Dark Horse 3 Guy Off the Scale Old Ale

Brewed by Dark Horse Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Marshall, Michigan USA

12 oz wax dipped bottle, just like the picture. This has been in my cellar for at least two years - got it from Pailhead in June ’06 (thanks!), so I assume it’s a 2005 vintage, but there are no dates on the bottle. Clear, reddish amber with no head - this is a still beer. Some rust was noted on the inside edge of the cap, not sure if this leaked a bit or not. Smells delightful - big, sweet raisin, brown sugar and molasses nose, alcohol is apparent but does not detract. After warming a bit, there is a figgy portlike aroma added to the aforementioned nose. Sweet flavors of dried fruits - raisin, fig and date - light molasses and a hint of port. A touch of peppery bitter finally pops up in the finish, where the alcohol finally takes a bite into the center of the tongue. Medium body, a bit slick, feels a tad thin for all the flavors. Still, a pretty nice little beer.

2/07/2008: 3 Guy Off the Scale Old Ale has a nice, clear, copper orange colr with a very low level of carbonation. The aroma is so good and and includes lots of sweet caramel, tons of malt, raisin, fruit (subtle cherry and berries), and some brandy-like alochol. The flavor has an ample level of residual sweetness. Flavors include lots of rich malt (hints of some roast and nuts) up front with some light hops and bitterness in the middle (lightly citrusy) and then a hefty dose of brandy alcohol and sherry-like (espeially when warmer) flavors along with hints of apricot in the finish. The flavor is really well-balanced and quite sofisticated (it’s actually quite difficult to descibe all of the flavors). The alcohol is definitely there, but really quite drinkable (maybe too easily drinkable!) for 15% ABV! This beer is thick and smooth on the palate. Its medium-full body coats the mouth well and allows the flavor to linger long after swallowing. The viscous nature is actually good to help slow down how fast this bottle could be consumed! This is a huge beer packed with aroma, flavor, and mouthfeel. It’s excellent!

Reddish-purple wax-topped 12 fl. oz. bottle via trade with Styles in October 2006. Thanks again Chris! Rating #157 for this beer...

2005 release, Sampled December 2007
A somewhat vigorous pour only produces a scant, quarter-finger thick, tan colored head. The beer is a brilliantly clear, cherry red color when held up to the light, but otherwise is a very red tinged, deep amber color. Aromas of aged hops and aged malts produces aromatic components of berries, caramelized citrus notes, light sherry, concentrated, caramelized malt and a super malt character that is almost umami like in its richness. Heady alcohol aromatics provide similarities to Brandy and even Scotch aromas.

Sweet, thick and extremely chewy, there is a ton of residual malt sugar left in this brew. The mix is rich enough that the sweetness is not cloying, but man is this a viscous brew. Toasted malt flavors, richly caramelized sugars, richly nutty dark malts and a warming alcohol note in the finish. This is a huge beer, it even tastes a bit like not quite diluted malt extract. I am glad this is only a 12oz bottle, but I could easily see this being one of the few beers deserving of a nip bottle sized serving. Fruit flavors of raisins and prunes combine with the alcohol to give this beer a sort of brandy-like finish. But I keep coming back to how thick and viscous this brew is; it sits on my tongue like it weighs a ton, and it almost seems like I have to work to cram, even a small sip down my throat. Underneath all of this malt, the beer is actually quite hoppy too; it plays a secondary role here and can sometimes get lost in the malt, but I do taste a herbal, sweet citrus character that is clearly hop derived.

While this beer is tasty and complex, it is just a bit too much. The amount of residual, unfermented sugars left in this beer is crazy; it is just so thick and so viscous that it makes it hard to even swallow. This beer is not bad, but it just ends up being too much. Perhaps another ten or twenty years of age would make this more drinkable.

05 vintage. Pours a clear dark ruby copper with a medium beige head. Aroma of sweet sherry, alcohol, cherries and caramel. Taste is pleasantly sweet with hints of sherry, cherries, caramel and molasses. Warm alcoholic finish. Excellent.

12oz bottle, guessing 2005 as the description notes. Via trade a long time back with whom, I do not recall. Dark red wax on top, and I didn’t cut myself but damn as much as wax is cool and all I think its designed to fuck with drunk people who end up playing with knives. Rant over, rate start. Pours ruby with a half finger tan head that is mostly just a ring with some islands of foam. Sweet, high alc nose, some sherry and other sweet liquor notes, as well as raisans. Taste is sweet, heavy on the alc and molasses thick and tastes like molasses too. This is nice, heavy and bold, and at 15% isn’t as hard core as some BW in this vane. Damn this is nice, I’ll agree with Kramer, nice work Dark Horse.

12 oz bottle, via Styles I think. Pours a clear dark copper body under a small soap sud like beige head that retained as a whispy covering. The nose is just great, heavy toffee and caramel maltiness with some vanilla, figs, alcohol fumes, and light yeast. Heavy, sweet, toffee maltiness up front with some coffee, madiera, brown sugar, and alcohol. Finishes with some resiny hops, peppery alcohol, molassas, and a touch of oxidation. Mouthfeel is full bodied and heavy with a resiny stickiness on the finish. Amazingly perfect super soft super fine carbonation. Some heat on the finish. A pretty awesome beer, I guess Dark Horse can make more than dark beers!

2005? bottle from Styles on 7/26/07. Rated on 10/17/07. Very nice malty barleywine aroma. Some melanoidin. A tiny bit of alchohol in the aroma. Very little head, but microbubbles fight their way to the edge of the surface on the glass edge. Flavor is nice and sweet. Still a little hot. I think it would be excellent with a few years on it.

Bottle... Murky, dark burnt orange ale with a small, fizzy, off-white head. Slightly lactic, alcohol nose with bushels of dried plums and dark raisins, tawny sherry, oak and gobs of caramel. Sweet caramel flavor with tons of warm alcohol, dark raisins, light molasses and dried plum. Full-bodied with a chewy mouthfeel and moderate carbonation. Sweet, red-hot, drying finish. A big CHEERS goes out to boboski for leaving this one out as trash in his Orlando-humid-hot garage with a bunch of Burton Batons!