Great Divide Old Ruffian

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

Serve in Snifter

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I’m at war here. The ingredients list here includes everything from the Market Garden. There are oranges, pine needles, and some caramel candies to boot, all bursting from the aroma, although as I inhaled deeply the alcohol stung my nose after two seconds. Still, it warmed whatever [John] Frost was chilling me this February evening, and I was warmed after just a third of the bottle! If you can’t Hack[man] the alcohol, don’t even try! I was drawn in by the appearance, which first had an amazing head and cascade--in part due to my mistake of dropping the bottle on the carpet as I brought it in from the car, so I let it sit for a half hour before opening it--and the body was a nice slightly-hazy Red[ford]-brown. There is no doubt of the amount of Hop[kin]s that they’ve put into this bottle, as I could feel bitterness in every recess of my mouth, from the first sip going past my lips to the deep back of my throat as it slid down. It gave my tongue a good Can[e]ing as it slapped my tastebuds around; I have to agree with SilkTork for once, this is so over the top I think you need a parachute--or 35,000 parachutists--to get down to reality. I just had to take the attitude, "I think I can, I think I [Caan]" as I kept going forward. I don’t know who the brewer is trying to out-[Fox] with such a creation, but some this is the kind of beer that makes me think the "bigger is better" mentality is a bit of a Con[nery]. The lingering effects--even after I was getting my butt whooped by the alcohol--were not wholly enjoyable. And, for all of its nice sweetness, the malt body was not exceptionally thick. This is a bottle I wish I hadn’t paid $5 for; it would have been better split among a couple of people, everyone going Dutch. Maybe if this were cellared from 1977 it would be perfect by now (2005). Clearly the product of accomplished and aggressive brewing, but a tragic story of planning that misses the all-too-obvious problems. So what did I think, overall? Add up the clues and you’ll have the title of a movie that summarizes my thoughts.

Bottle. The pour was a clear dark mahogany red with a large (2-3 finger) light tan pillowy head that was mostly lasting, receding down to a large puddle and collar with excellent sheeting of lace. The aroma was of a sweet toasted biscuit malt, pine hops and a sweet doughy yeast with notes of toffee, citrus (grapefruit), caramel and some dark fruit (plums and raisons). The taste was sweet and rather malty with hints of toffee and dark fruit at first and then became slightly hoppy with a really nice bitter citrus note and a decent alcohol warming sensation at the end. The flavor hung around for a long while with a bitter sweet citrus flavor left to lie on the taste buds. Mouthfeel was just below medium in body with a dry oily texture and a prickly carbonation. Overall a sensationally tasting Barleywine with just the right blending of sweet malts and bitter hops...

Intense caramel and pine aromas, very bitter and hoppy but with enough caramel sweetness for balance. Very intense flavor and a long bitter finish. Very good, in small amounts.

dark reddish brown mahogany pour with a medium sized beige head... intense caramel and fruit aromas... at first touch of the tongue the malty caramel sweetness is huge! as it trickles down the sweetness slowly subsides and the citrus and some earthiness from the hops begin to kick in... at this point, got a nice coating throughout the mouth and at the last moment tons of bitterness jumps through, not necessarily overtaking the sweetness but def standing out at this point... until the next sip!

Hazy orange pour. Almost a brown sewer color in there. Small head. Aroma of sweet tropical fruit. Palate is medium bodied. Taste is pretty hoppy. There is a weird bitterness to it though. Almost cheese like.

22 ounce bottle into snifter, no bottle dating(but presumed to be Dec 2009 bottling). Pours fairly hazy brick red color with a nice 1 finger dense khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Some pretty nice lacing on the glass. Aromas of huge caramel, raisin, biscuit, toast, molasses, honey, pine, grapefruit, earth, herbal, toffee, and light spiciness. Fantastic and well balanced aromas with big complexity. Taste of huge caramel, raisin, molasses, toast, biscuit, herbal, grapefruit, earth, and light pine resin spiciness. Minimal bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of caramel, molasses, toast, raisin, biscuit, grapefruit, herbal, earth, and light spiciness on the finish for a while. Fantastic flavor balance and complexity; with no cloying sweetness at all. Medium carbonation and full bodied; with a nice creamy, slick, and thick mouthfeel. Quite smooth to sip on; with only an moderate alcohol warming present after the finish. Overall this is an absolutely fantastic barely wine with the age on it. The hoppy flavors smoothed out into perfect balance; with great complexity. Magnificent.

Bottled on Dec 2011, pours a rusty amber color with a small white head, lacing all around the glass. Nose is slightly sweet and fruity, a slight funkiness smell too. Taste great! Sweet at first with a nice hop bitterness on the end. Great brew! I’d love to age a few of these!

Bottle. Clear rusty amber pour with a foamy beige head that lasts a little while. Sweet malty aroma with a big toffee overtone has subtle notes of coffee, pine, musk, chocolate and citrus. Flavour is just like the aroma: malt driven but with a strong hop presence, hints of bread, nuts, spice, flowers and roastiness. Full bodied but not oppressively so, with a slick mouthfeel, soft carbonation and a long bitter, slightly spicy finish. Very nice and very easy drinking given the abv and the style.

4 finger beige head that sinks to 3mm, red-amber head. Nose: Plum, raisins, malt and madeira. Aroma: Raisins, plum, resin, grapefruit-peel, madeira, grapes, spruce and alcohol-sting. A bit "raw" or rustic in a good way. Long, dry and bitter ending.

Very cloudy dark amber-orange pour with a little head. Amazing aroma of caramel malt, rye, and citrus hops. Taste is very sweet at first (maybe a little too much) then bitterness strikes it down. Smooth finish. A very good barleywine but not my favorite. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Weicher, alkohlisch getreidiger Beginn. Deutliche Holznoten, im Mittelteil hopfige, später deutlich bittere Noten. Süßlich alkoholische Pflaumenaromen. 13/10/11/11/8/11