Dogfish Head Olde School Barleywine

Brewed by Dogfish Head Brewery
Style: Barley Wine
Milton, Delaware USA

Pours with a two-finger, bubbly cream head that fades quickly and leaves some lace. Pale, cloudy amber color, ton of yeast left in bottle. Good carbonation and medium bodied. Nose is sweet malt and alcohol. Flavor is raisins and alcohol, finishes smooth and sweet NOT a session beer . . . savor this beer. This is one of the best barley wines brewed in the States. $16.49 for a 4-pak of 12oz bottles from Colonial Spirits Acton, MA

Pours clear redish-copper with a thin white head. Aroma is sweet and boozy with hints of dates, plum, apricot, cinnamon, caramel and banana. Flavor is an explosion hops and malt with overtones of sweet fruit. Not bad.

Rating #1000. BeerHawk’s Beer Gods in the Boro, aka 1000 Bottles of Beer on the Wall, By God Beer God Gathering, BG1K Tasting. Sample from a bottle shared by me thanks to mcbackus. Dated 11/21/08 This beer pours a lovely clear mahogany red color with a thin off white spattering of carbonation. The aroma is fruity, raisins, dried apricots, some caramel and bready malts, brown sugar, rum, and mild alcohol, the 15% is there but feels so nice. This one doesn’t have the legs of some other nice barley wines but it does feel nice enough on the tongue, it is not cloying at all. Taste is more dried fruits, prunes, raisins, dates, apricots. Caramel, brown sugar, and toffee sweet malts back it up and then finishes with an herbal floral hoppiness to balance. The beer gives no more of an alcohol warming sensation than I have come to find it beers clocking in at only 8% octane.

Bottle - Pours a beautiful reddish-amber with a thin, bubbly head that’s gone within 30 seconds. Tiny bubbles float towards the top of beer in a continuous flow like cola or champagne. The aroma is decent, with hops, sweet malt, cherries, biscuits, and a little alcohol. But then I taste it. The best way to describe the taste is it begins with a blast of alcohol, follows up with more alcohol, and finishes with a burning, alcoholey taste. I took a peek at the label and made sure it was only 15% and not 80 proof. Holy crap does this taste like vodka-flavored malt water. The only thing I can say is if this mellows out in a year or two and the burn goes away, it should probably taste pretty good. At least I hope it does, otherwise I wasted 14 bucks on a four pack of this shite. UPDATED: March 28, 2009: I have to change flavor from 3 to a 1. Thinking about this more, I can’t imagine a beer tasting worse. I hope this was just a bad bottle.

Poured amber with a white head. Aroma of fruit and caramel. Sweet caramel with some fruit hints. On the thicker side.

Sampled in Lexington, Va. Drank out of a small snifter. Pours very very dark with little to no head. The barley wine is incredibly strong and malty. Overall, not the best quality drink, but very well flavored.

Bottle. Pours orange amber with an off white head. Malty sweet aroma, with a little bit of alcohol. The flavor has sweet malts, a hint of fruit, some hops and a touch of booze. Not bad.

Bottle. Poured clear ruby with a light head. Aroma of dark fruit, heavy sweet malt. Taste is a little syrupy, with lots of caramel, dark fruit, mild booze, some citrus. Mouth is sticky and finish is warming. Overall, a very heavy barley wine; a little hard to finish 12oz.