Founders Nemesis 2009

Formerly brewed at Founders Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Grand Rapids, Michigan USA

Serve in Snifter

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   add pic

Sampled October 2011
An aggressive pour into my large Tripel Karmeliet Tulip just barely produces a fat-one-finger thick, pale amber tinged, tan colored head. The beer is a full amber color that shows a brilliantly clear, orange-copper tinged copper hue. The beer has a woody, perhaps slightly musty, plywood like oak character up front; the finish has a spiciness to it that accentuates some warm alcohol notes. Sweet whiskey soaked raisins, caramelized sticky malt, perhaps a hint of marmalade somehow, and, now that I have noticed it, a sweet maple note towards the finish, but really this smells pronouncedly of booze, wood and sweet toffee/caramelized character.

Sweetish and thick feeling as it first hits my palate, the finish dries out just a touch, but still retains a ton of sweetness; it gets dried out just a touch by some oaky astringency, some spicy wood and whiskey notes, a toasted maltiness and a spicy / hot alcohol note. The mixture of up front sweetness and hot alcohol are the most dominant notes here, but are a bit too much and seems to clash a bit. The sweetness is made up of caramelized flavors, some raisin notes, some definite maple like sweetness (though this is fairly subtle), sweet whiskey notes and lots of toffee like character. The heat in the finish is actually quite pronounced, it doesn’t quite make it undrinkable, but it can be close at times; it does make it undrinkable for my wife though.

Not bad, and I can see why so many people like this beer, but the whiskey notes and alcohol are just too much here for this beer to be balanced. It gets a touch more balanced as it warms, but never really quite gets there for me.

Bottle. Sweet, honeyish, mellow bourbon nose. Pretty, bright yellow color, with lots of floaties.Honey and bourbon flavors dominate. Medium-heavy body, warming, clean. Better than last time I had it (about a year ago). The intense sweetness has mellowed now, and it’s more integrated.

Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a tulip. Nemesis has a mostly transparent caramel color with a small white head. The cap fades pretty quickly to a ring around the edge of the glass. The aroma is full of creamy vanilla. Some maple and bourbon add a sweet booziness. The flavor is still fairly harsh. There is not enough body to contain the high ABV. It reminds me a little bit of cream soda, with vanilla, some oak barrel character, maple, bourbon, and sweet caramel from the base wheat wine. The body is a little bit thin from what I want out of a wheat wine, especially one that has this much alcohol. The booze is definitely noticeable. Carbonation is on the light side. This had potential, but the flavor is still too harsh to be enjoyable.

Old notes, consumed 2/21/10. Pours an orangish light brown with thick off-white head, minimal lacing. Aroma of wheat, yeast, bourbon, caramel, molasses, and a slight bit of maple. Flavor matches well, but is pretty hot and slightly overwhelming. I have yet to find a wheat wine that I could say that I truly enjoyed.

Consumed on 9/23/10. 12oz bottle poured into a pint glass [I know, should have poured into a better-presenting glass, but a pint is what I’ve got at the time]. Pours a very thick, cloudy amber/gold. A small finger-width head sits atop at first, but disappears quickly. Some light lace sticks behind. There are a TON of large floating particles in this beer. Doesn’t bother me, but it’s worth noting. The nose is full of caramel corn, vanilla, maple, wood, and some booze. This smells wonderful. Reminds me of Autumn. If this were a candle, I’d burn it constantly. The mouth is full and thick. On the pour, this glugged out of the bottle slowly, and it retained that quality in the feel for sure. Heavy is a good word for this one. Definitely a sipper. Great flavors that mix incredibly well. Starts out sweet with notes of vanilla, maple syrup, and bourbon. Smooths out due to the age and the oak experience. I’m glad these are close to a year old, if not older. I’m not sure I could have handled, or would have enjoyed this beer fresh. The alcohol has mellowed out a bit. But the bourbon quality is still there. I don’t have much experience with this style, but this beer was a treat. Not an everyday-beer for sure, but definitely one to sip and enjoy time and again.

12 ounce bottle. Thanks Jake! Pours a very dark amber with hardly any head. Aroma of malt, bourbon, chocolate, and fruit. Taste is bourbon, malt, vanilla, fruit, maple, and alcohol. Big and complex. Best to share the bottle.

Cloudy copper pour with no head. Aroma of bourbon, apple, vanilla, and maple syrup. Vanilla, maple syrup, apple and bourbon flavors with slight alcohol burn. The best beer I’ve had in a long time!

12oz bottle. Popped on a whim, pours out a medium golden hue, good carbonation, white head. Aromas from what I remembered when fresh died down a bit. The vivid tropical coconut sweetness was mellowed out in the nose, seemed a bit hot. Palate was pretty well put together, some malty sweetness up front and a sugary backend that was hot with alcohol. I thought the bourbon was holding this one together in the finish, but even after roughly 2 years, this could still use some time to mellow out.

Golden pour with watery white head and lace. Aroma of brown sugar, bourbon, and a hinto abv. Pepper, maple syrup, rock candy sweet, medium/hard bitter finish. Medium bodied with good carbonation. nice

Bottle shared at the RBWG in Austin. Light orange pour with a small white head. Aroma is minty, roasted caramel, and sugary fruit. Taste is taste is woody spice, vanilla, and a strong almost peppermint flavor.

Bottle as shown. Pours a cloudy gold with small off white head. The aroma is roasted malt. Medium mouthfeel with a sweet oak flavor. A decent barleywine from Founders.