Bear Republic Barrel Aged Old Scoutter’s Barley Wine

Brewed by Bear Republic Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Healdsburg, California USA

"Balanced" barley wine with a great aroma and complementing hop taste/aroma. Dont hesitate to try this one!

On tap at breweryhazy golden with no head. Spicy caramel and oak aroma and taste with a sticky alcholic finish.

Tap at The Gate. Deep red-garnet beer with a thick sticky off-white head. Intense aroma with heavy sweet malts over lots of rich berryish fruits. Soft oaky vanilla/floral character. Flavour is quite sweet and sticky with a very strong heavy bitterness on the back. The flavour is full of bright hops, grapefruit and pine and a touch of whiskyish sweetness. They certainly didn’t skimp on the hops in this one and I suspect that this will age nicely. As the beer warms up, there is a bit of whisky/vineous character. The middle kind of falls out a little bit, but this is still a solid barleywine.

If I am going to rate this great brew then I have to enter it. According the bartender this is a new one, and more powerful than previous offering. At 10.5% ABV it poured a deep copper with a very sticky off-white head and rich long lacing rings that looked like glue. Big nose of a whiskey or cognac barrel, and ripe fruit. Mouth feel is rich and and you can taste the alcohol. Flavor of caramel malts and with some hops. Long finish with the amazing mixture of sweetness and bitterness that only great barley wines can achieve.