Smuttynose Barleywine Style Ale

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

Nice resiny hop aroma. Pours a clear dark red with about half a finger of lat tan head, that left good lacing on the glass. Interesting earthy taste to it. Very creamy mouthfeel, alcohol very well hidden. Well balanced, even though I’m more of a hophead.

Hazy orange-brown with an off white head. Aroma of pineapple, pepper, and pine along with a detectable alcohol presence. Flavor is hoppy, but not overly so, which seems to be a common flaw (IMO) in American Barleywines. Piney hops blend nicely into a biscuity caramel sweetness. Could benefit from a fuller body. Alcohol is a bit too prevalent for 10%. Maybe putting this down for a couple years would help this. Still a very good brew that I would definitely buy again.

A little syrupy, bitey hops. Notes of raisin and caramel. This one really didn’t wow me, but it was okay for a barley wine.

Nice deep copper color with little head. BIG nose with lots of pepper, hops and very little malt. Malt backbone sems to be lacking, but the big hops and the alcohol are out in front. Lacking a little in complexity, some roasted malt and caramel flavors intermingled between the resiny hops. Not bad, but underdeveloped with too much alcohol up front.

Very scotchy barleywine. I loved this beer. The Big Beer beers of Smutty have always blown me away, save for the Farmhouse. The Maibock, Imperial Stout, Big A, Wheat Wine, and now this one here, have all been downright impressive. Lots of sugary fruits in this BW, the way they’re meant to be. My bottle was aged nearly a year but the hops were still very much in the aroma and initial bite, though they were balanced and overtaken by sweetness which was nice. Nose of berries, molasses, butter, hops, and lots of alcohol though pleasant. Excellent.

650ml Bottle @ Decemberfest 2006: Poured cloudy and copper, zero head. Aroma of floral hops, caramel, malts, and fruit. Lots of alcohol in the flavour, covered by caramel and malts, and a good hoppy back end. Good all around, surprising hoppiness.

2006 bottle. tasted 2/13/2007. pours nice clear copper with a nice light tan head that settles into a thin film. nice barley wine aroma. molasses caramel light chocolate vanilla light toasted wood light alcohol/hop presence. bittersweet roasted flavor molasses caramel toffee spicy black pepper light tart green apple notes. finish spicy bitter black pepper hops warm alcohol caramel tart green apple almost mouth puckering at the end. mouth feel a bit thin for the style. good but not the best barley wine. the flavors seem a bit disconnected. not as flowing and balanced as i would like but it is respectable.

Thanks to ja noth, I get to drink this whole bottle with reckless abandon. First impression is "whoa, dude, you gotta work tomorrow!". Strong and nice. This is how a barley wine should treat you. It shouldn’t try to hide anything except for your pride as you brush your teeth in the morning and pray you don’t have to talk to anyone face to face. Malty and strong. This is how it should be. I’m a fan. I want more.