Glacier Big Woody Barleywine

Brewed by Glacier BrewHouse
Style: Barley Wine
Anchorage, Alaska USA

Serve in Snifter

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On tap at the Bistro Barrel Aged Beer Festival. I’m not a big barleywine fan, but this Big Woody was outstanding. The vanilla and fig came through in the aroma and flavor. It wasn’t overly sweet, but was very mellow.

Sampled from the tap at 2010 FOBAB. Poured a near clear dark brown with an amber hue and a yellowish gray head that lasted throughout the beer. Aroma had bourbon with sweet grain and a bit of biscuit. Flavor started with sweet grain, biscuit and caramel but a slight bourbon and dry note rounded out the beer nicely.

Had the ’09 of this on tap at the Hard Liver Fest in Seattle last weekend. Colour... garnet-amber with no head. Nose... soy, mustard and bittersweet chocolate brownies. Palate... lots of dark chocolate, mildly sweet, malty, grainy, burnt brown sugar and a medium length finish.

Draft at Brouwer’s Hard Liver 8 (2010). This was a 2007 vintage. The pour was a deep reddish brown with a small dissipating white head. The nose was amazing; toffee, sweet caramel malt, oak, vanilla, and bourbon? The taste was a generous portion of sweet caramel malt and toffee transitioning into oak and vanilla before giving off an earthy, grassy hop aftertaste. This was my favorite at the festival as well, glad it won.

On tap at Hard Liver 2010 - named the winner at the festival. Deep red pour with a small head, dissipating to a pretty little ring of bubbles. Powerful oak notes, with bourbon and vanilla on the nose. Smells a little hot, but the flavor really does pull through on this one. Lots of wood, but not bourbon - more like fresh-cut oak. I really feel like this is what Angels Share should taste like. It has the complexity (toffee, caramel, vanilla, oak, some fruit, etc.) - but isn’t quite as much of a punch-you-in-the-face palate bomb. Really good.

Draft, Hard Liver, ’07 vintage. Dark brown pour, white head. Aroma is sweet and caramelly, with vanilla notes. This has a huge, yet subtle flavor. Has the characteristic barley wine sweet caramel and toffee, with sticky raisin notes and vanilla. Overall this is one the sweet side, but is balanced out by light earthy and grassy hop bitterness and pronounced oakiness. This is very drinkable with no noticable alcohol harshness. Very nice, and certainly the most balanced barley wine I had today.

@Toronado BWfest–on tap-pours a light tan ring for a head and copper color. Aroma is sweet medium malt-toffee, some earthy hops. Taste is sweet medium malt-toffee, some earthy hops. Medium body.

Draught at the Toronado Barley Wine Festival 2010. Looked like every other barley wine at the festival. Lots of oak character all around. Rich dried fruit and caramel malt notes in both flavor and aroma. Mild bitterness. Great balance. Full bodied and smooth. A standout for sure, and I’m not surprised that it took home first place.

Draft from the teet. Dark caramel ruby with little head. Biscuit, prune...sweet and not overly complex. Prune, bread, brown sugar, raisins, toasted oak...again, nothing here that rocks me. I’ve had this at hardliver, wasn’t impressed, and now at the source and still wasn’t impressed. No flaws, but this is middle of the road barleywine.

On tap @ Glacier Brewhouse. Had an 06, 07, and 2010 during the 12 days of Barley Wine but will rate the 07 my favorite of the night aged in virgin French oak barrels for 1 year. Pours deep mahogany with a small off white head. Aroma of caramel, raisins, oak and alcohol. Flavor is sweet caramel malt with light bitterness and a very light alcohol taste. Medium to full body with mild carbonation and a syrupy mouth feel. This is a nice wood aged Barley Wine, the oak drys it out a bit which is nice compared to the fresh stainless steel aged batch.