UPDATED: MAR 28, 2019 Dark brown with khaki head. Looks more like a porter than a BW. Nice malt presence, dark fruit, a touch of roast which is weird for the style, plum, carmelized toffee. Not bad.

Bottle. Dark brown pour with a tan head. Aromas of fig and raisin, molasses, and toasted sugar. Flavor is dark fruits galore with slight booziness. Finish is a little warm from the abv but still long and rich. Very nice.

Bottle sampled at a buddies house. From notes. Loads of dark fruit and caramel.

Dark brown color with a tan head. Hops coming through here a little more than the previous version I had. Lots of red fruit and a bit of soy sauce. Roasty malt plum and red fruit aroma. Soy sauce more as it warms. Definite sipping beer. Finish is a touch bitter. Chalky chocolate texture as well.

2012 Vintage? (13% abv on label): Deep dark brown coloured body with a fast-dying tan and beige head with some violet and ruby tints near the bottom. Aroma of super rich pit fruits, alcohol, oak, vanilla, earth, scotch, gin and a big dose of caramel. Full-bodied; Dense, earthy, pit fruit flavours with a ton of cognac and brandy flavours behind with the warmth from the alcohol showing a lot. Aftertaste shows a big alcohol burn, some oak and pit fruits, a lot of peat and woodsy touches and a pungent deep sweetness at the end. Overall, a super strong barley wine that still shows a lot of rough edges at ~1 year old with perhaps too bitter of a finish. A nice one to try, but not one of my favourite barley wines - too rough and not enough sweetness and complexity throughout. I sampled this twelve ounce bottle purchased from Total Wine in McLean, Virginia on 04-January-2013 for US$3.99 sampled at home in Washington on 22-November-2013.

Vintage 2012 on draft at the brewery. Surprisingly smooth. Hides the abv very well. Sweet cherry and dark bourbon soaked fruits. Great aroma and flavor. Medium body with a smooth finish.top both bw

Draft at the brewpub. Poured a really dark amber/crimson color with a small wispy off-white head. Aroma was notes of caramel, sweet malt notes, some alcohol. Flavor was smooth caramel notes, some light dried fruits. I was really expecting a lot more alcohol burn in this one. It was quite drinkable.

2/12/2012. From bottle. Dark amber color with a tan head. The alcohol is present up front with malt, dark fruit and spicy aromas. Some sweetness with the alcohol and fruit, but this one packs a punch.

Sweetgolden, cloudy, minimal head, heavy cloying sweetness, medium body, creamy, long finish,

On draft at the Mad Fox Barley Wine Festival, Falls Church VA. Vintage 2011. Pours a cloudy amber with a creamy off white head. Caramel and honey in the nose. Sweet candy sugar, caramel, and raisin flavors. High alcohol level pretty well hidden in the sweetness. An excellent barley wine.