Great Divide Old Ruffian

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

Great barley wine. Pours deep rich copper. Smell of pines and grapefruit. Soft fruity notes on the palate and rich burnt caramel, giving way to sticky pine notes.

I sampled the 500 ml bottle, which dispensed a clear, deep copper bodied ale with an outstanding, oversized tan head that stayed put for the entire sampling and left some terrific lacing. Not surprisingly, there’s a lot of hop aroma and grainy malt sweetness in the nose. Palate entry is syrupy sweet, with a huge caramel and raisin backbone and a smooth, creamy mouthfeel. The rich body is nicely balanced with a heavy hop bomb and alcohol dryness.

A Mes rate: Bottle from Spec’s
Wow, now that is an easy five for appearance. You know occasionally you get one of those bottles that is just a joy to pour. Perfect temperature, clean glass and you just play with it until the head is just perfect. About an inch and a half thick and just sitting proud of the rim of the glass. Rocky and bubbly, both big and small bubbles and looks tight as hell. It’s just motherfunking great. If you had some of this I would ask you if I could pour it for you... Sadly, it’s pretty much downhill from there. The head was so good because this stuff is like syrup. It’s almost hard to get down. Aroma is ok I guess but it is all brawn and no finesse. Fresh hop and grassy notes are nice but the hardcore alcohol isn’t. In the mouth it’s all pine and spruce and thick, thick chewy malt. Huge sting from the alcohol on the way down coating the mouth with a prickly bitterness. Some odd almost chocolate sweetness to it also. Way overloaded. "Bought the package deal to t-shirt nirvana..."

Mmmmmm....I continue to be impressed by Great Divide Brewing. Where to start....pours a deep mahogany (thats right, its not just red, there is some brown in there) with a creamy brown head which does remain throughout to some degree. Fruity on the nose, with a subtle sweetness, no overt hoppiness. But that changes in the first sip! The hops are there in full force, although the the bitterness isn’t overwhelming. So, hops on the front with the floral/fruit in the middle to back...not sure about the pine but certainly a hint of grapefruit. Completely agree on the mouthfeel...very creamy/caramel malt. As the beer warms, the mouthfeel increases, with the bitterness fading to the background while the sweet fruityness comes more to the front. Alcohol is definitely there from the beginning, or as my brother and I say...the Beer Warmth. But more importantly, you can’t really taste the 10.2% ABV...you just feel it. Overall, a great choice for a barley wine, get it if you can!

bomber. excellent barley wine! full of hops that make the finish on this one superb. really thick and piney. pours a deep red with a thick white head. heavy aromas of hops... medium to full body on the palate with average carbonation. the long finish on this one makes it so delicious. one of the best beers available.... go drink it.

Colossal, a fantastic barley wine. This is a long favorite of mine. It’s very alcoholic and very sweet. Very balanced.

I’ll start with the bad news....I only bought one bottle. Good news...This beer is near perfect. While cool there is just a little bitter bite in the finish. Once the beer warms, that bitter bite becomes a sweet nip. It is complex both in smell and taste. Sometimes creamy. I will buy more. I might hoard.

Dark amber in color. Sweet yet not thick. The high level of hops helps to balance this and dry the palate out.