Lagunitas Olde Gnarly Wine

Brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Petaluma, California USA

Bottle. Nice head with good duration. Color is dark amber. Aroma and taste are rich hops, flowers, fruits, syrop and caramel. Very thick and syropy.

Poured a reddish copper color with a small off white head and light lacing on the glass. Vibrant aroma of dark fruits, caramel malts, and lots of hops. Taste was that of sweet caramel, citric hops, and a light alcohol burn. This was very nice!

2004 bottle at Julio’s Spring Beer Fest, 4/02/05. Dark brown, caramel-amber, with some darker maple-brown-auburn hues and a large, well retained yellow-beige head. Quite pleasant looking, though clear and filtered (but that’s Lagunitas for you). Aroma of musty English yeast, light sour plums, prunes, raisins and dry toffee, with a bit of sticky molasses and caramel. Quite doughy and dry, but yet in a good, not-too-sweet sort of way. Flavor is quite similar, with a distinct, fresh, warm dough flavor, cinnamon, maple, molasses and light caramel. Low hops apparency, some dry alcohol on the end (not unpleasant). Quite a well-made American-English hybrid, though there is still no excuse for the filtration. The body, while not watery, is just sort of there. Not terribly creamy or challenging, due to the filtration. I hate how I sound like a broken record saying the same thing about every Lagunitas beer, but it’s how I feel. Low to moderate carbonation, light yeast and bread notes on the end. Honey and brown sugar aftertaste, with a touch of oily/earthy bitterness.

Bomber from Oaktree. Pours a nice light to medium amber - very clear and refined with a thin lasting off white head and nice lace. Aroma is typical smooth caramel malts, light sharp crystal character- and a nice citrusy orange zest hop character. Moderate caramel malts, fairly sweet overall, body seems pretty big- but you can tell it is fairly filtered and has a slight slick and sharp finish with a modest harsh NW citrus hop in the end. Pretty decent but not outstanding.

(22oz bottle) Pours clear, reddish carbonated body beneath a headless body. Nose is warming. Malty and iodine flavour. A real letdown from such a famed brewery.

Bottled. Copper colour, bubbly head. Sweetish grassiness. SOft and smooth. Very malty with licorice. Late, dry bitterness.

Bottled. Copper colour. Marzipan and alcohol in aroma. Fullbodied mouthfeel and very smooth with quite some bitterness. Residual sugars, slight apricot and also citrusy. Feels reminiscent to Bigfoot but not as fresh hoppy.

On tap @ Falling Rock 2003 vintage poured a hazy copper with a lasting amber head. Aromas of dried fruit, carmel, toffee, some vinous notes, and a hint of cocoa. Palate was medium bodied and warming. Flavors of plum, raisin, vinous, pepper, brown sugar and a hint of wood with a dry bittersweet finish.