 madvike (301), Madison, Wisconsin, USA
Oct 21, 2009 Pours light amber with a white head. Smell was way different than what I thought it would be. Would have guess it was a golden Belgian ale rather than a barley wine. There’s some sour and mildly hoppy notes with some honey, but it’s kind of blah. Taste is better: honey, apple, dry hops, and some floral notes. It’s smooth, resiny, and doesn’t feel like 10.1% at all. Weird, but once I got past the fact that this wasn’t the sort of barley wine I thought it would be, it wasn’t too bad.
GAManiac (1123), Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Oct 6, 2009 750mL bottle courtesy of Maximum12 poured into a tulip. The ABV is listed as 10.1% on this bottle FWIW.
The pour is much lighter than I was expecting, a clear golden amber with an enormous fluffy white head that recedes very slowly, leaving very good lacing. It’s a great looking beer, but certainly not what I was expecting.
The aroma continues with the theme of unexpected and has a very light fruity aroma with only a little bit of caramel malts. Some sweet sugars, toasted grains and hops round things out. Not too impressed with the aroma.
The flavor is light with lots of sugar and toasted grains. Again, not much in the way of caramel malts or dark fruits. I get a little bit of light fruits, maybe peaches. It’s a weird flavor to get from a "barleywine."
The mouthfeel is medium bodied and almost syrupy with the massive sugar presence. Sticky.
This is one of the weirdest barleywines I’ve ever tasted. In fairness, it would make for a decent golden Belgian ale. Even then, it’s a fairly unimpressive beer with very little complexity underneath the heavy sugar presence.
ditmier (1019), Boise, Idaho, USA
Jun 29, 2009 2008 Bottle - Thanks skinnyguy! - Pours a dk gold with a medium off white head...aroma is floral hops, toffee malt and yeah some adjuncts...flavour is sweet malt, floral hops that aren’t too bitter...highly carbonated and sticks to your mouth like caramel syrup...style-wise, not so great, but overall has a very enjoyable flavour as it warms...I enjoyed this much more once I thought of it as a very floral ASA...
kramer (2406), Sunbury, Pennsylvania, USA
Jun 24, 2009 25 oz bottle. Pours a slightly hazy dark gold body with a fizzy off-white head that vanished completely almost immediately. Very light nose, just some caramel and light toffee with a bit of fuggles. The flavor is dominated by the adjunct sugars used. Light caramel and toasted malt and a bit of the fuggles showing through, but it’s mostly just like drinking Sugar in the Raw packets. No depth to the flavor at all. Mouthfeel is clingy and slightly cloying with moderate fizzy carbonation. Too much carbonation actually. At least the alcohol is pretty well hidden. Makes me suspicious of the ABV though with the very high residual sweetness.
jake65 (1657), Williston, North Dakota, USA
Jun 7, 2009 Bottle - thanks skinnyguy! Deep golden honey colored pour with a small beige head. Light aroma is malty, faint florals, and a little hint of cloves. Tastes crisp with florals, yeast, and a little more cloves. A bit fruity sweet. Tame - Definitely leans towards the Belgian ale side rather than a barley wine.
heemer77 (4294), Savannah, Missouri, USA
May 21, 2009 Light bronze colored body with a fluffy lightly off white colored head. The smell up front is apricots and light bread dough. There was also some hint of musky sweat. The taste had some bread dough and a little bit of dried apples. There was also some hint of salt and orange peels in the finish. Fruity and doughy, this is an interesting take on a barley wine.
tronraner (1905), Maryville, Tennessee, USA
May 14, 2009 750 mL bottle, thanks to tytoanderso. Pours a brass color with very large beige head and continuous carbonation. The aroma is sweet and grainy with a good freshly-baked-bread presence, some sweet caramel, apricot, and a really interesting lime note. The flavor is lime, apricot, and light caramel with a few woody hints mixed in. There’s a semi-sweet breadiness underneath everything. The finish is a little drier than I was expecting, which is a good thing. There’s some white zinfandel, tannin, and herbal hops that linger into the aftertaste. Definitely an unusual barleywine, but I think I kind of like it.
MoDog (909), Griffith, Indiana, USA
May 11, 2009 22oz bottle kindly thrown in as an extra by tytoanderso. Served in a snifter. This poured a mostly clear golden amber with a thin head of creamy, off-white foam. Great retention and a heavy coat of slippery lace. The aroma included caramel, sugar, toasted grain, fruit, and a light whiff of alcohol. The flavor had toffee, fruity English yeast, mild citrus, and and some light alcohol. The mouthfeel was full-bodied and had light carbonation. Pretty straightforward and lacking complexity. Not a bad drink, but I was hoping for more.
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