Bison Organic Barleywine

Brewed by Bison Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Berkeley, California USA

Had this beer while tailgating w/ my brother and friends at the Raider v Bears game. Nothing really extraordinary about this beer in either the nose or aroma. The nose is mostly caramel malts, light perfumey/floral hop notes and alcohol. Appearance is clear, dark amber in color with a minimal off-white head. Flavor is very one dimensional with caramel sweetness coming on strong. Nothing horrible at all, and for the price it’s not bad (under $3.00 for 22oz) but don’t expect anything above average.

22oz. bottle, 2005 vintage, from Bottleworks in Seattle. Sweet, doughy aroma, some toffee and toasty sweetness, light apricot and other dried fruits, faintly nutty as well. Clear light amber-red color, head is fine and slight, but leaves some nice lacing. Nose gains some mild phenols and perfume as it warms. Flavor is mostly sweet, lots of caramel and toffee but with balancing fruit and hop spice, mild bitterness and even some herbal touches towards the finish. Mild warmth on the palate, some lightly peppery alcohol here. Smooth with a low level of effervescence, some light stickiness and a full body. I liked this quite a bit better than most, it appears.

Bottle of 2005 shared by Indra at theisti’s tasting 10/12. Pours a deep orange with a thin, creamy, beige head that reduces to a skin of bubbles at the surface. The nose is sweet and malty with notes of doughy sweetbread and dark rum. Medium-bodied and somewhat "gritty" in the mouthfeel, it concludes with a quick, dry finish that shows a little alcohol heat. The flavor follows the nose with additional notes of apple, plum and raisin. A decent barleywine, but a bit rough and hot for my tastes. Thanks for sharing this one, Eric.

Pours a clear deep amber with a lasting off-white head. The aroma is very fruity, med-caramelly, toffee-like, with some grassy, earthy hop notes followed by a slight sherry qulaity. The body is med. with a perfect amount of CO2. Flavors are ripe with dark fruits, sweet caramel and nutty toffee. Finish oh-so balanced. I have had my share of barleywines and I don’t know what the rest of you are looking for but this is nice and very well balanced. Maybe that’s the problem for most...too well balanced? Not extreme? Just a really well-crafted beer? Is that bad?

22 oz bottle from Indra at my tasting 10/12. 2005 vintage. Pour is clear orange - amber with almost no head. Only a bit of off white clinging to the edge of the glass. Aroma of sweet caramel. Taste is fairly muted sweet caramel with a very crisp hop bitter finish. Good, thoroughly well made. Thanks for bringing this one Eric.

22 oz. bottle, from Bev Mo LaJolla, 2005 version. Pours a deep orange-pecan color, hazy, with a small white head. Aroma of caramel, orange spice, brown sugar, herbs, plum, light floral and citrus hops. Sweet and malty, ripe peach, caramel, spicey-piney hops, pepper, brown sugar, apricot, alcohol and hints of grapefruit in the finish. Full body, smooth with light carbonation. The 2 years have served this well, with the overall brew smoothing and malt character coming more prominent, (though a little overly sweet).

22. Pours a deep dark brown with toffeeish highlights at the edges. Great big moussy head that settles to rocks and leaves sheets of clumpy lace down the sides. Grassy, nutty, brown-bread-y, earthyish nose. Sweet smelling; certainly the grassiest (wtf?) barleywine I’ve smelled, maybe a little sweat in there too. Mild, flattish attack with subdued flavors. Lots of earth and dried leaves in the mid-palate, leading to a slightly resinous finish. Disorganized flavor profile to say the least. Not sure where to start with this one, but it’ll need some attention before they can make a serious run with it.

Dark amber with a modest off white cap. Vegetals, sharp spice (fresh nutmeg), parsley, subtle sweetness, zesty yeast, subtle pepper, poisonous hops. Medium/full body, balanced carbonation. Interesting, unique, decent. More of a strong spice/herb/vegetable than a barleywine.