Best Chicago barleywines

I've never had a barleywine i liked so it'd be good to try the best and write these off for good

 

Well...I mean, I know, bc ABINBEV and all, but...BCBBW...? I can't help but drink that beer way too fast whenever it's in front of me.

Does Munster count? BA Behemoth is such a huge step up from regular, and is also one of my favorites.

 

I'd love to know too, so awaiting additional comments. "Good" barleywines from anyone but very well practiced brewers are very hard to come by.

 

Begyle’s batch 500

 

I drink a lot of barleywines and haven't lived in the Midwest but for a few years, but it seems that great barleywines are a bit lacking from Chicago breweries. I'd say that Straight Jacket is my favorite (and Mineshaft Gap giving it a run for its money this year), with my other top picks being Rohrwerker and Cherry Murderous from Pipeworks, and Behemoth if you count FFF as close enough.

 

VSOJ is the tops for me. I will go hard on those cans when they come out.

 

Huh. Good post. In looking back, outside of SJ, I don't have much to contribute here. Had Rohrwerker on tap at Local Option. It was pretty damn good. SJ is tops for me though. I desperately want VSOJ in my life, and excited to try this year's SJ since it's blended with VSOJ. Certain to be killer.

 

The most recent batch of Murderous was better than the original, but I'd still say it's nothing to write home about, and not nearly as good as multiple batches of Cherry Murderous have been. From Pipeworks, I've also rated Reaper vs. Unicorn pretty well, although I've only had one bomber of it and it's not standing out in my mind as much. Thanks to flat_lander for the reminder that Rohrwerker was a collab with Local Option.

 

Spiteful Belligerent Bob has been very enjoyable when I've had it at FoBAB, as was Wooden Hell from Flossmoor station. Neither one was as good, to me, as BCBBW or Straight Jacket.

VSOJ is still definitely the best though.

 

Aside from the usual suspects (revolution and bourbon county), moody tongue bba chocolate bw has got to be in this conversation. Incredibly different and incredibly good in my opinion!

 

Maplewood Barley Butcher was great fresh, haven’t had it in a while though. Hoping that Pipeworks puts out BA Murderous again sometime soon, I like Rohrwerker fine but definitely prefer Murderous