Blue Point Old Howling Bastard

Brewed by Blue Point Brewing
Style: Barley Wine
Patchogue, New York USA

2005 hand bottle: Poured a clear amber color with a thin off-white head. The aroma was malty with a large amount of smoke. Light aroma of plasitc like the sticky ends of cheap band-aids (not the real brand). Sweet malty flavor . Light fruitiness with some more smoke.

2005 vintage, Tap at the Blue Point tasting room. One of the clearer, more translucent barley wines I have ever seen. Golden yellow color, smell is indistinguishable. Taste is bitter, thin body for a barley wine. Hoped for more but was disappointed.

This beer was probably infected as we tasted it Blind @ Cornboy’s 2nd Annual BW tasting. 2003 bottle, It has a weird graininess and a weird fruitiness. But together its rather nice. Its thick and dark with flavors of orange and smoke. 8/4/7/3/16.

2005 version - tap at the brewery. Cloudy amber beer, sweet brown sugary aroma. Some toasted malt with light toffee and molasses. Light herbal aromas as well, but overall comes across quite sugary. Hops are there but it’s definitely a bit too young and sweet yet. Ar 7 Ap 3 Fl 6 Pa 2 Ov 13 2004 version - tap at the brewery. Clear amber beer with a thin white head. Aroma is sweet and malty with nice toasty malts and some cherry/raspberry fruit noticible as well. Great toasty slightly smoky malt character as well. Flavour is lightly chewy with a hint of beechwood smoke, light caramel and toast. Creamy texture with just a hint of alcoholic bite. Bitterness has mellowed leaving a much more complex brew than when it’s young. Ar 8 Ap 3 Fl 8 Pa 4 Ov 15

Draught. At Coles (Buffalo). Poured clear copper with an average foamy-creamy off-white head. Aroma of alcohol, turpentine, light roast malt, plenty of hop bitterness. Flavour of strong hardwood and alcohol, burnt pine resin hops making for an extremely long, bitter finish, somewhat unbalanced. Mouthfeel is syrupy, flat and harshly alcoholic - this isn’t bad but needs more malt to balance and perhaps fresher, less harsh hops.

Tap @ Waterfront Ale House. Ruby copper color with a thin offwhite head. Smells hoppy and mildly malty. Flavor is dominated by hops, but still a slight malty presence. Piney, sweet, slightly toasty, and a bit alcoholic.

Aroma is malty, hoppy and smokey, deep copper with a big, short lived cream head. Flavour is a full malt punch followed with a one-two of hops. Full bodied, very nice mouthfeel, alcohol is rather subdued. Terrific! Thanks rudolf!

On tap at Pizza Plant: Coppery-Orange color with a small off white head. Aroma is rather subtle, some biscuity malts. Flavor is primarily pine-like hops, with some caramel and slight toasted malt notes. Not bad, but not a mind blowing Barley Wine.

12.10.05 2000, 750ml bottle secured beneath the thickest and meanest sheath of red wax armor you’ve ever seen. I believe Rich had to bust out some brothas with pliers and blowtorches to dig through the stuff. Anyway, the pour was an orangey deep copper with slight white ring of foam. Aroma is yeasty (biscuit dough) and plenty oxidized (sherry, cardboard). Oxidation carries into flavor with lots of vinous notes, sherry, raisin, and dark caramel. Not much left of the hops save a background note of springtime flowering fields. Nice stuff, I’d love to try a fresh sample.