Mendocino Talon Barley Wine

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

Beautiful burnished wood color with a well-sustained, though fat bubbled head. Aroma is caramelized ginger, some density, cystallized sugar that hints at concentration but just misses, and a grassy hop like Warrior. Very dense, rich malt flavors with complementary, spicy alcohol. A big, bready malt and citrus infused caramel. A good beer but it is not commiting enough to be an American barleywine and not malt complex enough to be an English barleywine.

Slightly hazed reddish hue, good head formation. Strong but well balanced aroma, starts out pruney mellows to tropical wine fruity, caramel is mild. Sweet malty palate, candy sugar and caramel, mild toffee notes, fairly bitter and citiric in the finish. A stand out beer for what can often be a middle of the road brewery.

light tan head, thick, creamy, amber-ish color, aroma is caramelly malts, moderately hopped, light citrus. flavor is pleasantly hopped with citrus flavors, mildly bitter with notes of chocolate and caramel.

cream colored head,that doesn’t last. Nice amber color. not as distinct a flavor as most barley wines but definitely tasty

Pours an opaque orangey amber color, thin head, little to no lingering. Complex spciy aroma, some alcohol notes, and a dried fruit character as well. Fairly chewy palate, with a body on the light side of a barleywine. Fairly acrid nose with dried fruit flavors, semi-sweet body with malt flavors as a base, with this strange amalgam of fruity and spicy on top of it. Alcohol bite and warmth very noticable in the finish. I didn’t especially care for this, and I even like young B wines. Perhaps cellaring would mellow the flavors and help with the acridness and the alcohol bite.

22 oz bottle, snifter. Pours a medium garnet hue with good shading and capped by a short lived, frothy, tan head. Intense pine and citric hop aroma. Chocolate and juicy caramel malt prescene. Brown sugar, raisins, peaches, sherry, toffee and a hint of smoke. Moderately sweet, moderately acidic, moderately bitter flavor becomes a moderately sweet, heavily acidic, heavily bitter finish. There’s a lot of alcohol in the finish. Medium full body, watery/slick texture, lively carbonation. The bottom line is: There’s just too much alcohol and acidity here and not enough sweetness to hold it together. There’s potential though; I’d suggest sticking this in your cellar for a year before opening.

Very dry for a barely wine. Nice malt but overpowered by an odd hop combination. Very warming 10.5% but not one of the best.

very nice mahogany color with a medium tan head. Very strong pineapple, caramel and citrus hops aroma. Nice sweet malt, bread, pineapple and citrus hops flavors. Crisp feel with a semi-dry finish.