Drakes Barley Wine Bourbon Barrel

Formerly brewed at Drakes Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
San Leandro, California USA

Thanks to iowaherkeye for sending this one along. Pours caramel brown with a bubbly head. Almost no carbonation. Nose is raisins, bourbon, vanilla, caramel, rum-soaked dark fruit, sweet chocolate, goodness, and alcohol burn. Flavor is lovable bourbon giving way to caramel, toffee, raisin, vanilla, dark fruit, and some booziness. Relatively light on body, and quantity is so limited in that nip bottle, but absolutely outstanding barley wine.

6 oz bottle from Lothore, thanks Kyle. Poured an ugly unassuming flat body murky muddy brown with almost no head what so ever. Aroma was lots of toffee, caramel, vanilla, bourbon, wet wood, and just malty and sweet overall. Palate is pretty flat and lifeless with a medium chewy body. Toffee and caramel domiate over some bourbon and buttery vanilla booze, remainder of the flavor is some old raisin fermenting brown bread. Nice beer but what the hell is up with the baby bottle???

Thanks Ted. Pours brown with no head. Nose is rich with bourbon and toffee. Hops are still there too. Same rich flavors and lots of heat in the finish. This is a damn fine beer.

Aroma of chocolate and wood. Very strong. Dark brown pour with no carbonation to speak of. Tastes like chocolate milk soaked in wood chips. There’s also some nice bourbon notes in there with toffee, oak, and vanilla. Very bourbon like actually and chocolaty, sweet, and alcoholic. A good dessert drink. Very thick.

6 oz bottle from ratman197. Thanks! Pours a very cloudy brown color wtih no head. Great "little" big beer! Aroma hits with tons of bourbon, brown sugar, sweet malt, honey, fruit, oak and good vanilla notes. Flavor is fruity, tons of bourbon, wood, vanilla, toffee and a very, very light tartness in the finish. I really enjoyed this tremendously.

An awesome 6 oz bottle series 4 shared by footbalm. I have no idea the vintage. Pours a cloudy brown color with a tiny, really non-existent head. A awesome aroma; super sweet bourbon notes, wood and light malts and vanilla. The flavor is great; loads of very sweet sugars and malts, toffee and caramel fit into a huge bourbon flavor. Lots of wood and some dark fruits. Slightly sour wood and cherries. I really enjoyed this one. Excellent.

Sampled at the Hopsnobbery Collective barley wine tasting on 3.14.09. Dark brown pour with a minimal beige head. Malty aroma with something else in there I don’t like. Fruity and malty flavor that is too sweet, even for a barley wine. Was hoping for more out of this one.

Bottle (6oz) shared with HogTownHarry & garthicus -- courtesy of HogTownHarry. Pours a deep ruby with no head. Aroma’s sweet and boozy with bourbon, wood, fruit, caramel malt and vanilla. Nice flavour of caramel malt, dark fruit, hops, wood and alcohol -- strong but tasty. Medium bodied. Very nice stuff.