Delafield Old Number 27 Barley Wine Whiskey Barrel

Brewed by Delafield Brewhaus
Style: Barley Wine
Delafield, Wisconsin USA

Serve in Snifter

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On tap at Delafield Brewhaus. Poured a clear deep copper with a medium cap of creamy off-white head that stuck around for a little while... nice spiderweb lacing remained as this went down. Nose was led by darker fruits (rum-soaked raisins and plums) with an underlying, almost Kool-Aid sweetness and some barrel character (oak chips and sweet bourbon). Dark fruity sweetness in the flavor ’til about 1/3 of the way back... then the bourbon really digs in... building until about 5 seconds after the swallow.. nice blend, though.. sweet finish carried across toffee that emerged with warmth, vanilla, and dry oak chips. I enjoyed the bourbon influence. Medium-heavy bodied and almost syrupy on the palate.. very sweet, but I was in the mood for a sweeter drink. Very good stuff!

growler, courtesy of deyholla, shared at hunahpus day 2012... pours a caramel toffee brown hue, most transparent with lighter edges while being topped with a skimpy heady ring around the edges... sweet edged nose with rich toffee and caramel and a moderate degree of bourbon. lighter on the oak territory... flavors follow suit. sweet barrel aged rich dessert like goodness with assertive notes from the spirit that meshes well with the sweetness and base beer expressions. big and bold and enjoyed.

Growler at Hunahpu’s Day 2012, courtesy pantanap. Pours a hazy, dark, brownish amber color with a thin ring of beige foam for a head. There is no notable lacing, though some dense sheeting washes over the glass. The nose is quite sweet and warm, showing loads of chewy caramel and rich toffee malts, all awash in oaky, vanilla-kissed bourbon. Flavors follow suit, rich and lush, touching on some fruit and fading citrusy hops, but mainly staying centered on the rich caramel-toffee and whiskey barrel tendencies. The palate? Predictably big, sweet, sticky and warm. No escaping that at over 12%. Overall, it’s a pretty tasty slow sipper, if that’s your thing.

On tap at the brewpub. Pours a cloudy deep chestnut brown with a toupe head that dissipates slowly to the edges. Aroma has a good amount of toffee, caramel and sweet grains backed by a pretty strong whiskey note. Flavor has more of a warming whiskey note with toffe and sweet grains backed by a hint of caramel.

Murky brown with red hints, creamy off-white head. Amazing aroma of moderate bourbon, coconut, caramel-covered dark fruit, molasses, and a tail of rustic/robust wood. Huge malty sweetness, bourbon, coconut, molasses, dark fruit, caramel, and even a little cocoa/chocolate malt. Sticky residual malt and bourbon, wood tanin, fruit acidity, and even a bit of grapefruit-esque hops. Nice full mouthfeel with even carbonation that accentuates the malt profile. Big malt-forward barley wine among the best beers I’ve had. A real treat.

Wonderful vanilla and bourbon aroma,nearly perfect texture,one of those glasses who can linger over. Smooth and creamy malt flavor with distinct but not overpowering whiskey taste,more like Scotch whiskey then bourbon,little touches of fruit,so you know this is a barleywine, malt body just lacking a little sunstance to be a high 4, very nice bitterness in finish, alcohol lingers in swallow,but not harshly. the best new BBA brew I have tasted this year

On tap at the Delafield Brewhaus. Dark caramel colored with a thin tan head. Aroma of whiskey, oak, alcohol, dark fruit and malt. Taste is whiskey dominated with malt, alcohol and toffee. Smooth and a bit oily. Decent.

Tap at Brewhaus. 5/8/09
Vanilla, sweet malt and soaked wet wood aromas. Murky bronse color body with off white head. Descriction said full bodied but texture was rather thin. Caramel malts and sweet fruit along with some whiskey alcohol in flavor. Easy mellow beer for the alcohol content. About 30 minutes later still has a vanilla wood aftertaste lingering on palate. Not overpowering with the bourbon which was a change of pase with these barrel brews lately.

On tap at the brewpub. Reddish brown color. The non-colorblind folks around me say it has a bit of a plum color. Strong vanilla in the aroma along with the obvious bourbon. I can tell that this is more English style. Wonderful notes of dark fruit in the aroma. Prune and cherry. Loads of vanilla and oak with a bourbon finish. Not overly carbonated. I think the fact that they aged this one 18 months in the barrel worked to mellow the beer out sufficiently while allowing the bourbon and vanilla notes to infuse themselves perfectly. I wasn’t expecting this to be this good!

On tap at the Delafield brewhouse, pours a semi-hazy caramel amber brew with a thin beige head that dissipates to a thin ring and thin film top with excellent lacing. Aroma of bourbon, a tad of coconut, caramel, dark pitted fruits and some vanilla. Taste is full bodied, no carbonation with flavors of bourbon, caramel, vanilla, and some raisins. Finish has a light bourbon aftertaste that lingers with an alcohol warmth.

UPDATED: JAN 2, 2009 Nice to see this one returned after two years of absence. On draught at the Delafield brewhouse, pours a semi-hazy copper amber brew with a thin off-white head that dissipates to a thin ring and thin film top. Aroma of bourbon, a tad of coconut, caramel, dark pitted fruits and some vanilla. Taste is full bodied, very little carbonation with flavors of bourbon, caramel, vanilla, a touch of black licorice, and some raisins. Finish has a light bourbon aftertaste that lingers with an alcohol warmth. Cellar this one for a little longer and I expect this barley wine will really smooth out with age. Update: 1/2/2009 - New tapping of this barley wine had a much smoother character than the one sampled a few weeks ago. Happy to have tried this one again.