Ice Harbor Barley Wine Style Ale

Brewed by Ice Harbor Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Kennewick, Washington USA

Serve in Snifter

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Murky red brown color with a small, off white head. Aroma of dark fruits, caramel, light oxidation, pine, vanilla, and some alcohol. Taste of nice dried fruits, raisins, caramel, light vanilla, tobacco and oxidation / lt alcohol finish.

12oz bottle. Slightly cloudy amber with big head. Really smooth with big kick of grapefruit hops and sweet malt. Fantastic balance and the hops just pop out. Not overly bitter. Love it. Light for 9.3%.

Bottle, thanks to Rachel, who brought this back from Washington for me. This is my fifth of the Sampler Six she bought for me, and I’ve been very impressed so far. This barleywine is probably the best of the lot, too. Pours clear medium "old gold" to copper, medium off-white head, which is again quite persistent and laces beautifully. Whatever else Ice Harbor might do as a brewery, they make bloody marvelous looking beers. Nose is right up there with some really top-flight younger barleywines I’ve had, complex, spicy, citrus hops, fudgy cocoa notes, caramel, red fruits, pipe tobacco, licorice, both red and black, some earthiness, cedar, some notes I can only describe as "of the Orient" here too. Flavours aren’t quite a match for the nose, but few things are. Flavours are "darker" than the nose, more molasses and raisins, brandy, marmalade, slight red candy note, but more tubas notes here that trumpet... A very classic American-style barleywine, I really must source some of this to age. Had this after the well-made though unimpressive Kolsch, and it was very much a horse of a different colour. Startlingly good, especially considering the very pedestrian packaging.

Bottle, courtesy fishingnet. Hazy amber copper pour, thin lacing and smallish head. Some caramel and sharp dry grain, some vanilla, and slight heat. Flavor is very smooth, with caramel, cocoa, some vanilla, and slight port-like qualities. Very yummy. Balanced and medium-bodied.

Thanks fishingnet for the share. Pours hazy orange amber with a white head. Nose is malt, caramel, sugar, honey, floral hops, booze, and I swear I get some vanilla. Flavor is caramel, honey, malt, floral hops, pine hops, and some nice sweetness. Enjoyable medium to full-bodied beer with lingering sweetness. Very good.

12oz Bottle – Ice Harbor Brewing – Kennewick, WA
Aroma: Big malt aroma lots of sweetness and alcohol.
Appearance: Amber in color, clear with a light head.
Flavor: Big malt flavors with light spice and tons of alcohol flavor. Very big beer.
Palate: Dry with a smooth alcohol finish.
Overall: Big barley wine flavor. This was a great beer.

great great beer

Bottle. Pours amber amber with a pretty decent fluffy head. Aromas of sweet toasty malts and floral and grapefruit hops. I don’t know how old this one is, but the hops here are rather strong for the style. Lots of grapefruit and floral notes in the flavor with a good dose of bitterness as well as toasty bready sweetness as balance. This drank very well for the ABV too.

Over a year old, this batch had some time to age. Appearance is orange-amber with a creamy beige cover. Rich fruity aroma that splinters into apricot, tangerine, dark candied fruits, and zesty fruit punch. The body is of juicy fruitiness and chocolate. Apricot, tangerine, and fruity punchy notes all emerge. Medium-bodied, even a bit thin over the palate. No off-flavors and quite quaffable.

Big thanks to fishingnet for hauling this back from the NW. Pours hazy deep gold with thin white head. The aroma is thick slick malts and pine to grassy to citrus hops to go along with a sense of honey. The taste is pure yum with sticky chewy sweet malts, pine hop bitterness, some citrus hops, more sweet malts and a tasty layer of black tea. The hops and malts run together with some tasty harmonious vibrations.