Speakeasy Old Godfather Barleywine

Brewed by Speakeasy Ales and Lagers
Style: Barley Wine
San Francisco, California USA

Brown 12 oz bottle acquired in a recent trip to Wine Gallery in Brookline, MA. No freshness date. Appearance: Not so clear as I expected. A rich mahogany, reddish brown with a thin cream-colored head that fades quickly, leaving a small lace. Nose: Super-candy-sweet malt, dark wood, caramelized raw sugar, dark German rye, and a slight, whispering note of flowers. Palate: A great big smack of sugar followed by a rich bitter chocolate wave, which gives way to dark caramel, and is usurped by lots and lots of hoppy bitterness (without the hop flavors though). I also think of sweet tea made with brown sugar, and that floral note is there, but I can’t put my finger on it, and it’s not a usual "hop floral" thing either. Carnations? And there’s a plug of deep tobacco there, too. Notes: A big, sweet, and rich barley wine. It’s aggressive and a little clumsy in that the individual flavors seem distinctly defined and not blurring into one another. A good beer in the interesting manner, unique even, and I’d definitely recommend it. A pipe-smoker’s barley wine, I’d say. And better than I was expecting (I’d never had contact with this brewery before...got a bottle of the IPA to review too!)

Nice notes of hop bitterness in this one. However, its a BW and as such, it should take on the more leathery, "rich corinthian" characteristics that some of its sister beers do. Nice and strong, yet this alcohol is hid. Barlkey + Hops signifies this one. A good brew, but not one to shake the foundations loose.

Pours a nice light chestnut color with 2 fingers of creamy tan colored head. A bit light looking for the style IMHO. Wow that’s an awesome smell of Barley and Chocolate malt intermingled with a mellow floral hop and some deep caramel. A really good smell is pouring off the head of this one! Very smooth and rich up front but extremely balanced. Lots of up front barley, chocolate and caramel leading up to that smooth mellow floral hop finishing up the rear. Great taste! Subtle hints of alcohol throughout make this beer incredible! This beer feels like it fits better than it looks like it would. It’s smooth and rides the tongue to the throat without choking in alcohol or overwhelming in any one flavor. Fills without over-filling. This is drinkable in a 4pk but even then I wonder how many I could have. This is a sipper. A good sipper though! So far my fave from this brewery! Good job! Cheers!

Pours a translucent deep amber colour with a frothy yellow tinted off-white head that retains well and leaves rings of lacing. The nose is peppery, vinous, and citric, with a respectable amount of alcohol piercing through. The flavour is of thin caramel, vinous malts, aluminum and ravenous peppery spice. The body is a bit thin, making the alcohol all the more apparent. There are loads of highly citric, perfumy and acidic NW hops, figs and alfalfa sprouts. The malt backbone is lacking and mouthfeel is a little watery.

An amber color with a small white head. The aroma contains some citrus, alcohol, cherries and caramel. The flavor is a bit on the boozy side with a marked sweetness. I get some raisins, cherries, citrus, caramel, and vanilla extract. The hop presence is there but it seems to be more in the sweet English mold. Overall a nice beer!

I think classic barleywine aroma but what do I mean like, northwest (including bay area), almost cherry on top, brandy, oak, caramel, hops burbling beneath. Clear deep amber body but little head. A little flat, heavy & tongue-attacking. brandied peach flavor, sweet but not clinging,white flour, I feel the hops more than I taste them.

Dumped it into a trappist glass and a thin head foamed up with some spotted laceing along the sids of the glass. The color is a cloudy ruby red. The aroma is full of malted barley and grain with a floral hop finish. Initially the flavor is semi bittersweet with caramalized sugar and malted grain. It leaves a nice tingle on the palate that sticks after you have finished the sip. Overall it is a refreshing brew and has a nice amount of carbonation.

Copper pour. Smells like stuff in barley wines. Sweet and hoppy flavor with a nice alcohol kick to leave your pallet numbing. Kudos to Speakeasy.