Great Divide Barrel Aged Old Ruffian

Brewed by Great Divide Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Denver, Colorado USA

MN Ratebeer Winter Gathering, January 10, 2009. Bottle 90/461. Courtesy of BDR. Dark mukry orange color with a thin head. Light whisky and oaky vanilla aroma. Some bitter English hops up front. Syrupy sweet malt. Lots of whisky and oak. Yum!

Bottle #134/461. I wanted to save this one for a tasting, but I dropped the damn thing on the floor and beer started oozing out of the top, so... Fairly malt-forward aroma. Sticky, toasted caramel and toffee. Big barrel presence. Darker fruits. Vanilla extract. Alcohol. Earthy hops come out upon warming, but so does a huge musty wood component. Pours an opaque ruby/brown with a sustained khaki head leaving spotty lacing. Flavor is quite dry on the tongue. Boatloads of wood. Caramel and toffee. Alcohol. Vanilla. Huge malt and barrel presence with little hops. Lots of toasty malt. Some sherry-like nuttiness and a slight hint of cardboardy oxidization. Medium bodied. I was expecting quite a bit more heft to this one. Average carbonation with a bone dry barrel and alcohol presence on the finish. Thanks ToM!

Sampled from 750 ml bottle during MN Gathering II in Maplewood, MN, and shared by BDR. Pours a hazy dark amber brew with a thick beige head that has some nice retention and spotty lacing. Aroma of bourbon, raisin, vanilla and some caramel malt. Taste is full bodied, along with flavors of caramel malt, some flowery hops, bourbon, vanilla, some oak character and dark pitted fruits. Finish is semi-sweet and alcohol bite followed by a lingering bourbonized caramel malt aftertaste. Yah, goot ’n strong.

Bottle shared with J and Mike in Mammoth. Do you like bourbon? No, really...because if not, you’ll hate this. Pure hatred. Although, if you’re like me and you are a fan, be ready to indulge. Oak, vanilla, caramel, and just a shitload of hot bourbon booziness. While I like it, I wish they stuck to the 9 month aging plan.

Name: Old Ruffian, BA
Date: October 14, 2008
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting
Appearance: muddy dark amber, frothy beige head, scattered drippy lace
Aroma: dark caramel malt aroma kept dry by lots of earthy hops, touch of bourbon sweetness
Flavor: sweet dark caramel and bourbon flavor enhanced by vanilla sweetness, touch of hot alcohol, good earthy balance
Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 8/10; Palate: 7/10; Overall: 17/20
Rating: 4/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: ***+/4

Sample enjoyed at Skyview tasting. Pour was amber/red with a very sweet sugar aroma. Flavor was stonefruits, sugar and finished with a stong alcohol flavor. Ok beer, don’t know if I would trade for it (or buy it).

Thanks to BDR. This will be great in five years or so. Brownish-red pour with an off white head. Sugary sweet nose with malt and the bourbon comes through. Flavor has dark fruits, bourbon, vanilla, alcohol and some wet woodiness.

Sampled at Skyview’s tavern. To me this didn’t have many of the qualities of regular Old Ruffian (which is one of my favorite barley wines), but that doesn’t mean it was bad. The barrel aging is very apparent and this baby is super complex with high notes of oak, whiskey, vanilla, light caramel, and subdued hops. It certainly is a challenging beer, and I was up for that challenge.