Mendocino Talon Barley Wine

Brewed by Mendocino Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Hopland, California USA

This deep amber brew has a big sweet toffee malt palate, undercut by a hefty herbal hop bite. The ABV is potent and not too shy about slapping you around. I found it somewhat harsh, unsophisticated, and fairly simplistic.

Why do barley wines scare me so much? We’ll live rate, as I haven’t dared to sip yet...poured a very deep copper with a decent, foamy beige head, that still tries to linger. Aroma is toffee, caramel, brandy, maple sugar, apple pie with that cobbler stuff on top...in mouth I get a ton all of the above, a ton of metal...like sucking on quaters, and a very pine-tar hop finish. Mouthfeel is dominated by syrup and metal accents. Holey alchohol, too. I can’t imagine finishing the22 oz. bottle myself, and I won’t be returning to this beer ever again....like so many things in life, I’m glad I did it once, bu once is enough... Thanks to my Dad for bringing this beer from Ohio down to Panama.

22 oz bottle, via trade with some kind RBer. Pours a clear dark copper colored body under a fizzy beige head that quickly receded to a thin whispy covering. Aroma is thick heavy toffee malt, almost candy like, with lots of balancing piney resinous hops. A touch of oxidation and alcohol fumes. Flavor isn’t especially complex or deep, just lots of caramel malt and alcohol. A good bit of bitterness but not enough to balance the heavy malt. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with a thick, almost syrupy, texture. Carbonation was moderate with a fizzy prickly feel. I wish that there was some more to this, but I just can’t find it. A very alcohol-centric focused Barley Wine.

Copper, deep reddish colour with an off white head. Alcohol and caramel sweet aroma with a faint buttery note and hints of a light hoppyness. Sweet toffee flavor with a light hoppy note and a sweet finish with notes of alcohol.

Brown color with perhaps a tint of red when held to the light. Taller fairly dense beige mocha colored head and some small bubbled lace. Stewed fruit aromas including plumes, plums and raisins. Cherry brandy, floral hops and caramel also in the mix. The nose seems to become more annoying the warmer it gets. Smooth and lightly oily on the palate. Lots of caramel in the flavors, herbal and woody hops covered in caramel, currants and raisins covered in caramel. Other light fruit including apples and pears caramel. You get the point. Finish is rather harsh and with alcohol and a full acidic hops onslaught. Earthy malt linger, would be ok for an old ale, but seems out of place here. Young perhaps, but I’m not sure time will do much with this one. There are part I really enjoy followed by parts, I find myself doing a mild body shutter. Worth a try.

An average barleywine. Poured a plain brown without much head and no lacing. Aroma was of brown sugar and something, where was the hop aroma. Flavor was brown sugar and a citrus?? hop in there, some pine as well. Expected more hops in this one.

22oz bomber @ Coles Barleywine Fest. Amber color. Roasty, caramel mild hop bitterness. OK 7,3,7,3, 13 rerate 2-18-08 7, 4, 8, 4, 15 beautiful amber color, nice sweet malt presence, mild alcohol burn with smooth foinish. bottle from 2005. aging well

Bottle. Amber color with tan head. This beer was all caramel. The aroma and taste were the same, caramel. No balance what so ever. Some bitter roasted flavors were detected in the finish.