Silverton Barely Legal Barley Wine

8th Big Beers, Belgians, and Barleywines. Pours clear amber with a spare, rocky, white head, diminishing with spare lacing. Aroma is heavy malt (cookie, caramel, nutty), average hops (flowers, grass), average yeast (earth) with notes of dates, apples, and pears. Medium bodied, oily texture, soft carbonation, and a metallic finish. Average duration, moderate sweetness, light acidity and bitterness.

At the 2007 Big Beer, Belgians, & Barleywines Festival in Vail. I think that it’s odd that the brewer insists that this beer is a stout because it behaves much more like a barleywine. I suppose we’ll just think of it as a hybrid. This does look like a stout- it is pitch black with a dark brown head. Fairly good sized head that hangs out atop the beer for a while. Aroma is not so good. I’m not sure what it is I smell- turnips? The flavor is really nice with a huge chocolate and roasted taste. The smoothness is helped by a pronounced oat flavor. This could almost be a breakfast barleywine! Really good beer in spite of the odd aroma.