Pike Old Bawdy Barley Wine

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

Vertical Tasting @ Pike Brewery - February 8, 2009
1994: clear, range and float; dank fruit, sugary, delightful nose; warm, fuzzy, sugary, musky; very nicely aged
1996: clear, dark brown; drinks dry with a touch of smoke; sugar is super dry; smoke on the nose; completely different than the 1994
1997: clear, dark orange; sugar and stale hops; syrupy sweet texture; a little hot and very sweet overall
2006: clear, rosey bornw; touch of smoke here as there was in the 1996; maple, sugar, peaty; slight syrupy texture; pretty much perfect
2007: dark orange and only one with a head that lasted more than a few moments; sugar, grassy hops; lemony sweet; an oddball in the group; different recipe?
2008: dark amber, sweet and hoppy; light bodied and seems quite simple compared to the other vintages
Overall: a few different recipies here for sure just based on color alone; the 2006 and 1996 were quite similar and were my favs; the 2006 slightly in more balance and the 1996 was sweeter in the finish; smoke was complementary and really grew on me

2006 vintage. Pours a hazy reddish orange with caramel colored head. Nose is full of strong sweet malts, caramel, toffee, and a hint of citrusy hops. Flavors of caramel, sweet malt, bitter piney hops, grapefruit, and citrus. Nice mouthfeel, thick, but not to heavy. Pretty nice.

Bottle... Poured amber with a thin beige head. Aroma was buttery with some leafy hops and smooth malt. Nice palate, kind of foamy with fllavors of toffee butter, chocolate, malt and mild hops for a little bitterness. Could hardly taste any alcohol and was very easy to drink.

On tap at brewpub (2006 vintage)

After checking out the Pike Market it was time for a beer or two. The natural choice was the nearby Pike brewpub. When I got there they had just finished the Monk’s Uncle so I opted for this instead. It was a nice experience though perhaps a little heavy for an early afternoon beer. This is not sessionable in the least; if you don’t eat some food with it it will sneak up on you quickly. I can’t wait to open my bottle after letting it sit for two years.

Aroma / Appearance - The opaque caramel colored body was dark enough to filter out almost 95% of light. There was no obvious carbonation though even if there was it would have been hard to see. Resin, spruce, cherry and wood notes create a cohesive collection of enjoyable scents. It did smell a little fresh; I suspect with cellaring it will begin to settle down.

Flavor / Palate - The dense mouthfeel coats every corner of the throat almost immediately. Creamy resin contrasts against the strong maltiness. For a 10% ABV beer it is suprisingly easy to drink. As I said this could sneak up on you if you aren’t careful.

2007 bottle. thanks gk. chestnut pour with thin frothy head. lacing and light carbonation. aroma is hoppy with nice fruitiness, big heavy malts, sweet and a bit of sugar. smooth for such a young bw. well balanced with nich plum and raison. light bitterness that lingers after sipping. sweet caramel and toffee. very enjoyable.

Deep dirty brown pour with tan head. Aromas of hops, caramel and darker fruits. Flavor is the same with a nice hop presence.

Bottle @ tasting by jbrus. A clear light brown colored beer, with a beige head. The aroma of caramel with hop bitters. It’s fruity like orange and citrus. The taste of malts, hop bitters and fruits like citrus. It’s spicey. The aftertaste is fruity with bitters and a little sweet.

<b>Regular</b> version.2006 bottle sampled Jan 1 2009. Pours flat with almost no head, a clear syrupy golden amber in color. Strong aroma of caramel barleywine, some citrus. Relatively dry flavor, especially in the finish, given the aroma; lots of caramel tones but these are quickly subsumed by an almost spicy dryness swept along with lots of grapefruit pith. Decent but but neither subtle nor exceptional in any other way. 7/3/7/4/14=3.5

<b>Oak aged</b> version (’06) on cask at Brouwers Bigwood fest ’07.

Comes from the hand-pump caramel red with an exceptionally long-lived head but modest lacing. Nice, nice, nice! What a well-balanced barley wine. Good fruity nose, scotch and earth, hops present with assurance but not overpowering. The flavor too has a strong but not-too-strong hop presence, leading us into the territory of hoppier barleywines but never overdoing it, not sweet in the least - in fact, surprisingly dry - but complex fruits and again that earthy, peaty sense of scotch whiskey atop mild caramel tones. Modest mouthfeel, not thin but not over-the-top creamy.

I drank this one side-by-side with Fred from the Wood, and though Fred was the better beer, this one didn’t fall back into the shadows at all. Rather, it held its own for interest! I’m very impressed with that, and I’m glad to have a few bottles in the cellar; give it a few years and wow.