Barleywine Appreciation Thread (2025)

Cross Posted in the New Beer Weekend thread! My high school boys soccer team won 3 to 1 today after being down 1 to 0. SO lets go with a big beer!
This is from Barreled Souls in Saco Maine and their Extended Aged WIllets Cabin barleywine. 15.7% beer aged for 20 months in willet bourbon barrels. I picked this up as part of my bottle society order earlier this year.


onto my review:

Im sampling a 500 ml bottle poured into my trusty snifter. The beer was bottled on 5/20/2024 and was aged for 20 months and 28 days in Willet Bourbon Barrels. yum!
The beer pours a dark rich mahogany color with creamy beige head of almost 3 cm foaming up on the pour. this foam sticks around throughout the sampling as a sturdy surface covering and creates some very dense lattice when I swirl the glass or take a sip.
Aroma is rich and malty sweet toffee and brown sugar, bourbon notes and a bit of dry wood. no hint of hops anywhere and the ABV is well hidden. Seems a little dangerous on the nose for 15.4%!
First sip reveals a medium body with smooth texture and slight coating on my palate. The carbonation is fine and a little prickly , which I didnt expect. Definitely feel the bubbles if I hold the beer in my mouth for a bit.
Flavor is more of what the nose advertises with toffee and brown sugar mixing together. I also get a little pipe tobacco here and definitely bourbon hits as well. No hops , but some peppery and warming booze comes through on this one for sure. Definitely some warming on the swallow, so the booze is present. Never any hop character.
This is a malt forward, non adjunct laden barleywine. Im enjoying it quite a bit. Very glad to have had this one and would gladly drink again!

4.43 in the BA DB

 

Im tryin to help this thread along with my second post in as many days!
Cross posted in New Beer Weekend.

Sampling another Barreled Souls brewski tonight. This is Gimme the Munichwine aged in Stagg JR Bourbon barrels. Beer registers 15.7%, sessionable as @Resistance88 would say!


onto my review:

Sampling a 500 ml bottle at cellar temp and poured into my snifter. Beer was bottled on 04/17/2023 and has been in my cellar for about 11 months after pick up from the brewery.
The beer pours a clear mahogany with some garnet highlights, and there is quite a bit of sediment in the end of the pour. Unfortunately some of this sneaks past me into the glass. Some light passes through when held to a light source.
A dense creamy khaki colored head of about 2 cm foams up and rests gently in my glass. the foam fades slowly to a sturdy edge layer and one spinning island in the center of the surface. Dense lattice occurs when swirled or when I take a sip.
Aroma is malt forward and very enjoyable to me. I get toffee and brown sugar with some sweet bourbon and hints of vanilla. No hop character to speak of on this beer. ABV is also well hidden on the nose.
First sip reveals a medium body with slightly sticky and coating texture. Carbonation is very fine and tingly across my palate.
Flavor is similar to the nose. No hop character anywhere, but loads of malt. Toffee and brown sugar carry the day with bourbon and vanilla, a little dry wooden note in the background too. I do get spicy black peppery booze and some definite warming on each swallow.
This is an enjoyable beer, I wish I had another in the cellar.
4.5 in the BA DB

 

Cross posted in the New Beer Weekend thread.
My last new beer this weekend and its another barleywine, because, why not?!?
THis is Barreled Souls out of Saco Maine and their Barleywine X. A 11.1% brew with brown sugar, pecans and vanilla beans added. Bottle date is 07/01/2024.

onto my review:


Im sampling a cellar temp 500 ml bottle poured into a stemless tulip. Beer was purchased as part of bottle society orders and has been in my cellar since purchase.
THe beer pours a clear rich mahogany color with a frothy khaki colored head of about 3 cm. This foam quickly fades to a thin edge layer in my glass, and there is some scattered lacing when I swirl the glass.
Aroma is sweet and malty with toffee, brown sugar, nutty pecans and something Im smelling as maple syrup. There isnt any added, and maybe its just a combo of the additives. No hop character and its not boozy or fusol at all. Smells pretty much like what I expected based on the label and additives.
First sip reveals a medium body with fairly smooth texture and fine, gentle carbonation. Its not a very sticky barleywine and the swallow actually is thinner feel, probably due to the brown sugar addition and fermenting. The beer actually drinks pretty easy and my glass empties quickly.
Flavor is more of the nose advertisements with sweet malt dominant, brown sugar, vanilla , and again I get some maple notes. The pecan nuttiness is less prevelant here than on the nose. I also do get some black peppery bite on the finish, but no accompanying warming booze. Never any hop note either. I could see this being a bit to cloyingly sweet for some and it is in that realm for sure, but I do enjoy it and Im glad to have tried this beer.
4.35 in the BA DB