     Bigfoot Barleywine Style Ale ~ 2010 (Sierra Nevada Brewing Company)
The oldest beer related piece of clothing that I own is a navy blue hooded sweatshirt bearing the Bigfoot Ale logo. I bought in 1999 while visiting a friend at Chico State. We went to the brewery and drank copious amounts of their famous Pale Ale, sadly enough I don't think I tried anything else. I was young and naive, I know. Now, 11 years later I still have that sweatshirt and I absolutely love the beer. How time flies and how ones tastes change (thankfully).
From the Sierra Nevada site:
"Our award-winning barleywine boasts a dense, fruity bouquet, an intense flavor palate and a deep reddish-brown color. Its big maltiness is superbly balanced by a wonderfully bittersweet hoppiness."
Here we go...
Pour - beautiful auburn liquid fills the glass with tiny effervescence streaming upwards forming a luxurious head that I am tempted to float that cap on for the sake of science. When held to the light it is a sight to behold, some truly great colors come out.
Aroma - sweet and tart green apples, canned pears, sticky piney hops, burnt sugar, caramel candies and some nose tingling alcohol all come out. As this is a fresh bottle there is no oxidization smell and it is not overly sweet.
Taste - nice crisp and bitter flavors abound from the first sip. My mouth is full of strong hop flavor, warming alcohol, burnt sugars, astringent pine and grapefruit along with dark sweet fruits (plums especially).
Overall - I love this beer fresh, its hoppy and has some nice dark fruit flavors and lots of complexity but yet is so easy to drink and enjoy without too much thought. Easily my favorite beer from Sierra Nevada (sorry Torpedo). After some age it mellows and the harshness of the alcohol and the hops really get smoothed out. Fresh or cellared, its a wonderful brew.
Would I buy more of it? - I will buy some every year and I will forever try to save some for more than one year. That seems to be something I can not accomplish.
Vintage - 2010
Availability - released annually in February/March
Note - Last year marked the 25th Anniversary of Bigfoot Ale. I'd love to try a bottle that has been cellared properly since year number one! Thankfully this is one that still comes in six-packs so it is possible to squirrel one away without too much trouble!
Posted by Russ Labels: Barleywines, Vintage Beers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
   Brooklyn Monster Ale 2009 (Brooklyn Brewery)
Not a beer that you're likely to sit down and drink two or three of, Brooklyn's Monster Ale is just that. This is a beer that will warm you up and put you to sleep on a cold winter night. We are in the midst of a pretty substantial Nor'easter so this beer seems fitting for just such an occasion. From the Brooklyn site: "Brooklyn Monster Ale is a classic barley wine, a style of ale originally brewed by the butlers to the English and American aristocracy. It is brewed from three mashes of heirloom British malt and spiced with aromatic American Willamette, Cascade and Fuggle hops. Here we go... Pour - a little viscous coming out of the bottle but once in the glass this looks pretty innocent, almost like regular ol' amber ale. The head is pretty thick and leaves some nice lacing. I had to make due with a pint glass but I am sure a snifter would have made this look much more presentable.
Aroma - strong scents of sugar, syrup, citrus (oranges and lemons) and a biscuity or bread dough as well. If you really try and separate the smells you can get some of the alcohol that is definitely going to be present in a beer of this strength.
Taste - wow, much differnet than I was expecting. This is indeed sweet but it also has an alcohol kick that is almost instantaneously warming. Nice bits of citrus from the hops that have almost entirely faded. It almost has a candy like and mouth-drying aftertaste, sort of like after you've been sucking on hard candy for awhile, hard to explain. No off flavors to speak of and definitely a beer that you can sip away at over a good amount of time.
Overall - quite good. This is a solid barleywine, maybe a tad on the sweet side and not a beer that I'd grab on a warm day that is for sure. This is however a great beer for one of those cold winter nights that chills you to the bone.
Would I buy more of it? - sure, I'd like to try it when its fresh to see if the hops stand out a little more.
