The Duck-Rabbit Barleywine

Brewed by The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery
Style: Barley Wine
Farmville, North Carolina USA

Sampled from a 12 oz brown bottle this beer poured a ruby chestnut color with a medium sized khaki head. The aroma was sour, tangy caramel, molasses and ripe fruits. The flavor was sour, tangy and nutty with a slightly rancid caramel note and light fruity and floral hops. Something was off on the flavor of this one that did not work for me. Disappointing.

a nice malty an winey brew it does not hide its alcohol too much and matures in the glass to a plummy and prunelike brew with just a touch of hop to keep it...REAL. a sweetish sipper i could session despite my livers plea for mercy. nice vanilla tone.

Enjoyed from a 12oz bottle in a whiskey snifter. Pours a dark copper to deep brown with a light tan head. Initially, I got a pretty noticeable hop aroma in the nose, nothing with enough character to evidence itself as a certain variety, simple a small indication of what was to come. Subsequent sniffs gave aromas more toward the malt end of the spectrum; definitely some caramel and perhaps a touch of vanilla. Additionally, as the sample warmed up, I was able to detect more and more alcohol. On the palate, it became pretty clear pretty quickly that my sample had been produced relatively recently. Hops jump on the palate up front, providing what I felt was an almost abrasive bitterness, followed by a less assertive malt note of caramel and sweetness in the middle palate to finish. I found the flavors to be just a bit muddled, and kind of wish I had saved the sample for another six months or so. Initially, I found the alcohol to be well-concealed. However, as the sample warmed, it showed itself on the palate - not to an extent as to make the beer unenjoyable, but simply to bring it below the best examples of the style. The finish was relatively sweet, but certainly not cloying, and essentially appropriate, given the high original gravity that this beer had to have had. Overall, it can’t hang with the best examples of the style, but it is a competently made example in need of a vintage date on the label and six months of hanging on in my basement.

On tap at Taco Mac during epic free shirt quest. Pours clear dark reddish copper with a small beige head. Nice aroma of toffee, banana, raisin, and vanilla. Tastes more fruity, with some cherry and roasty malts. Full-bodied with a lingering chocolate toffee sweetness.

12oz bottle from trade with ucusty. Pours clear amber with a small khaki head. Nose is brandy, dates, caramel, floral hops, and a bit of whiskey. Flavor is a ton of caramel, floral hops, fruit, and a bit of brandy. Enjoyable medium-bodied barleywine with a lot of alcohol warming and sugary flavor as it goes down.

Bottle Pours a clear brown with a small tan head. The head lasts okay. Aroma is of malts, fruits, brown sugar, and roasted. Has a light carbonation. A good mouthfeel. Very well blended. Has a robust flavor with a slight muted alcohol burn. Very well don. Has a full body. A real good finish, with a good lasting aftertaste. I am not big into barleywine but this was well done and tasty.

A decent barley wine. Aroma was heavy on the malt with thick caramel and burnt malt dominating. Pour was a nice deep dark brown with a one finger off white head with plenty of swirling small bubbles after the pour. Taste hid the alcohol extremely well. Hard to believe this is 11%. The burnt caramel malt flavor is overpowering but the aftertaste of dark fruit, brown sugar and and earth do come out more as it warms. LIttle carbonation, but not flat which was pleasing.

Bottle many thanks to jrob21. A very malty barleywine. Dark brown/red pour, thin off-white head. Dark fruit, dark malts, some roastiness, brown sugar, hints of caramel. Slightly bitter, and tabacco. Pretty good, and a little bit different than I thought it was going to be.