Third Coast Old Ale

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

Pours a glowing amber if you hold it against the light, with fairly large yeast sediment swirling around my pint glass from the 12oz. bottle: Nose is of caramel and bitter, dark chocolate, brown sugar, dark fruits, and a hint of hops. Flavors are similar. Thick mouthfeel, but incredibly smooth. The sweet malts, rather than overwhelm, complement a mildly bitter finish. Characteristically spicy after the swallow. Drinkability: Complex, balanced and thoroughly enjoyable. Best barleywine I’ve had to date. #237 on 04122009, DG.

Pours very thick and brownish orange. The aroma is pretty complex with notes of chocolate, orange, caramel, molasses, and maple syrup. The flavor is very sweet with orange, prunes, caramel, maple syrup and a touch of cocoa in the finish. Not really all that bitter to me. The sweetness overpowers everything else, but it is complex and chewy. Really a classic example of the style.

Bottle approx. 5 years or older. pours a rich brown amber, Aroma of molasses and burnt sugar cotton candy sweet. Too malty sweet for me but the beer is what its supposed to be.

12 oz bottle, 5-6 years old, no batch number or date on bottle. Beautiful deep reddish brown, tan head. Aroma of molasses, caramel, raisins, and burnt sugar. this beer is huge. Big caramel sweetness, deep flavor. This is a special occasion beer.

BATCH #8727 (September 25, 2008) Man, I love Bell’s Brewery, and I’m glad to finally get the chance to try this one. Super thanks go out to VandenBossche for hooking me up with this. Pours a hazy, medium/dark brown color. A lightbulb will get the edges to show a golden glow, but little else. One-finger head od truly tan colored foam. Retention is okay. Lacing is spotty, but fairly decent. Nice level of maltiness comes through, surrounded by a big presence of breadiness. Raisins and dark fruit jamminess. Slight earthiness mingles with a nice hint of maraschino cherries (!). Loads of sugarey sweet caramel notes. Definite brown sugar notes. Smells like a decadent dessert brew. Butterey french toast, covered in cherry syrup. Big yeasty bread notes, nice sweet caramel presence, slight hints of warming spices and a top-off of sweet cherry flavor. A different taste than I’m used to expecting from an Olde Ale, but I certainly like it. Smooth and creamy, which is nice, but I expected it to be a bit more ’lush’. Especially after the nose. (Yum!) So, it could have done better, here. The ABV is undetectable, by me, so I’d say, drink ’em if it suits ya’. It suits me quite nicely, thankee sai. I just wish I had regular access to Bell’s and didn’t have to rely on trades, or out-of-town trips, to aquire them.

draft @ redlight redlight. Caramelly molasses notes on the nose with hints of toasted malts as well. Pours a rich caramel colored amber with a thin white head. Rich malts, caramelized figs, candied raisons, rich caramel flavors with dark dried fruits, very smooth, with spicy hoppy finish.

8th June 2008. Strong ale. Slightly sour caramel and matl that has a hint of saltiness. Goes down easy enough but I could not have drunk a second bottle.

Poured from bottle into Snifter. Cloudy reddish-brown that glows ruby in the light. White thin head with minimal lacing. Aroma of butterscotch, dark fruit, brown sugar and a big whiff of alcohol. Sweet and alcoholic malt body, with strong notes of butterscotch, plum and molasses. Ends with a very peppery hop note, but not bitter at all. Low carbonation, thick chewy body, a little smooth but also a little chalky. Solid Barleywine overall, but there are others I would rather seek out again, as this has a little more booze than depth.