Bass No 1

Brewed by White Shield (prev. Museum) (MolsonCoors)
Style: Barley Wine
Burton-on-Trent, England

Bottle shared by kmweaver. Still purple/brown colored body, little to no head at all; a few bubbles from the assertive pour. The nose opens up with rich and deep notes of peppery maple and bourbon, turning more towards dry oak tannins and notes of sweet, dried tobacco leaves, peppery and almost meaty in character at times. Texture is appropriately thick and viscous, faintly dry, with dry wood, tobacco, plum brandy and bourbon notes throughout. Warming, soft alcohol on the back… just really excellent stuff, well made, held up well in the hand-bottle. I wish more American barley wines had this amount of character and depth.

Courtesy of kmweaver. Dark brown body with no head. The nose is rich caramel and toffee and dark fruits. The flavor is very sweet with lots of caramelized raisins, toffee, gingerbread and cookie dough. Full body is round with low carbonation and a bit of a warm finish.

Mini keg courtesy of Cgarvieuk, big big thanks to Craig, bottled by Doppelganger, aka Casey, cheers Casey had this 09-07-08 Poured very dark brown with some glints of ruby at the bottom. Some port and sweet plum on the nose. Taste was bitter alcohol soaked orange, a distinct hoppiness and whilst there is some sweetness it is battered senseless by the long bitter finish. There are some slightly rough port and sherry flavours think Tudor Rose but I like this.

Draught at RBESG. Very dark runy, small head. Deep aroma of paper and plum brandy. Sweet and full bodied. Fruity with lots of alcohol. Warming with some green hops, very peppery. Long bitter finish. Flavourful, but a bit rough around the edges.

Sampled at the RBESG08 grand tasting. Brown with a tiny beige head. Fruity malt aroma with dark berries, some fudge, and warming alcohol.medium bodied with soft carbonation. Weel balanced with a dry and bitter finish.

Courtesy ChzMan. Clear amber/ruby/brown. A few tan bubbles. Roasted caramel, toffee, oak, a kind of savory acidity like a blend of black and balsamic vinegar (not unpleasant), alcohol warmth, old wood. Very complex, very nice. Full/medium body, lightly carbonated, viscous. Awesome english barleywine.

Magic Dave hooks it up!!! Handbottle from 5L cask. Pours a rich mahogany color, some glints of red. Aroma has notes of wood, vanilla, dried plums, some sherry notes (though very subtle). The flavor is amazing. An wood like astringency works perfectly against the sweet malts. Absolutely amazing. Thanks a ton Tom!!!

RBESG2008: 5 L partyfass. Thanks to chris_o. Pourd clear and golden amber with a collapsing tan head. Overripe fruity aroma. Flavour is dense malty with a solid fruity note. Warming yet smooth alcohol base. Ends dense malty and roasted malty.