Destihl Travertine Barley Wine

Formerly brewed at Destihl Restaurant and Brew Works
Style: Barley Wine
Normal, Illinois USA

Serve in Snifter

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On tap at the brewpub and served in a snifter. A dark brown and copper body was topped with a khaki head. The aroma was pancakes and toffee. There was also some walnuts. The taste was bread crust with some almonds. A nice bitter finish with some grapefruit. A local and the bartenders said that the barrel aged version of this is great. Overall, a solid barleywine.

Tap at Brewpub. I get the impression that, fresh, this was a very nice beer. The problem is that they’ve had it on tap for about 6 mths and it is starting to oxidize. Pour is a deep brown/red. Taste is richly hopped and malty sweet. Like I said, with as much time as this has had, the crystal malt has picked up some cardboard to go with the dark fruits and oldish hop taste. This could be really nice fresh.

snifter at the brewpub/restaurant. poured a hazy medium brown with not much head and quickly fading lace. served too cold for the style, so let it warm for about 10 minutes. aroma was caramel malt, some toffee, hints of fruit and alcohol. flavor was earthy malts with some citrus fruits, mild toffee and a gentle warming alcohol presence. finish was slightly bitter, but very enjoyable. nothing over-the-top or mind blowing here, yet a solid and delightful offering.

on a related note... I had a small sample of the Bourbon Barrel Barley Wine and found it much too bourbon-ized. so much bourbon it seemed as if it was more a watered down bourbon than a beer aged in a bourbon barrel.

Served in a snifter, this has a slightly hazy amber body with just a few clusters of large bubbles in lieu of a head. The aroma has sweet malts, caramel, alcohol, hints of juicy fruits, and alcohol. The alcohol surges forward in the flavor making this a real warmer, but it all manages to blend together fairly tastefully. The finish is sweet, slightly earthy, with an alcohol burn. Fairly straightforward, but heck, this brewpub hasn’t been open very long. Good for them for offerfing a barleywine so soon.

<font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/Places/ShowPlace.asp? Restaurant and Brew Works, Normal, IL<font size=-1>