New Beer Weekend #250

Barleywine, you say? Count me in, say I.

I opened this yesterday. Wasn't thrilled by it, but thought it might make a nice end-of-the-weekend night cap. So here we are.



Bombastic Stubbornness English-Style Barleywine Ale

16-ounce can purchased at John's Marketplace in Beaverton, OR. Date stamp is present but mostly unreadable. Enjoyed in a small snifter.

Look:
The beer has a somewhat hazy orange-amber body with bright orange highlights. The head of cream-colored foam slowly fades to a thick collar, but returns eagerly when you swirl the glass. The foam leaves attractive lacing.

Smell:
Grape Nuts, peach bran muffins, caramel icing, a load of earthy hops, a hint of toasted banana bread, a twist of orange peel, and alcohol. There's also a mild, damp cardboard note of oxidation. More orange peel comes through as the beer warms.

Taste:
Starts with nutty malt, caramel, brown sugar, orange marmalade with lots of peel, and dry sherry notes. These flavors are soon overwhelmed by an abrasive earthy bitterness and a wave of tea-like tannins. The middle offers some warm flavors of caramelized bananas and cinnamon under the bitterness. The caramel and marmalade punch through again in the finish, along with a pretty strong alcohol flavor, but the long bittersweet aftertaste is more bitter than sweet.

Feel:
The body is medium-full with a light oily texture. Carbonation is finely textured but lively. Some alcohol warmth, but less than you'd think given the amplitude of the alcohol flavor in the finish.

Overall:
Not bad as an American Barleywine, but unconvincing as an English Barleywine. This is much too hoppy, even if the hops are English. The bitterness and orange flavors remind me more of Bigfoot than, say, Fuller's Golden Pride or Lee's Harvest Ale. Aging may help temper the bitterness and let richer elements through, but I didn't enjoy this can enough to buy another in hopes that it turns into something less abrasive. Ah well.

 

Hi Moe!

 

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Tried peacharine dry-hopped fort point today. I love regular fort point, as it’s clean, crisp, and refreshing. Just a well balanced beer. Peacharine is such a nice addition, ramping up the stone fruit notes. Well worth a try if you happen to stumble upon it.