Butte Creek Train Wreck

Brewed by Butte Creek Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Chico, California USA

Bottle (22oz) shared with HogTownHarry, GregClow, jerc, mabel & tupalev -- courtesy of HogTownHarry. Pours a slightly hazy orange-amber with a small frothy white head. Aroma of caramel malt, a hint of alcohol, some fruit and floral hops. Flavour: Whoa, man that’s boozy! Malt, resiny hops and a dry very bitter finish. Average bodied. Somewhat hard to drink, this is just O.K.

Bottle shared with blankboy, HogTownHarry, jerc, mabel & tupalev - courtesy of HogTownHarry. Ruby-amber with a moderately sized off-white head. Aroma of earthy malt, tobacco leaf and citrus pith. Medium bodied. Flavour is sharp and hot, very bitter, lots of citrus pith, and not enough malt to fill it out.

2008-07-11. Golden amber body with a quick head. Dry grains, cereals, sweet malt, muted floral touches top a fruity alcoholic aroma. Similar flavour with decent amounts of bitterness, but the overall is a touch rough bordering on astringent at times. Dry malty undertones, grapefruit seeds without the citrusy highlights. Average palate. Meh. Bottle shared by HogTownHarry

Bottle (22oz). Shared with blankboy, gregclow, jerc, mabel & tupalev. Hazy deep orange pour, average frothy beige head. Papery malt aroma with dry slightly stale resin hop bitterness, a hint of dry wood. Sharp, bitter, boozy taste, orange zest and dry resin bitterness - a long, huge dry bitter finish. Average body, stinging carbonation, dryly acidic and astringent, long grapefruit pith linger. Not all that bad.

Pours hazy mahogany red with a decent head that left a strong film and ok lacing. Aromas of spices, caramel, brown sugar and apple. Taste is maltiness for the most part, but plenty of carmelized sugar and alcohol as well. Hops come in a bit at the end. Nice beer, but the alcohol is strong, and I’m thirsty.

22oz bottle. Pours hazy amber with a light off white wispy head. Sweet orange/nectarine aroma with caramel, candy, and red licorice. There is also a touch of something alcoholic. Lots of malt caramel in the flavor. This is a fairly sweet brew. Tons of orange character also. Impressively so, really. Just a bit of orange rind like flavors as well. Syrupy mouth feel with a semi-bitter finish. Good, but overloaded with orange and caramel to the point that it’s a bit much.

22. Pours a deep dark mahogany with bright burgundy highlights. Thick, creamy tan head that really sticks around. Plenty of craggy lacing, too. Opens up with a big dark ganja-like aroma, as you would expect from a northern California beer called "Train Wreck." That mixes in with dark wet leaves, a wee bit of earth, and plenty of wood. The body kicks off thick and creamy; very nice. Plummy, vinous notes mingle with the wood, earth, and leaves. If this beer reminds me of anything, it’s Bigfoot--not ganja. The wood notes are very pronounced. Nice dark and sharp finish. This is a very good barleywine, maybe a great one, and will only improve with age as that sharp vinous stuff settles down and it all blends.

Ruby with a nice off white head which dissapates. Aroma is malt, alcohol, caramel, brown sugar, very light hoppiness. Taste is malt, alcohol, hops show up fairly strong along with some caramelized fruit. Doesn’t really come together like you would hope.