Drakes Barley Wine Brandy Barrel

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

Bottle: Shared by Styles. Lots of caramel and alcohol with some fruity vinuous notes in the aroma. Alcohol is strong enough that it burns the nose upon smelling. Pours a dark orangish-brown with a small off-white ring for a head. Lots of caramel and toffee up front with moderate vinuous notes. Lots of alcohol warmth and light bitterness in the finish. Alcohol needs some time to mellow. Certainly did not live up to expectations but still solid.

This dark brown ale poured with a thin tan head, eliciting a very pleasant fruity aroma. The flavor is brandy-like, but more syrupy. Chocolate and raisins come to mind. There is no overt alcohol flavor as one would anticipate from a 14.7% brew. This an a truly magnificent beer - not to be confused with the barrell-aged scotch ale, which is bottled with a very similar label, but is much inferior to this one.

The stating beer of Eugene’s Barleywine Festival (not including the homebrew). Bottle thanks to tever. Poured into large brandy glass, split in two. Pours with some lacing, dark muddy brown, only slightly translucent on the edges. Aroma is very strong - in the style of an English BW. Strong malty sweet aroma, with hints of sweet alcoholic brandy. BUt generally, all the alcohol is hidden. The aroma is great however I am dissappointed by the taste. A bit thin to me, no presence in the mouth. Taste is thin malty with a bit of bitterness. Love the aroma not to special on the taste. Alcohol - well I cant believe it its almost 15. I guess for the size and the price not really worth it. But I got another bottle to age.

Pours a cloudy orange-brown with a small tan head. Strong and sweet with a bready, hoppy scent.

Pours mostly flat, a few fat bubbles floating around, no lace to speak of. Murky, brown sludgey appearence. Nose is alcohol with some sweet malts, rotten vegetal notes and a touch of whisky, whoa. Body is med/full, palate is lightly astringent, grainy textured. You taste the alcohol first followed by rough whisky flavors, licorice, overly sweet malts and prune juice. Sweet finish, hot alcohol notes. Thank christ this was only a 6oz nip bottle. Pretty damn dissappointing, what a mess. Top 50? No way in hell! Thanks for the chance Tom!

Dirty dark brown earthy creek water looks leaving the memory of a off-white ring. I don’t understand how anyone can give this higher than a 2 for the looks. The same oxidized barrel character than the jolly Rodger here works much better because the other flavours are cohesive and coherent. Caramel and chocolate emanate from the malt together with honest grapeyness and an honest level of alcohol. Peat moss and earthy soy sauce and sherry are less pleasant though, but in lesser amount in mouth. There, the alcohol really fits, it’s strong chocolate and toffee flavours in concentrated volumes that we taste, the maltiness is rich, but seriously not as complex as it may sound. Sugary and syrupy, while oxidized and complexified. I didn’t enjoy that one much, the close to absent carbonation make it a bit more chewy than I like, rather oily with this medium-full body and thick, soft texture.

187 mL bottle via IrishBoy. The beer pours to a very dark murky brown mahogany body with a thin off-white/tan head. The aroma is very unique. It starts off with toasty barley, migrates towards a deep sweet sugary malted raisin and brandy, and finishes with some caramel doused pecans. The flavor is very toasty malted barley, chocolate, sherry, brandy, caramel pecans, cherries on the finish. It’s like this is made by the careful hands of J.W. Lee’s. Quite delicious and I suspect tons of Maris Otter was used in this. Every attention to perfection. The palate is warming but surprisingly not over-powering in alcohol. Very well blended. Rich malty feel. Good thing I traded for multiple bottles.

Pours silty, murky, and thick. The colour is a dark mahogany with a reddish/brown thin filmy head. Like sticking my nose into a dark over ripe date with a little bit of chocolate, some caramel, and woody sweet hints of brandy. Man this is thick and sticky and kind of reminds me of sipping on some brandy, this 6-oz bottle takes me far longer to drink than many 22-ozer’s. More caramle and woody sweet matl notes with some slightly bitter but barely perceptable hops and a bit of a alcoholic bite at the end.