McKenzie Belle Dock Barleywine

Formerly brewed at McKenzie Brew House
Style: Barley Wine
Glen Mills, Pennsylvania USA

Reddish amber color with a very small, off white head, that quickly diminished leaving no lacing on the glass. Aroma of hops, nuts, sweet malt, and tart citrus fruits. More nuts, tobacco, resiny caramel malts, lightly bitter taste with a very faint alcohol finish. A nice barleywine.

Pours turbid copper/ruby with minimal head (which is expected for 10% beers). Aroma of complex fruit, malt, caramel, some tobacco. Wonderful, complex taste. The finish is full bodied and complex. This one is a masterpiece!

Vintage 2003. Shared bottle courtesy of egajdzis (thanks!). Poured a amber/copper color with a smaller off white head. Aromas and tastes of wood, malts, dark cherries, and a little musty. Malty. Light alcohol in the finish. A very good barley wine.

Bottle pours a brownish ruby, large off-white foamy head, decent retention, with attractive lacing.   Wonderful sweet malty aroma.   Candiyish, smells divine!   Smooth malty palate, sweet, with a hint of orange peel and very light dark pitted fruit.   At 10.6% ABV, its very smooth with VERY little heat involved.   Doesn’t seem very complex, but as it is, its rather solid.   Not as big as I had hoped, but its smooth and very manageable.   Body however, seems somewhat not up to par.   Mouthfeel is fairly medium.   It is extremely smooth tho, so bonus point for that.   Emerging hop at the finish, albeit its quite subtle.   Lingering sweet maltiness and light orange peel at the finish.   This sums up as a solid, easy to drink Barley Wine.   Major thanks goes out to egajdzis for trading me this beauty!

Bottle. Clear orange coloured with a beige head. Sweet aroma of malts, caramel and dried fruits. Flavour of caramel and dried fruits with notes of hops. Good barley wine.

Dark amber color; the head disappears quickly. Malty taste and aroma, caramel, good body strength, not exceptional but a good barley juice…

2003 bottle shared by egajdzis at RBSG Montreal Summer ’05
Very dark brown beer has deep auburn-ruby highlights and sports a beige-tan head that quickly fades to partial cover/ring, leaving light film behind. Clarity is medium.
All sorts of English notes in the nose. Toffee, nuttiness, playful fruitiness and lightly bready caramel. Definitely oxidized and showing it, but while there is some papery/cardboardy oxidation, I think the sherry notes and rich nuttiness far outshine the unfavorable oxidation. A light oiliness from the darker malts produces some acid that clings to the breadiness and mixes with vanilla to create almost more of a bock-like note. Medium to medium-high strength of aroma with no flaws and no alcohol apparency. Vinousness is certainly apparent as well, but mostly controlled.
Medium-dry caramel and toffee gain some saltiness in the flavor, with some raisins and figs. Rich vanilla and sherry notes burst forth, but with the age and oxidation, are immediately dried and rendered somewhat bready. Carbonation is very low, texture is a bit slippery at times, though the sweet malts give it a moderate chewiness. No alcohol noted. Lots of light vinousness and nuttiness lingering. Definitely past its prime, even taking in to account the pleasant oxidation notes, but you can tell this was a fabulously well-brewed beer with lots of richness and depth, tons of interesting fruitiness. I still highly enjoyed it even at this point.

An unclear orange beer with a disappearing orange head. The aroma is sweet with notes of caramel, wood, and alcohol, while the flavor is sweet malty with primary notes of over ripe fruit. The alcohol is very well hidden in the flavor.