Baladin Xyauyù Etichetta Rame (Copper Label)

Brewed by Le Baladin
Style: Barley Wine
Piozzo, Italy

2004 Copper version thanks to Sam, who decided to bring all three versions to Toby’s place! Thanks man. Pours a beige-brown color with no head and some legs. A super sweet port-like nose. The flavor was very sweet and very hot; like a aged port, molasses, caramel, wood, brown sugar and a boozy sweet finish. It was also somehow, quite easy to drink, especially due to the slick oily mouthfeel. Very enjoyable.

2006 vintage. Pours a caramel colour with absolutely no head. The aroma is like an Oloroso sherry. Sour and oxidized nose. Complex sweet and sour notes on the nose including maple and caramel. Tastes as sweet as unfermented wort. Very sweet, but very complex. Maple, caramel, cherry, wood, and cereal. No carbonation... but still very nice. Weird like the other beer from this brewery. If I had to pay $35 for this bottle I don’t think I’d be super stoked. But very good none the less.

Source:2005 copper bottle shared by Steamhead.
Glass:Taster.
Appearance:Dark brown pour with an ultra-thin head. Lots of suspended carbonation.
Aroma:Aroma was burned sugar, molasses, brown sugar and sherry.
Flavor:A lot of residual sweetness. Brown sugar and molasses. Reminds me of Thomas Hardys.
Palate:Extremely full body...think heated pancake syrup with more carbonation than I would have expected, but the body doesn’t allow it to escape.
Overall:I really enjoyed this. Would be perfect as an after dinner drink from a cordial or a snifter.

Expensive freaking 2005 edition ($48). Labeled 13%. Pours with a still maple hazed color and some medium strength alcohol legs attached to the side of the glass. Some particles towards the end of the bottle. Aroma is very nice with port, madeira, chocolate syrup, prunes, raisins, fusel alcohol and butterscotch. Taste is like drinking maple syrup with port, a touch of wood, sherry, SUPER HIGH RESIDUAL SUGARS, raisins and a slightly bitter finish. Although there is noticeable alcohol in the aroma their is minimal transferred to the taste. Ungodly maple syrupy thick mouthfeel. Seriously one of the thickest beers I have ever had. Nice, but not nearly fifty bones worth of niceness.

2004 bottle - Nice looking reddish color, very port-like with no head. Aroma of big sugar, oak, over ripe fruits, sherry, and port. Flavor is quite sweet - a lot like GLI’s 275th with overwhelming sugar, sweet and ripe tropical fruits, oxidation/sherry, wood. Quite nice all around, but for the price you can get almost a case of Old Horizontal, which I would much prefer. Nice for a one time treat.

super cool looking 375 ml bottle - thanks tom!! dark orange with some floaties adding to a slight haze; quite harsh nose from the high alcohol and incredible sweetness; full on syrupy texture that would be great for cooking; for drinking though, much too sweet and harsh for my liking

50cl bottle thanks to photomike. Orange amber color with no head, which was to be expected due to the lack of carbonation. Sweet and fruity aroma of dried apples, brown sugar, and rich caramel. The flavor was a malt feast, with low hops and almost no alcohol presence. Big dried fruit and brown sugar flavors, with hint of oxidation adding to the port wine feel of the beer. The body is full and a touch oily, with zero carbonation. I wasn’t really sure what to expect going into this beer, heck, I didn’t even know that it was still, but I loved it. A very well crafted and unique barley wine that is a great dessert sipper. I’m glad that we split this five ways, as it was about the perfect amount, akin to a dessert wine. At the price it commands, this will be a very rare purchase, but I would definitely like to have it again.

Corked 375, 2005. Thanks, After4ever. Pours hazy orange amber with no head. Luscious citrus, toffee and vanilla aroma. Full body, no carbonation. Incredibly sweet taste of citrus, apple, grape, caramel and wood. Seems to be way under-attenuated and unbalanced.