Smuttynose Barleywine Style Ale

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

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.

light off white head, deep grapefruit tonals, smells like grapefruit in the morning. Sweet malts, lightly hopped, aftertaste sticks to the roof of the mouth, which is not normally a pro but in this case was delightful. Deep resounding ruby red flavor with a hint of california date at the finish.

On tap at Ginger Man in NYC! A- Pours a mercurial opaque amber with orange highlights, head is tiny off-white bubbles in a ring, moderate lacing S- Very minimal aroma for a barleywine, slight hints of dark fruits and alcohol, perhaps the mildest aroma i’ve seen in this style T- Initial taste is dark fruits and alcohol, subtle sweetness intermixed with alcohol, pears, apples, some pine resin hops in the finish M- Medium/full-bodied, thick and chewy texture, good carbonation D- I would not quite put this in the above-average tier, it is smooth and easy-drinking despite the alcohol presence, I enjoyed it but was perplexed at the mild aromas

Pours with a big head that fades to a thin but solid layer. Aroma is hoppy with a burnt caramel malt backing. Flavor is of big piney hops, and a malty caramel backing. The alcohol gets to be a bit to much at points. Its nice but double digit ABVs are usually justified by deep, complex flavor which this lacks making it a nice but average barleywine with added alcohol.

Pours a dirty brown color with some particulate and a small-to-medium off-white head. Aroma is piney hops, pineapple, and alcohol. Taste is rather smooth - caramel, piney hops, some citric fruits, and alcohol. Pretty good, but a bit too bitter for my liking

Pours a hazy golden brown with a frothy thick tan head. Lots of lace. Smells of big floral hops. Strong malt aromas with hints of alcohol. Underlying fruity and citrus aromas and lemon. Taste is dominated by the big malty flavors. Big caramel and hints of nut. Alcohol flavors very apparent as well. But the hops stand up to this big body with a strong hoppy/citrusy finish. Big bodied with a bitter hoppy aftertaste that stays with you. A bit sticky. Pretty drinkable for a young barleywine although not as drinkable as, say, SN Bigfoot. You can tell that this one will age beautifully. Let this one alone for a few months and I’ll bet it will be even better.