Great Divide Old Ruffian

Brewed by Great Divide Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Denver, Colorado USA

Serve in Snifter

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reddish/brown with a creamy tan head. aroma is loaded with caramel and butter offset by an equal amount of grapefruity hops. alcohol is lightly to moderately perceptible, but surprisingly hidden at its high level. i don’t even want to know how many calories are in this thing. flavor is just as full with caramel malts, and citrus hops, finish and aftertaste are surprisingly dry and a bit astringent. flavor is initially all malt, but the hops come on in no time and quickly dominate. pretty well-balanced overall. better than i expected.

Pours like syrup and is reddish amber in hue with a firm, rocky, honey colored head. Smells of hops and caramel. Very fruity in flavor. Finishes fast with moderate body for a barley wine. Hop flavor is on the side of the American style but restrained as such. Some muddled flavors in the middle that may shine through with aging.

UPDATED: OCT 16, 2007 A hoppy barley wine, this struck me more as a slightly vinoous IIPA. Nice hop character and a whole lot of nice citrus flavors. I like my BWs a little more "winey" than this, but it’s still a very well constructed brew.

Dark ruby with a large off white head and thick lacing. Aroma is strictly hops. Bitter and grassy with some citrus. Though after a minute a warm biscuit aroma comes through. Ahh! The flavor has it right! Almost a perfect balance to it. The hops and malts blend seemlessy. There is a nice bubblegum flavor hanging about as well. Palate is sliky and a huge body to boot. Finishes sweet, malty and hoppy.

Gorgeous ruby red color with a incredibly well retained beige colored head. Aroma is significantly hoppy with lots of grapefruit, also some alcohol. Flavor is very large with lots of hops, some caramel maltiness. This beer tilts somewhat toward Imperial IPA status, though less so than say Hog Heaven. Quite warming in the end. Very tasty.

Beautiful thick auburn appearance with slow moving bubbles and thin head. I can tell this is a big beer. WOW! A blanket of caramel coats my tongue with powerfully sweet and spicy hop highlights. The alcohol works brilliantly here to carry the flavor into the nose seemingly without end. This is absolutely delicious and so drinkable I urge caution. This is as good as I remember the Behemoth (due to limited availability that’s all I have to go on). For $5.99 a 22 oz bomber this is one of the best out there imo. I’m speechless.

Poured a beautiful deep ruby color with a large off white and long lasting head. Huge fresh hop aroma. Piney resin and grapefruit. Some caramel notes underneath. Flavor is Hops from begging to end. Piney and citrus flavors through the nicely bittered (but not overdone) finish. The sweet malt is there underneath and in the middle but finishes a lot quicker than the hops. Maybe too quick. Alcohol is big with the warming and some taste of it but nicely balanced. Medium bodied but feels a little thin on the tongue for a barley wine. Most other styles and I would have given the silky smooth feel a 5 but being thin for a bw I had to take some points. Overall I am very happy I have more of this.

When I opened the bottle and got a whiff of the citrusy hop aroma I thought this could give Hog Heaven a run for the money as my favorite barleywine. But when I tasted it I was dissapointed. Nice malt flavor with a LOT of bitterness but no hop flavor. I think this one needs to age, and it will improve.

This lovely surprise at the liquor store found its way to my taste buds this evening. It pours amber with an tan-orange head, and it looks thick. Citrusy hop aromas with some malt and also some aroma reminding me of soggy wood. Initial tastes bring more hop characteristics than I expected, but they give way to caramel malty sweet flavors. It’s pretty cloying and the alcohol is noticeable as well. The aftertaste is mostly hops with a bit of that caramel. Not as smooth as I’d expect a barley-wine to be. It would be interesting to taste this after it had been cellared awhile. Despite that, I’d gladly try it again. Very enjoyable.

Murky and deep amber with a rocky, long-lasting cream-colored head; nice lace, too. Chewy-thick texture, but not cloying. Very rich malts have a roasty-sweet, caramel base. Notes of brown sugar, toffee, dark toast, caramel, raisin and fig ... with the slightest hint of anise at times. Big bitterness -- and a little burntness -- follow through. Hops are grassy, piney, somewhat citric, and resinous. Overall, very malty, very hoppy, and very good! My kind of barley wine.