Barleywine Appreciation Thread (2025)

i enjoyed the 3 i had which meant my luck was better than @cavedave . That yours was also a good one.
12 years is a long time. Was worried because every Bigfoot i had older than 8 years has tasted like straight shit compared to the BCBW

 

Had this on tap when it released and i did enjoy it. Well balanced and not too sweet. Bruery usually leans into candy territory.

Should plan a BA Bottle share near FW Barrel Works

 

Let's do it

 

Bottle Logic Flash Point BBA English Barleywine, 12.5% ABV. Pours deep brown with a one-finger light-brown head that left no lacing. Aroma is banana, rum, toffee, cognac. Taste is banana, rum, dark fruit, brown sugar, moderately sweet, faintly bitter, light bourbon burn. Excellent mouthfeel, leaving sticky lips, overall outstanding.

4.44/5 rDev +6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to @Beersnake for sending me this outstanding BBA barleywine in a LIF box as part of the Stout/Barleywine BIF volume 2. This is going down waaaaay too easy.

 

Hair of the Dog Doggie Claws American Barleywine (2021), 11.5% ABV. Pours dark copper with a two-finger light-brown head that left foamy lacing. Aroma is sweet caramel/toffee, malt, hops, and dark fruit. Taste is quite bitter hops front and center, slight sweetness, spice, orange zest, and dark fruit. Bitterness lingers. Dry mouthfeel, overall excellent.

3.94/5 rDev -4.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Thanks to @Beersnake for sharing this HotD Barleywine in the LIF box that he sent. Never thought I'd get to try a HotD beer.

 

Bigfoot. Cheers.

 

Has anyone seen and/or tried the AleSmith barleywine with coffee? A small batch under the name Coffee & Beer in collaboration with Six Shooter Coffee and (local to here) Masthead?

 

Forbin's Ascent, an English Barleywine from Tonality Brewing Mundelein, Illinois. Purchased at Beer Bazaar, Hainesville, Illinois. Always nice to see a local Barleywine!

I do like the label......

 

This is from @snaotheus via the barleywine etc bif. To the Point from Varietal, agent in whiskey barrels.



This bottle is 2 years old and it's almost all about the butterscotch and caramel right now. Loving it. The barrel notes are silky smooth and so damn satisfying. There are some subtitles to be found as well, peach pixie sticks, raisins, and a little vanilla. Thanks Ryan, this is a wonderful beer.

 

3 Floyds Pillar of Beasts Coconut 12mo BBA English Barleywine, 14.6% ABV. Pours dark brown with a slight ring of brown bubbles. Aroma is light bourbon, caramel, and coconut. Taste is caramel/toffee, coconut, vanilla, bourbon, quite sweet, slightly bitter, some bourbon burn, salt on the close. Decent mouthfeel, leaving sticky lips. Overall outstanding.

4.46/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

 

Apricot blonde, barley wine ale by Lakefront brewing


3.96/5 rDev -1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75

Beer received in bif2 barleywines and stouts by @Bishop, new brewery , new beer

Brewers notes; We started with a big, chewy, apricot juice-infused Blonde Barleywine, then aged it in brandy barrels for eight months, where it melded with notes of oak, marzipan, and bright stone fruit.

Chilled bottle poured into a pretentious beer glass. No foam cap, straight to a taupe ring over a muddy brewed tea liquid

Aroma is malty, yeasty, apricot-y

Taste is malty, apricot taste lingers on the finish

Smooth , silky, sultry , the 15% abv is very well hidden, coats the mouth , no sudsing , hint of booziness but no heat

Blonde, barley, wines and apricots are not something that I would normally choose for myself, however, I do like this combination.



Good beer.

 

Close enough to be a Barleywine, totally enjoying Firestone Walkers 2023 anniversary brew. Always enjoy these world class blends from the creative minds in the Paso Robles area!
Cheers!
Tom

 

Posted this in NBW on Friday, forgot to cross post it here:

Tree House - Double Barrel Tree of Light for me, Sycamore Super Quench for my wife!



4.84/5 rDev +5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a small stemmed tulip

Thanks to @WunderLlama for this one!!

The beer pours deep brown (nearly black), with no visible highlights. An aggressive pour yields a very small head that recedes quickly, leaving behind very little lacing.

The aroma is bourbon, coffee, caramel, chocolate, and vanilla.

The flavor is huge and sweet and roasty! There are notes of chocolate, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, and a huge bourbon barrel character. Full bodied and viscous, lightly carbonated.

What a great beer! by far one of the best Barleywines I have had. Phenomenal

 

Kros Strain/Horus collab Barrelywine #12 Sandhills Crane 24mo Elijah Craig BBA English Barleywine, 13% ABV. Pours brownish-black with a ring of brown bubbles that left no lacing. Aroma is sweet strong bourbon and dark fruit. Taste follows, plus roast malt, moderately sweet, some bourbon burn, but in a nice way. Excellent mouthfeel, overall outstanding to world-class adjacent. If you like Elijah Craig and English Barleywine, this is the beer for you.

4.46/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Another case where I should have bought more. Damn, should have known, most Barrelywine variants are safe bets.

 

Moving along with the Firestone Anno Trio, enjoying XXVIII from 2024. This is a bit rough around the edges, but still enjoyable. Toasted caramel, prunes, and toffee from the malt base. The barrels bring vanilla and a touch of leather. Finishes with some rye spiciness and wet barrel. Rated 4.3 vs the 4.46 given to XXVII yesterday.
Cheers!
Tom

 

Following up with the last of my 2024 Bigfoot. I used to "age" these but then discovering SNBC professionally ages these since moving to WNC i find it is easier to just bite the bullet and pay a premium for their aged Bigfoot bottlings and drafts.
Cheers!
Tom