Barley Johns Barrel-Aged Rosies Ale (Batch 1)

Formerly brewed at Barley Johns Brew Pub
Style: Barley Wine
New Brighton, Minnesota USA

Thanks to footbalm for this one. This brew was so damn powerful, althought they did an amazing job at hiding 21 percent, this brew still was just a kick in the head. Very bourbony character imposed on an already powerful brew, big malt body revealing doses of cherry, oak, vanilla, and a faint spice. This brew could have been aged for years to come, I think this brew can only improve with blended flavors. Wow.

Take a wild guess where I got this beer! That is right, the master trader footbalm. Deep dark mahogany with a small white ring of a head. The aroma is loaded with Knob Creek. I love Knob Creek so things are starting out well. Continuing, behind the bourbon there is tons of sweet cherry, light cinnamon, oak, and vanilla. Ahh the flavor. In many ways this is similar to the Barrel Aged Millennium form Old Dominion. In that bourbon plays a major role in the flavor component. Sweetness is really kept in check as is the alcohol. Which is amazing given the magnitude of this monster. Cherry also comes through rather strongly as it warms. Full body with a quick alcoholic finish. Lingering numb gums and esophageal warmth are a bonus! For those folks that are anti-barrel aging, especially when that barrel is a bourbon barrel, this beer is not for you. If on the other hand you enjoy bourbon and think that the flavors can arry very well with a big barely wine, then this is probably the pinnacle.

Handbottled from growler from footbalm via Styles. Red amber in color with a scant, filmy off-white head. Big woody aromas mix with fruit and light malts. Medium bodied and smooth for 21%!!! Caramelly with bourbon flavors. Very nice!!!

hand-bottled, thanks to footbalm! huge aroma of dark fruits, cherries and raspberries, going along with bourbony alcohol and tons of malt. silky smooth, without any sort of alcohol tang which usually shows up in a beer of this size...phenomenal brew, too bad i can’t drink more of it!

A gigantic thanks to footbalm for hand-bottling this for me. I applaud Eric’s zest for exposing great beers to each coast like my zeal for spreading Stoudt’s and Weyerbacher and Victory stuff! This one pours heavy magenta with small off-white head (and at 28%, no head is required!). Aroma of malt, huge cherries, oak, bourbon, and raspberries. Tastes very fruity (tons of cherries, bourbon, oak, raspberries, even blueberries!). An all time great aroma that you have to experience as a beer freak! Extremely smooth, bourbon, berry-filled palate. In fact, this is the "berryest" beer I’ve ever had. Better than all Flemish sours, better than Rodenbach Alexander, better than 99.99% of any beer I’ve ever had, in fact, this one would bury most top ten beers!! I don’t know who Rosie is, but she must be a beer Goddess or something! You must try this beer. I had no idea it was 28% until now, and that shows you how well hidden the alcohol is. I’m on a 5.0 streak, and I love every minute of it!!! NO DEDUCTIONS!!!! I think I’ve gone to heaven and am being served (and traded with) all 4.2 or above beers! Awesome!! Get this, and do whatever you have to in order to get it now!!!!! You will NEVER, ever, taste anything like this, as a beer or a wine drinker! Just beyond belief!!

I wanted very much to be underwhelmed by this brew, but it didn’t happen. This is a hot little number. Seamless foam caps the honey and cedar-addled body. Sherry alcohol nose finish, but at least ten of the abv points are masked. A pocket rocket with vast depths.

Reddish/brown color,definately get an alcohol aroma from this brew along with some wine like notes,some whisky coming through nicely and some fruitiness as well.The first taste sent me damn near flying,whisky flavor up front baby.It mellows slightly in the middle to let the other flavors in.Nice fruity side,with a decent malt coming through and the hops are nicely done bringing up the rear to give you a little extra something to go with the alcohol burn going down.The first sip really set me back for a moment,making me think this was going to be a battle to get down.But it actually smooths out nicely after you get into it a little further,still theres the alcohol burn at the end but it’s kind of pleasant and on a cold night like tonight,kind of welcome.A nicely done brew with more flavors then i can put a finger on,so best i can do is just sit back and enjoy the ride.Thanks go to Footbalm for kicking this bottle my way.

Definitely can smell the bourbon barrel. Sweet aroma with faint hops. Inviting with notes of plums and apricots. Dark red body with no particalia. Slow carbonation and an off-white head that is mostly diminishing. Strong palate, but the 21% alcohol is well hidden. Smooth and lovely. Not as good as the Dark Knight. Just doesn’t have the complexity of flavors. Perhaps this is not the first batch through the barrel like the Dark Knight I had was? Makes a good winter warmer. Of the same ilk as Sam Adams Utopias. Strength really hits as you go. Warming. Made my mouth a little numb. A little bit cloying toward the bottom of the glass. At $8.50 for an 8 oz glass, they’re proud of it. And although they have reason to be, I was not as impressed as I thought I’d be.