Lagunitas Olde Gnarly Wine

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

22 oz bottle: Medium very hazy amber w/ a lasting cream colored head. Caramel malt & lemony citrus hops up front. Very perfumey alcohol & medium fruitiness a combination of hops and caramel green apples. Malts are toasty and bready as it warms and take over the aroma profile. Pretty well balanced throughout. Caramel and toasty malt flavor with lemony hops. Medium fruitiness is light green apple & herbal hop pops up as it warms. It also gets a bit sweeter as it warms into the finish, but it does not become cloying. Aftertaste is toasty malt, citrusy hop, and a light touch of caramel. Fuller body, well hidden alcohol in the mouthfeel, low carbonation, very smooth. A good barleywine, but not a great one from the ones I’ve had so far.

Ok just bought this baby yesterday Usual 22 oz brown bomber..with typical lagunitas label..and spiel on the side. Nice bright amber almost deep red beer..tiny head that goes fast..some lace. Very earthy aroma..malts hops and a smell like freshly dug soil..i kid you not!,..i like it. Tste is pretty sweet..malt dominated..but later a liquorcy alcoholic heat..and a good bitterness appear. Pretty good on the tongue..very invigorating..great after taste. This is a nice barleywine..its drinkable..but onlt one bottle at a sitting.

2004: Pour is ruby red with a thin sticky tan head...hops in the nose...grapefruit, pine, soap...hops fade a little in the palate...sweet taste...caramel, some hops...quite sticky...good stuff...I don’t think aged could be more improved...a little too sweet....

BW # 5 Bomber poured into 3 brandy glasses. Poured with minimal head. Color is a copperish-brown. Aroma is very strong and very malty (really i expected this from Alesmith). Some fruitiness as well. Taste is butterscotch-alcohol malty. A tiny bit thinner than I like. Alcohol pretty present. A good bitter ending in the taste.

’04 on tap at Hard Liver. Very smooth....still a bit of hops left after 3 years. Good sweetness and alcohol is very subdued. Slight floral aroma.

Bottle of the 2008. Aroma is a great candied pineapple. Flavor reminds me of a really good fruitcake. Sticky sweet with a nice piney hop backbone that doesn’t overpower, even though it is a very fresh bottle.

Lagunitas event at the Brickskeller. 2004 keg. Cloudy, reddish-brown appearance; light tan head with great retention and lacing. Strong pine / citrus hop character, maple syrup in the aroma. Full, viscous mouthfeel: tea-like malts, maple syrup, spice, and white pepper. Long, sweet finish: predominantly candy sugar.

From Bottle. Cherry amber colored pour with a small beige head that quickly diminishes to a sticky caramel ring. Aroma of starwberries glazed with caramel sauce and garnished with tangerine zest and a fresh squeeze of peach juice. Thick, syrupy mouthfeel with tons of sweet passion fruit, mango, sticky pineapple, and ripened pear. Pleasantly sweet palate is followed nicely by some white grapefruit hop tones, but could be a touch stronger to minimize the cloying effect of the sugary fruits. Final smack of spiced fig and maple syrup.