Eel River Triple Exultation

Brewed by Eel River Brewing Company
Style: Old Ale
Fortuna, California USA

Serve in English pint, Snifter

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Nice dark brown with a fairly thin, very light tan head. Aroma contains mostly malts, with a hint of alcohol and brown sugar/molasses. I let this warm up a bit...flavors were intense malts with a touch of persimmon astringency. Alcohol is present in the finish. I recommend letting this beer age a few months for mellowing.

22oz bottle 5/19/12 (Binny’s Downers Grove)-46° in English Pint-Pours a cloudy brown with a loose two finger tan head. Aroma of malt, caramel, toffee, dried fruits. Aroma of a Barley Wine. Taste of the same with a bit more dark fruits, hops, and molasses. This full bodied brew is well balanced and has a lot of flavors. Nice job.

Pours a cloudy dark brown with a small white head in a pint glass. Very complex aroma of spice, citrus, bread, nuts, and a hint of coffee. Very sweet (bordering on too sweet) with the faintest hint of bitter. The body very full with a thick, creamy texture. The finish is sweet and hangs around a bit but not too long. This is a very yummy beer and would serve well at a desert. I will be picking this up on a somewhat regular basis, as one of the local resturants has a BYOB option.

Deep plum pour thin creamy off white head thick band of lacing .... aroma of dark fruits (plums/raisins), brown sugar/molasses and earthy .... taste is of dark fruits (plums/raisins), brown sugar/molasses, bitter earthy/light citrusy hops but more on the back end with a warming abv and bitter dry hopped finish .... a nice solid old ale

650 ml. bottle. Pours a thick lasting, light beige head, with attractive lacing, over a clear copper (SRM 15) body....nose is heavy treacle, toffee/caramel, brown sugar, light pine, citrus peel....taste initially redolent of dried fruits including plum, cherry raisin, hints of fig, with toffee/caramel, then a wave of bitterness with hints of pine grapefruit peel....mouth feel thick and sticky, alcohol heat present, carbonation low. The high IBU’s and higher than usual alcohol, make this an atypical Old Ale. The hop presence and bitterness is a bit of a shock, because most often in this style the malt complexity and sweetness dominates. The result of this recipe is a beer that begins to ease into the D/IIPA category. But the result is a thoroughly enjoyable beer. BJCP 8/3/16/4/7

Rusty garnet. Scattered dirty-white head establishes a thick halo. Boisterously estery strawberry jam, treacle, sherry, grapefruit, raisin bread, and plum aromas. Suggestive tobacco, pecan, breadcrust, pineapple and papaya, as well. Expressive yet beautifully refined hop bitterness forcefully clasps the tongue as luscious esters envelop the palate with an oozing vibrant jamminess. Toffeeish malt takes foothold as it fuses with the residual sugar decadence, though despite the enormous girth which permeates the center, the sweetness stops just shy of reaching cloying levels. Dry dextrinous edge also provides nice counterbalance as well as pecan-skin nuance to the beefy malt core. Mild onset of oxidation yields a sherrylike resonance which parallels the distant leathery astringency. Profusion of brightly polished fruitiness lends a tangy bounce, providing adequate contrast to the sweetness. Hops continue with a focused pungent earthiness. Alcohol warms the innards but no overt sharpness is to be found. Brawny toffeeish and bready malt comprises the cohesive finish which is adorned with a candyish tackiness and luscious strawberry jam punch. With the exception of ramped up alcohol and hopping rates, this is pretty much a spot-on rendition of a traditional Old Ale. Exemplary.

Bottle. Head is initially average sized, frothy, light brown, mostly lasting. Body is dark amber to medium brown. Aroma is moderately malty (caramel, toasted bread, cookie), moderately hoppy (apricot, grapefruit, resin), with notes of vanilla, dried mango, dried blueberry, toffee, marmalade, alcohol. Flavor is heavily sweet, lightly acidic, lightly to moderately bitter. Finish is moderately sweet, lightly acidic, moderately to heavily bitter. Medium to full body, watery/velvety/syrupy texture, lively carbonation, moderately alcoholic. A truly beautiful barleywine. Green Flash’s rendition this year blew my socks off, and this one is right up in the same ballpark. Extremely complex and enticing nose that offers equal interplay of malt, hops, and esters...an absolute joy to nose. Tropical fruit galore, rich cookie-caramel malts, vanilla-toffee, it’s really hard to imagine someone not enjoying this. And remarkably balanced in the mouth with pretty much zero abrasiveness. Dare I call it elegant? It is, though...and that’s pretty rare with a beer of this kind. Two thumbs up.

sample at Coles Barleywine Competition 2012. darker copper pour. I thought that this was lacking typical Barleywine characteristics, the rich toffee maltiness etc. Lighter flavor profile. OK

(bottle) Pours a dark mahogany color with a large tan head and significant lacing. Perfect 5. I’m not sure of the age of this bottle, but it was purchased at a liquor store which sees low traffic, so I’m guessing it’s at least a year if not two old. It certainly smells aged, and it closely resembles, if not completely mirrors the scents of a well-aged barleywine. Scents of oxidation are present, but they only enhance the overall smell. Coupled with these aromas are toffee, peanut brittle, papery hops, and sugary dried fruits. The peanut brittle really intensifies with warming, and at 9.7% the alcohol is not showing at all. I miss the strawberry jam component present in many other aged beers of this ilk. Flavor displays a surprising hit of black licorice with sugared raisins, toffee, and a lingering finish of peanut brittle, toasted malt and oxidation that is coupled with a substantial amount of bitterness. The toasty malt and brittle are great, but the oxidation is a bit heavy, and the bitterness is just unwelcome and out of place. Further warming elicits some microwave movie theater buttered popcorn and dried pineapple. There is a slight bit of alcohol heat, but it’s very subdued. Overall this is a quality old ale, but the age is beginning to show a bit too much with this particular bottle. With that said, I would definitely consider buying another as it is good, and I certainly wouldn’t turn down a fresher offering.

Aroma of cherries, dark fruits, molasses and slight bread. Pours hazy brown with a medium dense head. Tastes very complex. Almost a cinnamon quality with dark fruits and breast. Yummy.

Sample at Ale Wine & Spirits in Powell on 01/06/2012. Brownish pour with ruby around the edges, and a medium beige head that recedes steadily. Stringy lacing on the glass. Aroma of dark malt, raisin and caramel. Medium to full body with a dark malty character and notes of dark fruits, caramel and a hint of spice. The finish is malty with a sweet aftertaste. Decent overall.