Drakes Barley Wine Bourbon Barrel

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

dark cherry, chocolate, rum, bourbon, and coconut flavors. dark as hell and delicious.

6oz bottle picked up at Ledger’s in Berkeley. Pours a brackish brown navy bean soup and almost no head. The aroma is simply huge to start. It smells like a chocolate rum cake. Wow, amazing aroma. I get creamy toffee, caramel and chocolate. Next I picked up a big ole whiff of alcohol. There’s also the standard barleywine dark fruitiness coming from prunes and dates. I even smell that a loud truck drove by while they were bottling this bottle. It smells like an uneven unspoken moment of tension. It’s faint but it’s there. The flavor does not disappoint after the aroma has set the plate. Smooth and rich with an initial burst of caramel candy. This is gooood. The dark fruitness enters just after with prunes and dates. Then by midway the malt richness returns with toffee, creamy caramel candy and chocolate. There is also an understated woodiness running through the backyard of the flavor experience toting along a splash of booze. It is toasty too. This one really comes together for me.

From a friend who lives out in Cali. Thanks, Squirrel! Pours no head with a smooth, wine-like characteristic and a fat ribbon of dark brown sandwiched between two bands of tan hues. Oily lacing. Strong, sweet aromas of caramel and barrel adhere to my sinuses; I won’t smell anything else for hours. Like the olfactory qualities, this beer is a full frontal assault of flavor in the mouth: big notes of consistent caramel and oak, hint of vinous fruits, malts, and a strong alcoholic presence. Thin carbonation and full-flavored. You couldn’t find a tastier experience with a fine cognac. Not the easiest to drink on, but an excellent brew nonetheless.

Big thanks to Degarth and Ibrew2or3 for this beauty. Pours a still muddy brown syrup with no head to speak of.Smells of plums, candied sugars, and caramel.Flavor is much of the same caramel,figs,sugar ,and maple syrup. Palate was very nice it coats the tongue well and sits there for awhile a small amount of carbonation is present.

Pours a hazy dark mahogany with copper edges and a thin coating of off-white head. Aroma has a nice, complex, sweet fruity caramel and bourbon character with a touch of tobacco. Body starts viscous and sweet with a nice raisin and brown sugar complexity with good vanilla bourbon notes. Nicely balanced, complex and slightly warming. An enjoyable barrel-aged barleywine.

Another selection from Darkes that looks like swamp water.Don’t let that deceive you.The nose is full of caramel, sweet fruit, bourbon, vanilla, and wood. There was a very slight hop presence.Lots of caramel and fruit sweetness with a small amount of heat. Finish was warming and sweet.Thanx Christian for this.

(sampled with irishboy....thanks richard!)dark brown with light brown highlights around the glass.nice complex aroma of bourbon,alcohol,,dark fruits,brown sugar,caramel malts,and roasted nuts.flavor is a mix of the aroma,although it comes in waves over a few seconds.again this is an excellent barrel aged brew by the drakes crew.(re-rate on july 26th,2008.aging nicely at the moment.pretty much the same flavors as before,just more balanced.id say this one could go for at least a few more years.

<i>Bottle from Freakin’ Frog, Las Vegas; barrel aged for 12 months</i>
Despite the promises on the bottle, the bottle fermentation was not effective and it pours completely still and with no head; dark brown, almost black color. It has a very interesting aroma, with light phenol, caramel, oak and vanilla, chocolate, toffee, walnuts; fantastic! Oily mouthfeel, full bodied; strong caramel flavor, a bit sweet syrupy, with notes of vanilla and leather, very light sweet liquorice in the end; the final sees a mix of strong bitterness, with alcohol warming feeling, and caramel. Complex and excellent.