Pike Old Bawdy Barley Wine

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

[1099-20080216] Tap @ Pike brewpub (Seattle, WA). Boozy pineapple yeast aroma has a tinge of mango. Clear, amber brown body with a quick foamy off-white head. Bready mango pineapple malt flavour is quite boozy. Medium-full body. Nice kick!

pours a clear flat gold. mild light sweet hop aroma, dry fornt to hoppy bitter finish.

2006 vintage. 12 oz brown bottle. Served in a brandy snifter. Hazy orange/gold. Not a lot of carbonation, quickly dissipating head. Citrusy hop aroma, a little malt and a hint of alcohol. Definitely more on the malty side but not overly sweet. Hop bitterness and aroma may have faded a bit. Long dry hoppy finish. Warming. Maybe a little oxidized, but in a good way. Decent balance of malt and hops, but I’d like to try this a little fresher.

Bottle. Pours amber with white head. Nice hoppy aroma. nice bitter hop taste. Good body.

2007 vintage on tap @ Humpy’s Anchorage, AK. Pours a clear dark amber with a very small light tan head. Aroma if dates, caramel, alcohol and a bit o honey. The flavor is big and sweet with plenty of hop bitterness to balance it out, there was a light alcohol taste too. Medium to full body with a mild carbonation and a thick syrupy mouth feel. Nice Barley Wine.

Pours gold with a smooth white head. Good sweet barleywine, this had been aged for almost a year but still was a bit hot, could go for a few more to improve more. Soft caramel palate with a earthy bready finish and moderate citrus hops. Overall, nice barleywine, aged well so far and will continue to do so.

’98 bottle thanks to Trevor211!
Pours muddy tan-red, pretty lifeless, murky, and depressing, no real head to speak of. Nose is malt driven, lots of raisin and caramel, some dry leaf notes as well. Flavor is sweet, some raisin, burnt toast, slight alcohol. Thin, 11 year old palate, slightly sticky, but not drawn out given the age. Pretty enjoyable stuff, and I’ll always go for these aged malt-heavy barley wines. That said, the ‘98 JW Lees has this pretty handily in the malt complexity.

After a lackluster beer, I was ready for something to grab my tastebuds and Not. Let. Go. Thankfully, a barleywine was next so that need for flavor was about to be met, hopefully. Specifically I am speaking of the Old Bawdy Barleywine from Pike Brewing, Vintage: 2001. So I am faced not just with a hopefully delicious barleywine, but one that has also had some time to sit and stew and age to further divine perfection. As I pour her liquid art into my glass, I lavish my full attention on every single upcoming moment.

She poured dirty brown with a minor head of foam with bubbles and lace sticking to the glass and floating quite contentedly on top. She is slightly hazy and almost lazy in her beauty, inviting me to take my time to enjoy her true colors. Beer is best experienced up close and personal, so I utilize my nose and partake of a malty and sweet spicy aroma. Hints of cinnamon, nutmeg, and rich brown-sugars with creamy caramel and vanilla caress my tongue and tastebuds. Coming in second is tart and ripe dark fruits; prunes, figs, dates, and crunchy autumn apples. Definitely a maltier barleywine versus a more hop-forward barleywine, I enjoy the best of both worlds in this well balanced brew from Pike. It could be she was hoppier in her early years, but 7 years of aging could very well have mellowed and polished Old Bawdy into a classic. As my glass warms, malts soothe while a more intense hop profile nips at the finish. Bitter lemon rinds and grapefruit, oils and sticky sap mingle with the malty barleywine palate. Very delicious and divine. As I reach the end of my glass and our time together, do I detect some faint rum notes along with a pervading warmth and lingering spice? Old Bawdy almost made a turn to the hop side, but she clung stubbornly to the malty side and in turn, bore a wonderfully balanced, complex, and beautifully aged barleywine. Good job, Pike.

This was exactly what I needed to lift my spirits, inspire moments of revelry, and remind me why I love beer, despite the occasional disappointment. I don’t know if Pike is still brewing the Old Bawdy, but if they are, I recommend picking up two bottles, one to savor fresh and one to savor a few years on down the road.