Pike Old Bawdy Barley Wine

Brewed by Pike Pub & Brewery
Style: Barley Wine
Seattle, Washington USA

22oz. Bottle (2007): Aroma of hops, pine, sugary malts, slight citrus, slight caramel, light resin, and a hint of alcohol. Poured deep amber/slight brown/copper in color with a small, creamy, tan head that diminished but lasted as a film on top of the beer. Cloudy. Not sparkling. Full of tiny, small, and medium-sized particles throughout. Small lacing. Complex flavor is lightly sweet and medium to heavy bitter. Tastes of hops, resin, pine, slight smoke, malts, toffee, light molasses, slight dark ripe fruit, slight caramel, slight citrus, slight wood, and a hint of alcohol. Medium body. Viscous, then dry texture. Average carbonation. Hops, pine, malts, slight caramel, and hint of alcohol finish is dry. 10%ABV is well hidden though noticeable.

Pours a beige head with legs and a copper-amber color body. Smells of mellow citrus and spice hops, rich caramelized malt. Flavor is the same but with some peat. Finish is brown sugar and a little bitter.

2007 bottle. Pours a chill-hazed mahogany into a snifter. Mocha head with excellent retention leaves spider lacing as it slowly recedes. Dark smoked caramel aromas. Thick and creamy with upfront dark caramel and toffee. Lasting burnt resin finish.

2007 bottle courtesy of ericandersnavy. Pours a hazy dark amber color with thin white head. Aroma is sweet and malty with notes of caramel, brown sugar, bready yeast, floral hops, honey, grass. Flavor is sweet and malty with notes of caramel, wood, floral hops, butterscotch, honey, spice. Generally medium body with a pleasing malty floral hop finish.

from old notes: 12oz bottle I got to go from pike bar by the fish market in seattle. yeast, honey, floral and alcohol aroma. good balanced barley wine. tough comparison right now - just been drinking doggie claws at hair of the dog brewery - think this was pretty good though.

Round malt sweetness suggesting marzipan and pastry dough supports strong pine-earthy-spicy hop character in the nose. Clear burnished copper coloured body is topped by a fine bubbled tan head that recedes to a lasting cover and coats the sides of the glass. Resinous hop flavours with aggressive bitterness over lingering malt sweetness. Medium-full body is quite dry with very strong, lightly prickly effervescence. Bottle sampled at the Fuller’s vertical tasting with uhlan.

2007 bottle: drank 6/22/09 @ 6:39pm H-Town .. .got for free by saying it was a sample, then i let my stupid asst manager steal a bottle of the blonde, she then fucked some 60 year old dude right there in the deli area, gross.. . Pours a dark tan, with a healthy medium head, lacing is fantastic! .. . sweet molasses, syrup, and aged dark fruit, some oxidation due to the age off the shelf .. . very smooth stuff, no abv detected at all, could get you in trouble .. . old shoe leather, and cellar dust yeast also there, fresh is my wish.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aLc 7NKdSU .. . ages well but drink this fresh.. .

22oz bottle from riversideAK. Pours ruby with a creamy tan head. Good head retention for almost the entire beer. Aroma is of bitter hops, alcohol, caramel, malt, and grass. Taste starts off initially with a strong, bitter hop character. The hops become evened out by a caramel malt backbone. The whole beer has a strong earthy character to it. Lingering, gritty chocolate taste. Strong alcohol presence. Very thick mouthfeel. Takes a few sips to warm up to the harsh alcohol, but once you do it’s worth the wait. Finish is all caramel.