Vintage - 2009
Availability - December - March
Note - According to Wikipedia, "Barley wine or Barleywine is a beer style of strong ale originating in England. The first beer to be marketed as Barley Wine was Bass No. 1 Ale, around 1900."
Posted by Russ Labels: Barleywines, Vintage Beers, Winter Beers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
   Smuttynose Barleywine Style Ale (Smuttynose Brewing Company)
Smuttynose's Barleywine Style Ale is their first Big Beer Series release of 2010. I've got a bottle in the cellar from back in '07 that really needs to be drank and compared with a fresh bottle. I didn't really feel like doing that just yet so I opted to crack a super fresh bottle of this and see how it tastes. From the Smuttynose site: "Our Barleywine is rich and malty, with hints of fruity esters and a well-hopped finish. Enjoy this hearty ale with fresh fruit and ripe cheese on a cold winter’s night, or lay it up and savor it with a friend for a special summer treat." Here we go... Pour - super rich orange and golden in color with a nice sized fluffy off-white head. This looks potent and viscous as its got some legs and some nice lacing.
Aroma - oh man, this is what I was hoping it would be...hoppy! Such great grapefruit and other citrus notes along with a nice whiff of alcohol. Smells like a super portent Double IPA right now.
Taste - lots of fruit flavors like pears, apples, graprefuit, grapes, tangerines and oranges. Combine all that estery goodness with a nice big malty backbone, a kick of alcohol and a dry tart finish and you've got yourself an excellent and deliciously fresh American-style barleywine.
Overall - excellent. I love it fresh and I can't wait to compare it to a bottle with some age. Super hoppy and delicious right now with the warming quality that makes it perfect for a cold winter night but the hoppiness that would be great on a nice summer day as well.
Would I buy more of it? - absolutely. I'll be buying a few bottles later this week.
Vintage - January 2010
Note - Check out some other beers from the Smuttynose Big Beer Series!
Posted by Russ | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
  Duck-Rabbit Barleywine Ale (The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery)
Duck-Rabbit's Barleywine has eluded me until now. I've been looking forward to trying this 11% monster ale thus completing my quest to review all four of their higher alcohol beers.
From the Beernews site:
"The Duck-Rabbit Barleywine is the hoppiest of all the Duck-Rabbit brews. Loads of Amarillo hops give a piney, citrusy bitterness that’s supported by a toffee malt backbone."
Here we go... Pour - dark murky brown in color with a yellowish sticky foam head that looks almost like yellow clotted cream. Its amazing to watch the bubbles in this glass as they continuously stream upwards adding to the head instead of the head sinking into the depths.
Aroma - big dose of malt, malt, malt. It does indeed have a caramel and toffee essence to it and a touch of apple even.
Taste - talk about a rich and full-flavored beer. Loads of malt sweetness is actually balanced out well by a good deal of hop bitterness (even after a year in the cellar). Wow. Its a battle on my tongue between sweet and hoppy. I was worried that I'd get that cloying oxidized taste that sometimes comes with English-style Barleywines but that is definitely NOT the case. This is a winner. Loads of malt flavor is balanced extremely well by the hops. As far the alcohol percentage, well that is definitely noticeable as my stomach is warm and my head is light after not even 4 oz. of this beast. Toasty, hoppy, carame-y, rich and delicious.
Overall - loving it. This is a sipper and one that will definitely deserve some love and affection once the cap is pried. Big flavors from a big beer. Balaced even for 11%. I want more!
Vintage - January 2009 (one year old)
Would I buy more of it? - Absolutely, I love this and all of the other beers that Duck-Rabbit produces.
