Smuttynose Barleywine Style Ale

Brewed by Smuttynose Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Portsmouth, New Hampshire USA

Nice malty hop aroma. Good amount of bitterness throughout which balances the alcohol quite well. A decent barleywine, which I think benefited from being laid down for a year.

22oz Bomber A slightly chill hazed amber with a thick frappy looking head. Aroma is of doughy malt that is slightly spicy and a faint floral hop note coming through. Body is smooth and a bit more carbonated than I like. Flavor has a good dose of hops and a light alcohol presence. Malty but not as sweet as other BW's I've tried recently. Overall one big ass beer but not quite good as others I've had. Thanks Bert!

Bottle. Murky brownish-red color with a thin white head. Aroma hops, vanilla, oak, bourbon notes, toffee, alcohol, slightly tinny. Decent aroma, nutty, but not overly impressive. Flavor falls a little flat. A tad sweet, tart berries, vanilla, more oak, slightly spicy, alcohol. Palate is oily. Not bad, but not great.

22 oz. bomber served in my Smuttynose snifter. Pours a gorgeous deep ruby coppery color with a small off white head. This is one beautiful looking brew. Nose is piney & floral with a slight medicinal background. Palate is thick and chewy with mild carbonation. Taste is at first sip, piney & floral, but later flavors remind you of dark alcohol laced candies. Brew becomes a little bitter as you get into it. Pretty similiar to the Smuttynose Wheat Wine.

22 oz bomber: An interesting brew. Good, but not great. Something about it wasn’t quite right. Don’t know how to describe it, but somthing just wasn’t quite what it should be. Not exactly skunked, but just off. A little too bitter, despite a malty flavor.

Aroma, flavor, palate all seemed thin after just finishing a Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot Barleywine. That doesn’t mean this beer is without its merits. The toffee in the flavor was nice, along with the significant hop presence thru the finish.

Pours bright amber with a big tan head. Aroma is fruity, nutty, and full of alcohol. Taste is fruity as well, with a HUGE alcohol kick. This is a BIG beer. Somewhat sweet on the finish. Overall a good beer, just a little too much alcohol flavor mixed in.

Pours a vibrant, yet hazy, orange ruby color that just can’t wait to be drunk. Small off-white head with minimal carbonation. Aroma is very nice. Pine, citrus, floral pretty much all the hop characteristics available from a hop flower. The flavor is a bit more mild than expected. Some caramel notes mixed with vanilla and nuts. Alcohol also noted. Body is medium and finishes medium.