Stoudts Old Abominable

Formerly brewed at Stoudts Brewing Co.
Style: Barley Wine
Adamstown, Pennsylvania USA

Name: Old Abominable
Date: 06/20/2008
Mode: Growler
Source: Tasting, Cellar Party
Vintage: 2008

Appearance: clear dark red, wispy beige head,
Aroma: sweet dark caramel aroma with a nice fruity character,
Flavor: rich caramel malt flavor, lots of earthyness keeps it dry, touch of caramel sweetness manages to bring in some fruityness, lasting earthy finish,
Overall: needs age for the fruity character to fully emerge
-------- /> Name: Old Abominable
Date: 06/23/2008
Mode: growler
Vintage: 2008
Score: 3.2 to 3.6

Appearance: clear dark red, lasting fine beige head, scattered patterned lace,
Aroma: same sweet and fruity aroma with a touch of brown sugar,
Flavor: more sweetness coming through in the flavor in the form of a brown sugar character that melds very well with the earthyness, eventually the earthyness abates letting the long desired fruity character blossom admist the dark caramel sweetness,

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 15/20
Rating: 3.6/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **4

On cask at the brew pub. Cellar temperature in 12oz glass. Poured a deeper ruby red color with a larger sized, frothy, off white head. Aromas of caramel, toffee, pine (stronger at first then subsided), and some cherries. Softer tastes of caramel, toffee, grapes, and citrus. Slightly on the vinous side too. Smooth body that was way too easy to drink. Alcohol content hidden. I could sit down and drink this all day.

Sampled from a growler: Pours a transparent bright copper with a small froth of light tan head. Aroma of fresh citrusy and piny hops with a good caramel maltiness and some light fruity esters. Body starts with good fullness and sweet caramel flavor with a fairly assertive grapefruity hop balance before a drier, crisp finish. A pretty nice barleywine.

Notes from Christmas 2006. Pours hazy brownish ruby edged, with minimal off-white head. Aroma is caramel malty, with some figgy fruit, bourbon, wet hops, brown sugar, plum. Tastes palate hefty with an initial caramel malty and figgy flavor, with the backup wet hops, brown sugar, and slightly rauchy notes at the end. Complex.

Bottle. Pours a dark amber ruby body with an off white head. Sweet malty caramel, with notes of dark fruits and skins. Lightly hopped a bit earthy. Decent.

Poured a hazy, brownish red color with a medium sized, off white head that left nice lacing on the glass. Aroma of piney hops, sticky caramel malts, grass, citrus, strong apple, with rauch, and a bit of metal. Taste of more sweet caramel, with vanilla, toffee, grassy hops, pine, citrus, cocoa, with wood, and bitter hops, and alcohol in the finish. Chewy mouthfeel.

Bottle:   Dirty caramel, moderate foamy sand colored head, few rings of lacing.   Malty nose, slight caramel, very minor hop.   Reminds me of a lighter English style Barley Wine.   Some citrus peel too.   Oh yeah, and marshmallow.   Malty start, citrus peel sweetness, a little light on body.   I suppose its a year after the release and its probably at its peak or just coming off of it.   Fairly tasty, smooth, but could stand to be a bit thicker.   Definitely not a west coast example as the hop aspect is minor.   Best I can say is easy drinking, well hidden ABV, on the malty side with some citrusy aspects but not enough body to make it a heavy hitter.   Still enjoyable tho.   Thanks to hopdog for the bottle!

Liquid Sunshine V. 22-oz. Mistakenly rated originally under the BA entry. Murky medium amber with bright caramel highlights. Light gray rim around the edges. Creamy medium body. Orange pith, biscuit, caramel, and toast on the mid-palate.