Crabtree Woody B. Barley Wine Ale

Brewed by Crabtree Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Greeley, Colorado USA

Serve in Snifter

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750 ml. shared bottle. Pours a hazy reddish brown with a nice biege head. Aroma of wine, fruit, and malt. Taste is wine, caramel, wood, and fruit. Very good.

2011 bottle. Aroma is funky; there is a bit of Pinot but also a light sour cheese note. Fairly fruity, but the malt character is minimal. Pours a cloudy light brown with ruby highlights. Low lacing with medium legs. Flavor has light caramel malt and cracker notes but the wine barrel is very prevalent. It is a very fruity beer with notes of berry, stone fruit, cherry and dried fruits. Bitterness and astringency is low as is alcohol warmth. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with medium high carbonation. Astringency is low bit there is some vinous character. Low alcohol warmth. Overall not a bad beer. Lots of Pinot character which overwhelms the malt and hops. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Bottle trade with a buddy in Colorado. Big sour, cherry and woody aromas. Taste is similar has some nice cherry, sour funk and a nice caramel sweet finish. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Bottle #96 on 2/21/13. Aroma is of wine and sour apple. Appearance is a murky brown with a creamy tan head. The taste starts out sour turns into a red wine flavor. Finish gets a little barley wine in it. Palate is ok, maybe a little sour. Overall, a very interesting beer. Prolly left in the wine barrels a little long, but still tasty. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

750 ml corked and caged bottle poured a clear reddish amber with a lasting amber head. Aromas of pinot noir, oak, coconut, carmel and light citrus. Palate was medium bodied and smooth. Flavors of carmel, oak, pinot noir, light coconut and light vanilla with a smooth lingering oak finish.

750 ml. corked and caged bottle. Vintage 2011. Number 21 of 585. Pours a thick, well retained light beige head, with some lacing, over a clear, dark amber (SRM 17) body....nose is treacle, vinous tones, hints of plum, raisin.....taste is treacle, light dried fruits (plum, raisin), vinous tones, light terpene, hints of vanilla, finishing with a melange of harsh, almost spice, bitterness....mouth feel medium heavy, sticky, high alcohol heat, carbonation low. The huge forces (ABV 12%) used in this young beer, are at this moment, in this bottle, very poorly balanced, with conflict going on at several different levels, between the malt and hop backbones which is exacerbated by the very high alcohol. I am still learning, from our local breweries and vintners, the contribution of barrel aging. It did not seem to add much, that is good, to this beer. But, I would add, again, this is a very young beer that needs long cellaring, perhaps several years, to reach full maturity. BJCP 8/3/13/4/7

Overall great taste. There is a lot of wood, in the flavor. The tangy pinot barrel comes through as well quite refreshingly. The alcohol creeps up on you and is well hidden. The only reason this beer got a below 4 rating is because the Cork launched off the bottle after I pulled the cage. They need to work on their bottle conditioning or go to a full forced CO2 system to prevent this.

750 ml bottle, 2011 bottle #34/585. Pours reddish brown with a medium creamy off white head that retains well and leaves some lacing.

The aroma is sweet malts, dark fruits and some wood and vinous alcohol.

The flavor is sweet sugary malts and fruits (grapes, berries and fig) with some slightly sharp vinous alcohol and plasticky char in the finish. The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with smooth carbonation.

Overall, a nice barley wine. It’s a little hot and sweet for me.

Beer Bloggers Conference 2012
Dark amber in color, clear with a thin head. Big sweet flavor and aroma. Light wine aroma and flavors from the barrels. Nice tasty barley wine.