RateBeer
   Home Sign Up or Login Advanced Search
   People Ratings Events Places Forums Shop Magazine
      Top By Category  RateBeer Best  Latest Ratings  Top 50    

Great Divide Old Ruffian

Great Divide Old Ruffian  - Barley Wine

* picture credits
copyright may apply

 Percentile 
99
overall
Brewed by Great Divide Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine

Denver, Colorado USA

bottled
common

on tap
available

Broad Distribution
Find this beer

Add Distribution Data
send corrections | shelftag |

 Ratings  Average  Score  ABV  Style Pctl  Serve in 
8703.91/5.03.91/5.010.27%93.5Snifter
View Statistics  P 

Commercial Description:
Old Ruffian is a hefty, hop-forward Barley Wine. Seemingly mellow at first sniff, with its subtle fruit aromas and complex caramel sweetness, this deep mahogany-hued ale quickly shows its true character marked by bold hop flavors and massive hop bitterness. Old Ruffian’s rich, slightly creamy, caramel malt mouthfeel balances its grapefruit, pine, and floral hop flavors, working wonders on your palate.
A mind-numbing 90 International Bittering Units (IBUs).
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 TheEpeeist (1429), Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, USA
3.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/57/103/517/20
Jun 17, 2007  
22 oz bottle, maybe 2 years old. Murky dark brown with a lacy tan head. Nose of caramel and grassy hops. Bitter, buttery bite with caramel-apple. Medium body and light carb. A hoppy barleywine to be sure but now quite balanced. Good stuff.


 bdigital (585), Ft Wayne, Indiana, USA
3.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/57/104/517/20
Jun 16, 2007  
Bottle pours a murky, dark amber with small white head. Strong dark roasted malt aroma and a little bit of caramel and cane sugar notes. Wonderful mouth feel. Not much in the way of noticeable hops in the taste. Tasted more like a strong ale than a barley wine. Drank this with some deep-fried jalapenos and pickles at Hot Shotz in Indy. Good brew.


 ultraspank (866), Dublin, Ohio, USA
3.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/59/104/514/20
Jun 13, 2007  
Fruity nose of alcohol and grainy malt. Pours a sparkling copper with ruby highlights. The lovely cascade produces a mostly lasting tall beige rocky head that leaves behind light lace. The well balanced flavor is light on acidity. The roasted grainy finish has moderate to heavy bitterness. The thick body is syrupy and soft.


 drewbeerme (2224), Chicago, Illinois, USA
4.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/58/104/517/20
May 25, 2007    Updated: Mar 12, 2008
22oz bottle, cellar aged for 2 years. i thought i already rated this one so i didn’t take much notes. i’ve also had this most recently at 1 years age and fresh but i dont recall what it tastes like fresh. at 2 years age...i love the way this beer ages, at 2 years there’s a lot of nice oxidized notes of tobacco and charred wood. some chocolate and lots of caramel notes. the hops have faded but are still present. carbonation is fine, alcohol very well hidden. this may be peaking at 2 years old but i bet it could 3-4 years. very fine aged beer.


scottyw (46), Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA
3.9 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/105/57/103/516/20
May 24, 2007  
Aroma is the best part of the beer. Finish is very long, slightly acidic/alcoholic. Intially the taste is sweet, but then gives way to the strong finish. At the bottom of the glass, after it has warmed some, caramel makes its way into the nose. Personally, not a huge fan of Barley Wines, but this has been the best!


 johnadam2002 (529), Hainesport, New Jersey, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/58/103/515/20
May 24, 2007  
Aroma of sweet malt with hints of hops and fruit. Light on hops and fruit. Tastes of caramel malt, hops, pine, fruit, spices, and alcohol. Pretty complex with sweet malt being more dominent.


 FLnative80 (174), Orlando, Florida, USA
4.5 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
9/105/59/104/518/20
May 23, 2007  
Bottle. 22 fl. oz. Hazy, redwood color with some lucious off-white head. Sweet aroma of malt, raisin, and hops. Creamy and full-bodied. Initial flavor is sweet and malty which is then quickly overpowered by a dry, hoppy finish. This beer has it all.


 michael-pollack (2603), King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, USA
4.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/104/58/105/517/20
May 22, 2007  
22oz. Bottle: Aroma is lightly sweet. Smells of caramel malts, hops, wood, sugar, and raisins. Poured a deep copper color with a hint of amber. Small, tan head diminished quickly. Good lacing. Cloudy. Many particles. Sparkling. Flavor is heavily bitter. Tastes of hops, sweet spices, caramel, a little alcohol, and pine. Medium to full body. Slick texture. Average carbonation. Bitter, hoppy finish becomes salty. Overall, a good barley wine.



CONSIDER FREE RATEBEER MEMBERSHIP



Join us! RateBeer is made by beer enthusiasts for the craft beer community. Your basic membership is free and allows you to read all beer ratings. Click here to create your account... and give your opinion!

SIGN UP NOW »

View Page 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87

What's Your Opinion?
Tell us what you think of this beer. Start your free RateBeer account now.
» Click here.

More Barley Wines

Lost Abbey The Angels Share (Bourbon Barrel) (4.2)

AleSmith Barrel Aged Old Numbskull (4.14)

Lost Abbey The Angels Share (4.11)

Three Floyds Behemoth Barleywine (4.09)

Kuhnhenn Bourbon Barrel Barley Wine (4.06)

Hair of the Dog Fred from the Wood (4.06)

Victory Old Horizontal (4.04)

AleSmith Old Numbskull (4.03)

Hair of the Dog Doggie Claws (2003-) (4.02)

Marin Old Dipsea Bourbon Barrel Aged Barleywine Style Ale (3.98)

Barley Johns Barrel-Aged Rosies Ale (Batch 2) (3.98)

Flossmoor Station Wooden Hell (3.98)

Midnight Sun Arctic Devil Barley Wine (3.98)

Three Floyds Bourbon Behemoth (3.97)

Third Coast Old Ale (3.97)


About RateBeer | Add A Beer | Add A Brewer | Edit Personal Info | 100 Beer Club | FAQ | Log out | Feedback? | Copyright 2000-2009, RateBeer LLC