Third Coast Old Ale

Brewed by Bells Brewery
Style: Barley Wine
Kalamazoo, Michigan USA

This is one for wine drinkers (like me). Dry, bitter aftertaste. Beautiful citrus, blackberry, raisins, and maple syrup on the nose. little licorice. This is balance and complexity. California can learn alot from this beer. This is not loud, its restrained and deliciuos and suprisingly lager-like if you know what I mean.

I loved this beer. Poured a hazy amber color into a brandy snifter. Aroma was of dark ripe fruits, malt and raisins/plums. Lacing was minimal. Flavor reflected the nose very well, with a little brown sugar flavor and a little alcohol warming at the end. Medium-full bodied with minimal carbonation. Great beer. Must be presented at the correct temperature and in the correct glassware to be appreciated fully.

Bottle, batch 8135 pours a very ruddy cloudy color with no head at all. Smells like a carmel chew, toffee, and coffee tons of malts nice sweetness. Nice a nice barley wine alcohol is well hidden, very delicious. Once again Bells proves to be one of the best breweries out there.

batch 8211 bottle from ucusty... pours a hazy dark amber with a medium sized khaki colored head and some light lacing. foamy film and ring last until the end. smells good but not a whole lot going on... malty, caramel and some fruitiness, maybe raisins. the palate is terribly sweet all over and lacking anything to balance it out. very light bitter-ish dry-ish finish before a wafting of alcohol. medium to full body. smooth slick mouth feel with a sugary residue left on the lips. i suppose i should lay a few down...

Bottle. Reddish amber without much head. Only a small film remains after a minute or so. Aroma is subtle with caramel, alcohol, and some fruit. Flavor is sweet with some bittering hops that weren’t in the aroma and some peppery alcohol at the finish. Low carbonation with a biting alcoholic aftertaste that isn’t overpowering. Quite warming. A good beer. I can see the similarities to a barley wine but something about it sets it apart from that category.

Aroma is fruity, mostly red grapes. Like a wine but not as powerful as wine. Notes of malts and hops are there too. Appearance is beautiful, deep amber like the description says with a thick reddish white head and streaming carb bubbles. Flavor is pretty complex. Nothing sticks out to dominant. I say it tastes most like grapes, cherries, fruit flavored malts, and a bit of alcohol. Palate is pretty smooth, the alcohol comes through in the end and the aftertaste isn’t much. Overall its a good beer, my first barely wine and a good one.

5/6 pack given to me by a friend. I didn’t realize I was getting the "Old" version, just the Third Coast. What a surprise. Not sure this is categorized correctly. Old ales are their own style, not necessarily barley wines, just barley wine strengths. I’ve only had the Three Floyd’s Behemoth barley wine, and that one was a lot more balanced and sweeter than this one. Pours as dark as a porter, no head, really, or just a short one. Smells of alcohol, fruit. Bitter taste and finishes with an alcoholic slash. I didn’t really enjoy it all that much.

Bottle thanks to mibirder. Labeled 8211. Pours with a small, off-white head covering an hazy amber body. Aroma of dark pitted fruits, plums, cherry and a lot of alcohol (a bit on the ’hot’ side). Taste is not very complex, toffee and a light bitter after taste. Syrupy with light bubbles.
Have since tried 7124 (2005). Still seemed hot with some brandy and still a bit of bitterness.