Note - The difference between American Barleywines and English Barleywines has mainly to do with the types of hops being used and the typical alcohol percentages. The American versions tend to be hoppier and stronger while British Barleywines tend to be less focused on hops and less alcoholic. A great article about these differences and about Barleywines in general can be found HERE
Posted by Russ Labels: Barleywines, Winter Beers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
   Horn Dog Barley Wine Style Ale (Flying Dog Brewery)
Minis!!! Why don't more breweries do this! I bought this beer as part of an 8-pack of 7 oz. bottles. All four varieties of these little bottles are strong offerings from Flying Dog. At this size they are perfect single servings and if you get piggish you can always crack open the second bottle or if you are patient you can out one away for a rainy day. From the Flying Dog site: "By far the biggest dog in the yard...Horn Dog Barley Wine is a dark and malty English-style Barely Wine that is aged for a minimum of three months before being packaged. Like a fine wine, this beer will only get better with age when stored at optimum conditions." Here we go... Pour - dark auburn almost black cherry juice in color. Not much head, just a thin bit of lace on top. Carbonation levels look rather light.
Aroma - concentrated malt sweetness, dark fruit, oxidization, plums and prunes. Slight hints of alcohol as well.
Taste - sweet dark stewed fruits, cherry, baked apples, slight hints of toffee and toast. Nice and warming with lots of great flavors. Burnt sugar and alcohol provide a nice dry finish. This is a sipper that is for sure.
Overall - Lots of flavor and complexity but not overly sweet, or cloying, and the alcohol percentage is really not a factor when it comes to drinkability. Perfect size for this beer. Love it.
Would I buy more of it? - possibly, this is a good candidate for a few years in the cellar.
Vintage - Bottled in 2008
Note - Horn Dog Vintage 2007 won the Gold Medal at the 2009 Great American Beer Festival in the "Aged Beer" category.
Posted by Russ Labels: Barleywines | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 #100 (Nøgne Ø)
From the Nøgne Ø website: "Our 100th batch, brewed for the enjoyment of the brewers, but popular demand forced us to release it commercially. This malty, yet light bodied ale has a massive hop bitterness. Most enjoyable in a comfortable chair in front of a roaring fire" The first thing you need to know about this beer, if you come in possession of a bottle, is that they recommend that it is served at 12°C/54°F. Which means not directly from the fridge. The second thing you need to know about this beer is explained in the quote above. It is the 100th batch brewed at Nøgne Ø, how on earth they thought they were going to keep it to themselves is anyone's guess. The third thing you need to know about #100 is that it comes in at 10%. Appearance - Extremely dark nut brown, almost black, with a big, thick and fluffy head that leaves a lot of residue around the glass. Aroma - Hops, lots and lots of hops. Piney, caremelly, sweet and rich. Simply put - fantastic. Taste - Wowza. Thick and full bodied with a lot of citric hops combined with a smooth and mellow malt back end. At first sharply sweet but levels quickly out to a mixture of spices and caramel. Somewhere in there I taste cinnamon... Overall - Very nice. We should be thankful that Nøgne was nice enough to share this brewer's beer with the rest of us. It has a great mixture of hops and sweet malts but a lot more as well. At 10% it's one to really sit back and contemplate with. Recommended highly on a cold winter's night. Where they get "light bodied" from I don't know, smooth yes, but very rich.
Posted by Kelly Labels: Barleywines | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
  The Vermonster (Rock Art Brewery)
This is the beer that was in the news quite a bit recently. If you missed it, Rock Art Brewery was sent a "Cease and Desist" letter from the makers of Monster Energy drinks saying that they needed to stop using the name Vermonster as it was too similar to their name (or something to that effect). Needless to say, the little guy won and Rock Art kept the name Vermonster and Monster Energy drinks went back to marketing drinks with Guarana and Ginseng to Junior High Schoolers. Hooray! Actually, I am quite proud of the way that beer lovers supported Rock Art and certainly glad to see them stick to their guns and not back down. Cheers to you Matt, you deserve it! The label reads: "We brewed The Vermonster with 110 pounds of malt per barrel and jacked up the hops to 100 IBUs along with dry hopping at 1 lb per barrel." Here we go... Pour - muddy brown in color with quite a lot of sediment (spent yeast) at the bottom. Loose fluffy, off-white head. This looks pretty dark once it settles. Intriguing...
Aroma - lots of fresh floral hops with some chocolatey cocoa notes. Plenty of malt hits the nose as well, this smells almost like a big, dark IPA and since its a fresh Barleywine it very well could be defined as su ch (in my opinion of course).
