Marin Old Dipsea Barleywine Style Ale

Brewed by Marin Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Larkspur, California USA

A pleasant nose of sweetness in malt and a nice floral hop presence as well. Ruby reddish tint upon a normal color of brown. Small coating of foam for a head. The drink has a strong delivery of flavor such as sugar, cigar tobacco, caramel and lightly roasted malt. I have been keeping my eyes out for this brew for the longest time ever. Now if i could just find the whiteknuckle double ipa.

Sampled at Sacramento Brewing Barleywine Festival. This dark amber ale poured with a thin off-white head. The flavor is nutty and fruity with a more bitter finish - too many bittering hops for a BW. Overall, however, this was a pleasant chewy drink.

2yr old+. Reddish earth coloured BW wearing a fine light beige cream. Very fruity nose greets the drinker in a rather candied, almost juicy malty world that is balanced by an supervising toastiness you would chew on. Up front, it is sweet indeed, but doesn’t seem free going with it, evey gram of residual sugar contributing a sense of unity to the punchy cherry/raspberry/cranberry galore. Hops manage to procure a certain balance toward the finish. Despite the already toned down nature of their aromatics, they maintain a pleasant herbal/floral character that catch on the malt’s vanilla undertones to create new meanings to the word unity. Nicely perfumey.

Any first impressions?
-A ring of foam crowns the burgundy velvet.
-Profound red fruit candy are embedded in the caramel maltiness, as smoking earth is diffused throughout.
-Fruity jujubes lather the palate, a veritable desserty treat for the sweet tooth.
-The low carbonation and rich maltiness go hand in hand, securing this barley wine’s place into late evening digestif territory.

What if you dig deeper?
-Herbal, resinous hops make sure it all never gets cloying, and appropriately reduce the sweetness level of the finale with their leveled bitterness.
-A flavor profile comparison with Green Flash 2nd Anniversary Barley Wine yielded a surprising depth of links.
-Strawberry licorice and maple whirl around the tongue to the pleasure of all excited tastebuds.
-If this top notch barley wine’s quality is constant (and I have no reason to believe it isn’t), I think it deserves more attention.

Bottle; no date.

Poured a deep red, mahogany color with a medium sized, reddish tan head that left light lacing on the glass. Aroma of dried fruits, citrus, vanilla, caramel, piney hops, and some alcohol as well. Taste of sweet caramel, with dark fruits, vanilla, tobacco, and alcohol with a bitter finish.

Bottle pours a light brown redish color with a light tan head. Dark fruit, and deep hopy aroma. Full malty flavor with lots of mixed fruit notes. Drinkable and decent all around. Thanks Buck Dich for sharing.

Bottle: Ruby mahogany, light head and lacing. Nose of sweet bubblegum and alcohol with ample hop/malt clashes; strawberry pixie, orange sorbet, some anise. Nice and light alcohol. The flavor is sweet and floral, nice caramel and sweet candy. Gummies? Nice balanced barleywine.

An interesting, distinctive barleywine. Mahogany color with a thin head. Notes of toffee and caramel malt with a bit of fruitiness. Sweet malt flavors with pronounced bitterness and an odd rusty character--not sure what I think about that. Interesting. Well-balanced mouthfeel with good alcohol integration.