Burton Bridge Thomas Sykes Old Ale

Brewed by Burton Bridge
Style: Barley Wine
Burton-on-Trent, England

Cask. Dark golden colour, not much head. Alcohol, fruit and berries in aroma. Strong alcohol and fruit in flavour. Quite extreme for being a cask ale, but then again very pleasant. Good beer to have if you sit down and have a chat with friends.

Date: March 21, 2009
Mode: Firkin
Source: Brick Store Pub
Appearance: cloudy rusty orange, frothy beige head, streaks of lace
Aroma: sweet fruity aroma, light floral hops
Flavor: sweet and fruity flavor, generally light but full of flavor, nice depth on the fruityness, orange and apricot, just a hint of bitterness but the sweetness is pretty well restrained, hint of spicyness, light bitterness in the finish, hint of alcohol at the bottom of the glass
Overall: a light barley wine but really nice with the depth of the fruityness
Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 15/20
Rating: 3.6/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: **4

Cask Stillage at the Town Hall, Stockport 30/05/2002 Amber mid brown coloured and extremely strong in alcohol. Fruity flavours and a warming malt finish.

Cask@HBF2006
Copper-golden color, small off-white head. Slightly alcoholic, berry-like aroma. Sweetish, even sugary ale with fruity notes. Very long, alcoholic bitter aftertaste. Berry also there. Cask ale to sip, slowly.

A Mes rate: gravicask at Twickenham beer festival.
Absolute madness. Mad as a bag of frogs. Deep dark copper colour with a very slight haze and struggling to just about hold onto a filmy head. Massive cheesy barley wine type notes fall out of the glass and fill the air with funk. This is so bloody rich. Loads of fruity pineapple and sweet alcohol. It’s rather decadent and downright naughty. Thick and close to cloying but I really am enjoying this. One of those beers where you know it’s gonna get you seriously messy and every part of you is game for the banter. Excellent stuff. Bonkers Conkers if I may... Crap rate but it kicked my ass. Especially when we started mixing it with the bit of a Goose Bourbon...

Cask@Chelmsford Beer Festival. Unbelievably phenolic butterscotch aroma and flavour. The alcohol isn’t well masked t all. Too much sticky caramel and butterscotch, and way too much alcohol in the finish.

Cask conditioned at Merton Beer Fest 07. Copper coloured with bubbly white head. It had to be done, it was there so it had to be conquered, and quite pleasing it was too. Thinnish initially but then an instant alcohol burn on the tongue, but this is balanced with some mid roasted malt and a mildly fruity finish. A pleasing lack of medicinal note, one of the better big uns.

Cask at Spuyten Duyvil. Pale golden coloured beer with a thin white head. Aroma is lightly malty with a softly honeyish aroma. A bit of toasted grain and light caramel along with a bit of herbal character. It’s lightly oaky but without any real spirit character. A bit of mint and a touch of lingering oakiness. A lightly lingering oaky chewiness.