Taste - big, sweet, juicy with a huge heavy hand of hops hitting the back of your mouth right off the bat. Lots of hoppiness along with caramel, dark malt and the flavor of grape soda or Dimetap possibly. Delightfully warming if I do say so myself.
Overall - this is a big, bold, hoppy Barleywine that is for sure. I wasn't sure what to expect but this is very good. I can only imagine how much this would mellow out after a year in the cellar.
Would I buy more of it? - Yes and I can honestly say that Rock Art makes some of the most affordable craft beers on the market. This bottle was less than $7. I'd like to have a bottle to keep around for a year or so and then compare it with a fresh one.
Note - If you'd like to read all about the situation between Rock Art and Monster Energy Drinks you can go to the Rock Art Brewery site for all of the details.
Posted by Russ Labels: Barleywines | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
   XVI Anniversary Barley Wine (Uinta Brewing Company)
Who says they can't brew big beers in Utah? Uinta, in Salt Lake City, has no problem brewing up a barleywine that surpasses the 10% margin! Considering how cold it is tonight and with some flurries in the forecast for the morning, I think its a good time for this one. We'll call it a night cap. From the Uinta site: "First brewed in small batches once a year to commemorate our 5th Anniversary, this wonderfully delicious brew is now available year round. Uinta's award winning barley wine has a dark amber hue with a rich, malty character." Here we go... Pour - The 16th Anniversary edition pours thick and viscous. It settles dark ruby and amber in color. Wow, just looking at the legs this one has in the glass is impressive. Not a whole lot of carbonation is present but still a nice off-white and fluffy head tops this one nicely. Aroma - Super, super sweet fruit, caramel and brown sugar. There are faint wisps of alcohol that come out as well. Is it bad that I get a little excited by that? Taste - Very sweet and estery but deceptively smooth. Lots of baked apple flavors along with tangy brown sugar and a decent amount of hop bite (which is still present since this one isn't too old). This is a great beer for a cold night, lots of warmth from the alcohol combines with so much flavor. Overall - I have to say that I am impressed. Very easy drinking, regardless of the high ABV, plenty of nice fruit flavors along with a decent kick from the hops. My sinuses are tingling and my stomach is warm, a great Barley Wine from Utah! Note: From what I could gather using the net, in Utah the maximum alcohol content for beer being sold at bars and stores is 3.2% by weight (4.0% by volume). You can purchase beer with higher alcohol content in State-run liquor stores. If I am wrong about this please let me know. Also: This particular bottle rolled of the line on April 9th, 2009.
Posted by Russ Labels: Barleywines | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
  Below Decks Barley Wine Style Ale Heavy Seas Series (Clipper City Brewing Company)
Seems like a nice night to crack the next mega beer from the Heavy Seas collection. Below Decks was brewed to celebrate Clipper City Brewing Company’s 10th Anniversary. The label reads: "Our nod to classic English Barleywine-style ales, Below Decks is deep copper in color with a luxurious malt character. Have some now...and cellar some for later! Very limited release. 10% Alc./Vol." Pours dark. Very dark. Dark, dark, dark amber, almost brown. The head is thin but very well formed and as it dissipates it forms a perfect, long lasting, halo around the top of the glass. Its quite a sight actually. Smells sweet, juicy, malty with hints of raisin bread? Sure, why not. Its my beer and I can say it smells like that. Its a rich smell that is complex for sure with lots of things coming to mind. It leads me to believe that this is a beer that will have a lot of taste... ...and it does not disappoint. First taste is very strong malt sweetness followed by alcohol bitterness. Dark, dried fruit and candied oranges come to mind. The high alcohol content consistently comes into play as I sip this beer. Its almost brandy-like in some ways. Overall, its a very, very flavorful, full-bodied and voluptuous beer. Me thinks I'll sip this one for a bit and enjoy it. Yet another winner from Clipper City. Oh yeah, if you find a bottle take a close look at the label, its a classic.
Posted by Russ Labels: Barleywines, Heavy Seas Series | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
