable as it blends in with the caramel. The alcohol is present in the finish with a bit of burn but doesn't detract from the flavor at all. Full-bodied and well carbed. This is an excellent sipper. I was hesitant about all of the fruit additions but all of the flavors play well. The beer retains all of the best characteristics of a barleywine.

 

I saw @thebeers received his Central Waters Brewing barleywine haul from our godfather. @adrock314 also provided additional temptation, so I am on to my second four-year-barrel-aged Wisconsin barleywine of the day. This one is from Central Waters Brewing. @thebeers, I believe four years is the sweet spot once again. This beer is not as complex as the Lakefront Brewery barleywine I had earlier, but it is a lot smoother. It is dialed-in perfectly.

 

Revolution V.S.O.R. Select (Ryewine aged in hand-selected bourbon and rye barrels for two years from Binny's Beverage Depot). Binny's is the go-to spot for beer and any other liquor in Chicagoland. Didn't know a place so big could be dedicated to just alcohol and drinks in general.

Pours a rich, dark brown, almost black, color with a finger of a dark khaki head that sticks around for a little bit and then dissipates into a thin ring of lacing.

Aroma is rich caramel, maple candy, brown sugar, creme brûlée, raisins, figs, rye spice, brown bread. Fresh and forward rye whiskey, charred oak, vanillin and coconut come from the barrel.

Taste follows the nose well. Big barrel, as expected with the extended aging. Sugar Daddies, rich caramel, creme brûlée, maple, big rye spice both from the base and barrel, caramelized brown sugar, raisin, fig, plum, brown bread, oak tannin, big rye whiskey flavor, vanillin, slight coconut, some leather. Decadent, but balanced nicely by rye spice and barrel. Admittedly this is leaning a bit more sweet for my liking with a good amount of residual sweetness, but it's still top notch.

Low full body. Rich and decadent, but with a drying oak tannin and rye spice. Oily, sticky, slightly creamy, and somewhat dense.

Another winner from Revolution. This beer tends to lean sweet and this particular batch certainly does that despite highlighting the barrel selection. Still a nice rye and bourbon barrel presence, but the base brings all of the sweeter qualities a ryewine/barleywine can bring to the table. Very enjoyable stuff.

 

Kros Strain Barrelywine Volume 9: Sherry, 24mo Sherry BA Barleywine, 13% ABV. Pours dark brown/black with a small beige head that left no lacing. Aroma is real light red wine. Taste is a pleasant sweet red wine, slight bitterness. Decent mouthfeel, overall excellent. TBH I'm not a fan of wine BA beers, particularly if they're tart, but this is nicely done. Still, my lowest rated variant of six reviewed so far.

4.15/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Guilty! I prefer bourbon and rum for BA beers.

 

At the Harmony Inn, The Embalmer by North Country Brewing Company. An 11% barleywine. The empty in front was a NCBC Carl’s Bad brown ale. Cheers.