Garrison Ol’ Fog Burner

Brewed by Garrison Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Halifax, Canada

Brownish color not much head. Aroma is sweet and relatively simple. Flavor is a bit earthy and sweet and rather odd for me for a bw.

Bottle: Deep copper amber pour with a wispy off white head. Sweet aroma- plummy and honeyish with a sticky sweet hop presence. Slick rounded body- big sweet flavor.Honeyish residual sugars and some sticky fruity hop notes. A big barley wine that’s lacking cohesiveness.

Bottle courtesy of Joe at Peter’s tasting. Pours a nice ruby brown with a thin white head. Little bit of Styrofoam, musty plum. Medium to thick body, really sweet. Finishes up with a light sweetness.

Bottle thanks to Gethinbeer. Cloudy amber with a thin off white head. Sweet toffee/ chocolate aroma. Tastes like thick chocolate with brandy a bit fizzy.

Bottle [500ml] shared with HogTownHarry & garthicus -- c/o tupalev. Pours a hazy orange-amber with millions of tiny floaties and an average size off-white head. Pretty good aroma with caramel malt, cherries (almonds?), some brown sugar and light hops. Flavour’s a bit boozy but not too bad, especially for a 10.3% beer. Flavour of caramel malt, cherries, some hops and a, earthy, bitter finish. Average bodied. Quite good.

Bottle in trade with OKBEER. Bottle pours a murky caramel with a instantly dispersing head that is replaced with a small central core of carbonation that doesnt yeild much. Nose of full malts and candi sugar. First sip yeilds a medium plus sweet body follwed closely with dominant hops. Body is ephemeral and thins out quick. Hop bitterness prevails and dominates thru finish. Alocohol creeps up on you after the fact. More body and less hops would turn this one toward a better end. I am amazed that I am the first oustide of Canada to rate this critter.

500 ml bottle from Premier. Pours a murky copper with small white cap. Caramel, fruits and some spice in the nose. Caramel malt, light spiciness and fruits - oh and defintely some alcohol notes - in the taste. Warm, alcohol finish. I’m probably not the ideal target for this one since I;m not wild about barley wines generally. I respect the craftsmanship, but this was a little much for me.

Bottle: Poured a deep copper color ale with a light foamy head with some retention and minimal lacing. Aroma of dry fruits with distinctive notes of plums and figs with some well balanced sweetness. Taste is also a quite complex mix between some dry plums and figs with notes of balanced sweet caramel malt. Body is about average with good carbonation and no signs of alcohol. Very well done overall and glad that brewer still see the point of brewing barleywine without throwing a ton of hops at them.