Mikkeller Big Worse Barley Wine

Mikkeller
Brewed at De Proefbrouwerij
Style: Barley Wine
Copenhagen V, Denmark

This looks a little scary. First pours from the 12.7 oz bottle which looks like a demented champagne bottle a nearly transparent, although slightly hazy deep ruby brown with a slim ring of slightly off white head and no visible carbonation. Smells real boozy, with heavy alcohol, pine tar, turpentine (not as bad as you’d think) all at the front of the nose with caramel and sugar malt at the back. Initial flavor is sticky sweet, caramelized malts, dark sugar almost like rum, hints of citrus fruits round it out. Finish is slightly sour and tart, with heat from the alcohol that goes to the stomach. Mikkeller set the bar so high for themselves with some of their other beers that I expected more out of this. This was a good barleywine, but missed the mark in terms of the complexity that the best barleywines have.

Bottle. Pours a dark ruby red with scattered and prevailing lacing from a thin layer of sandy head. Aroma is caramel, soy sauce, nougat, brown rice. Unique. Flavor is raisins, interesting notes of caramel with spicy citrus, thirst-quenching apples. Warming, relaxing, save it for special occasions. Thanks to Deepak at Kingdom Liquors for saving this for me.

Pours a cloudy brown color with orangish highlights. Large head on the first pour, off-white, sticky. Smells of some malts, spicy hops and alcohol. Tastes great, almost perfect balance of sweet malts and spicy/bitter hops. Finishes with some alcohol burn. Palate is thick but smooth with active carbonation. Easily a top 5 barleywine, maybe top 3 or 4.

Cloudy amber pour with a thin tan head. The aroma is earthy with hops and caramel. The flavor feels rough around the edges, there’s earthy malt, strong hops and caramel with a bitter finish. The body is light to medium with a liquorous texture and gentle carbonation.

Copper, amber color; Small head. Bottle says 12% abv. - 2007 batch. Aroma of brown malts, crackers and mixed tropical fruit. Rich malt flavors with bitter fruit notes; strong, flavorful, funky herbal twists, dark toasty malts, burnt chocolate, molassas, hops. This monster is big, bad and delicious.

[1060-20080122] 12.7floz (c/o rudolf, w/ jerc). Sweet boozy yeast malt aroma. Slightly hazy, dark red body with a medium-lasting foamy light tan head. Boozy sweet malt continues in flavour with toasted yeast. Medium-full body is a rough and bitter throughout, hiding behind the alcohol. Fairly blended.

Pours a brownish color with a tan head. Aroma is of sweet malts, caramel, candied sugar, plums, and some alcohol. Flavor begins pretty sweet with the caramel malts, plums, and candied sugar. Finishes dry with some alcohol warming, although it was as much as I was expecting. Pretty good barley wine.

Pours opaque red/ mahogany with frothy head that disappates quickly. Nose is sweet and malty with pineapple influence. Flavor is complex and interesting, a little strong in alcohol, but not overwhelming. Fruit influences along with caramel and the candied sugar. Finish is dry with a lingering burn.