Dark Horse 3 Guy Off the Scale Old Ale

Brewed by Dark Horse Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Marshall, Michigan USA

Serve in Snifter

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1/2 a shared 12oz. bottle. Pours murky, brownish red. Nose is sweet dark fruits, fruity bread and wine. Mouth is thick, sweet dark fruit wine, with strong alcohol backing. Finish has slight dark chocolate hint and alcohol lingers. Houston, we have a Sipper! Find a friend before you crack this one open.

Saved this one for rating 450 bottle thanks to jjclark Poured a murky burnt copper with average off white head aromas are of malts,caramel,cotton candy,andalcohol taste is sweet of caramel,sugars,with a malt base ,thick and chewy with a big backbone why this brewer doesn’t get more love I just don’t know

Big thanks to James for this one, a 12oz bottle poured into a snifter. This one pours clear amber with hints of red, though not quite copper, with a smallish tan head that recedes quickly to a bubbly collar and a small swirl of bubbles in the middle. Lacing is minimal though the beer leaves some legs after each sip. The aroma is wonderful on this one. it’s certainly more in the English BW vicinity as there aren’t any hops to speak of in the nose. What there is loads of is deep, sweet caramel malts with tons of dark fruits, raisins especially. There’s some brown sugar as well which leaves this super rich and sweet in the nose. The taste doesn’t let me down at all and follows the aroma fairly closely. The sweetness is completely dominant with caramel malts, toffee and loads of sugar-coated fruits. The booze makes its presence felt in the finish, as it’s tough to hide the entirety of the big ABV. The mouthfeel is slick and full-bodied with low, soft carbonation and almost gets cloying, but not quite. Well, this is certainly not an American Barleywine, but it’s one hell of a beer and I’m thoroughly impressed. It’s much more an English BW with the huge caramel malt backbone with little in the way of hops and heavy on the sweetness. A great dessert sipper.

Aroma of fruits, not citrus. Flavor is of sweet malt and fruits with some caramel. Nice beer

UPDATED: AUG 7, 2009 Bottle, thanks to tjthresh. Aroma of red to dark fruits, notably cherry and plum, graham cracker, mocha, and of course plenty of malt. Flavor rich without being sugary (shockingly), with a sticky fig sort of feel and more of those graham cracker/cake sort of malts. Though I would need to see the lab test to believe this is 15%, however big it is, it is remarkably under control yet still powerful and certainly interesting....rerate ups flavor from 8 to 9, overall from 15 to 17, just great complexity here with so much chocolate, bread, cocoa, mocha, tons of rich notes that again, to emphasize, are never sugary. Quite excellent.

Bottle. Pours a dark brown with barely any head. Aroma of booze, sweet malt, raisin. Flavor is a massive sweet malt bomb with some booze, caramel, and raisin. Very heavy, obviously. It’s alright although I can’t drink much of it. 7/4/7/4/14 (3.6/5)

Got to try a bottle of this courtesy of "hannont". Colour... cloudy amber with no head whatsoever. Nose... caramely, hoppy and sweet. Palate... SWEET! What a complex festival of malt, hops, caramel, chocolate, dark fruits, alcohol and Christmas pudding, all harmoniously fused together towards a gloriously long finish!

Bottle. Pours copper with light cream head. Initial aroma is a blast of dark fruit, caramel, raisins, some chocolate. Taste is more caramel sweetness, raisins, and now we get noticeable alcohol. Certainly not 15% worth though. Some milk chocolate at the very beginning, and even the cherry in the commercial description. Pretty full on the palate, with light bubbliness. Finish has a bit of alcohol, sugar, and raisins. Good stuff

Purchased in July 2008. I remember rating this then, but dunno where the hell my notes are. I think I had it over a 4.0 though, we’ll see how it does a year older. Clear copper with a half finger creamy yellow beige head, fading to a thick ring and thin film. Big ’ol sweet aroma of caramel, raisins, brown sugar, and vanilla behind. As I look at the commercial description, I pretty much get all that--light milk chocolate covered cherries, and some sherry oxidation. Flavor has some hard cherry candy sweetening things up a bit with all the aforementioned jazz. Not a lot of hop presence, though there is some alcohol--not 15% strong, though. Dry finish with bitterness @ a 3. Sounds really damn sweet, which it kinda is, but the alcohol and mild bitterness keep it from getting cloying. Full body with light carbonation. Very good--a little less hoppy than I remember, but holding up very well. Glad I’ve got some more back home!

Bottle acquired via trade with belgiumtripel...thanks Mike!!! Shocking that this beer is 15%!!! Garnet pour with a small eggshell head that diminishes into a whispy film and small tan ring around the inside of the glass. Aroma is dark fruit, molasses, brown sugar, and caramel...flavor is similar. The alcohol is hidden extremely well. Medium mouthfeel. A very good Barley Wine.