Green Flash Barleywine

Brewed by Green Flash Brewing Co.
Style: Barley Wine
Vista, California USA

22oz bottle. 2008. Initially, the aroma is quite hop-forward with lush apricot, pineapple and tangerine aromas. As the beer opens, the hops take a back seat to the malt. Toffee, charred caramel and pine resin notes assert themselves. Pours rich, dark mahogany/maroon with a dark, thick brownish white head leaving excellent lacing. Plenty of pine resin, tree bark, toffee, pineapple, grapefruit, a touch of booze, doughy malt. As with their other beers, a unique take on the style.

22 fl oz bottle. Pours slight cloudy and dark orange/amber with a lacing off-white and creamy head. Aroma is solid hops and malt, light alcohol note. Flavour is quite hoppy, light woody and with a mild liqourice like note. Warming alcohol finish with a solid hops bitterness yet with a persisting hops oily flavour. Solid barleywine that is a nice blend between IIPA and barley wine.7-4-7-4-15=3.7

As 2nd Anniversary Ale. 22 fl oz bottle. 3816/6000. Pours hazy and deep orange with a lacing tan head. Aroma dense hoppy too. Smooth and light woody flavour with a solid bitterness and smooth woody finish. Dry and smooth finish. 8-4-8-5-15=4.0

Mossy coloured, dense head; dark amber-brown beer. Caramel, toffee with a lot of C-hops, and some bananaester. Chocolate, roasted and bits of hopbitterness, some background sweetness, caramelly. Very well-bodied, slick. Not uninteresting but I’ve had better BW’s; maybe lacking a bit of complexity.

3-21-08 bottle shared at tasting
Cloudy amber brown with decent off-white beige head. Smell is light and subtle malt and dough and alcohol. Flavor is nice and malty and is hoppy too. Not too heavy on the alcohol - actually has a nice balanced flavor and a good mouthfeel. Enjoyable and very easy to drink.

Slightly hazy copper color beneath a thin off-white head. Aroma of toffee, grapefruit, and figs. Toasty and slightly sweet caramel malts are followed up by a piney hop bitterness. Dark fruit flavors of plums and raisins are present as well. Finishes with a lasting juicy hop bitterness and a hint of tart fruit. A pretty decent barleywine.

I don’t know how old this one is, but I’ve been sitting on it for about 8 months. A malty, syrupy brew, with a noticeable alcohol presence. The hops jump out in the finish, helping to balance out the sweetness of the brew. I would like to try a younger version of this one for a comparison. I would like to see how hoppy this beer was when younger.

Clear amber of color with a small off white head. A nice aroma of dark fruits, hops, liqurice and grass. A flavor of grass, hops, malt, caramel and liqurice.

On tap at Jimmy’s. Haven’t had a huge number of barleywines, but really enjoyed it. Pours reddish amber with a thin white head. Medium thick texture, soft & creamy mouthfeel due to the exaggerated malt presence. Aroma stays sweet but an overtone of herbs; taste is nice: bitter, hoppy, and it finishes dry. I liked the combination of the bitterness with the thicker, softer texture; reminded me of Sixpoint’s Hop Obama in some ways.