Howe Sound Woolly Bugger

Brewed by Howe Sound Inn and Brewing Co.
Style: Barley Wine
Squamish, Canada

Serve in Snifter

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December 2012 edition, 341ml capped bottle found in the mighty Surrey, British Columbia. Pours with a solid head on top and a deep amber body, looks like a brown ale rather than a barley wine. Heavy fusel and alcohol notes on the nose with hints of grain and malt buried in the back end. Flavour is a strong mix of caramel and wood, good barley notes, with a dry finish. The heavy alcohol on this one doesn’t come through at all. Not the best looking or smelling barley wine, but it tastes pretty good.

Sample at Howe Sound brewpub in Squamish. Pours a deep brown with thin tan head. Aroma of deep and lush brandied fruit. Taste is very crisp in hop profile making me almost think this is a IIPA rather than a BW. Lovely finish that lingers nicely. Alcohol very well hidden. Excellent.

Bottle. Clear amber color. Faint aroma of some malts and booze. Flavor is complex and sweet. Very nice.

Limited Edition bottle number 513 of 1100. Purchased on March 11, 2011 at the Howe Sound Brewery in Squamish, BC. Colour: Slightly deep red with low but stubbornly durable slightly brown head. Nose: A wonderful collection of fruits...crushed red grapes, peach, summer cherry, nibs. Swirling brings out a suttle butterscotch. All of this among mounds of candied barley. Taste: Medium-high sweet, medium sour, light bitter. An instant touch of soap that quickly vanishes and opens up a chest of vanilla and creamy caramel. The middle crackles with barley and a slight spice emerges. The finish has a distinct aged rum note that is absolutely delicious. Quite sweet but Howe Sound has recognized this by making the bottle size 187ml, so never does it become overbearing. Absolutely stunning stuff.

Bottle. Colour...amber-garnet with little head. Nose..."sugar in the raw", burnt sugar sirop, and toffee. Palate...plenty of oaky dryness here and mild sweetness that pairs well with the hop presence. The hops, though not predominant, step aside long enough to allow the flavours of toffee, turbinado and butterscotch pudding to come through. Nice and woolly!

341 ml bottle. 2012 vintage. Pours a deep red/mahogany with medium lasting head. Aromas of wood, caramel, roasted malt and licorice. Smooth and almost creamy for a barley wine. Beautiful balance and 11% well hidden. Flavors of dark fruit/plums, roasted malt, burnt sugar, and way in the background a bit of pine. Excellent.

Bottle. Pours dark brown/red with white lacing. Aroma of dark fruits, candied sugars, toffee, molasses, and some nuts. Flavour the same, some booze, light citrus bitterness. Thinner than expected. Some nice flavours. Not bad.

UPDATED: FEB 25, 2013 Wow... why do they make so little of this? An incredible barleywine, intense malt / earthy / nutty aroma and velvet mouthfeel with alcohol, caramel malt flavours. Not aggressive, just exquisitely balanced. EDIT: I’ve shared a couple bottles with barleywine virgins and it’s getting unanimous approval. Each time better than the last. I’m raising this a few points.

Cloudy brown with a small pale head that leaves some lacing. Aroma is raisins, chocolate, brown sugar, dates. Medium bodied, sweet and slightly sticky on the palate with a toffee finish and slightly metallic aftertaste. Flavour is raisins, brown sugar, salty liquorice. Very tasty, quite Belgian in character.

Pours a deep copper color, with a substantial lasting head and moderate lacing. Aroma is somewhat unimpressive, consisting primarily of malt with ripe fruit notes. Flavor is all about malt with moderate complex flavor of carmel, ripe fruit and citrus, with just barely enough hop bitterness to pull this brew together. The flavors linger well into the finish. Overall I think this is a good, very drinkable barley wine; more so than most. The only reason it fails to rate higher in my score is that it could use a little more complexity, and the aroma is seriously lacking for an otherwise nice brew. I would come back to this again, and hopefully this isn’t the last batch we’ll see.