Kuhnhenn Bourbon Barrel Barley Wine

12oz bottle. Big boozy nose with raisin and vanilla aromas supporting the bourbon. I will also swear to have detected a whiff of cheddar cheese. Poured a hazy dark orange color with a thin light tan head. Didn’t taste at all as I had anticipated. I tasted controlled bourbon, but there was also distinct lemon up front and some bitter almond at the end. It was medium bodied and both sweet and acidic. Interesting barley wine.

12oz bottle, courtesy of Ryan. Thanks a ton, dude. Pours an oily, dark brown color with a thin perimeter of light-tan bubbles; an oily, viscous, heavy pour. Gorgeous, dense aroma: dried dark fruits, maple syrup and toasty, soft bourbon notes; intensely generous, sweet without being sticky, and a gorgeous caramel / soft viscous bourbon character, with a touch of roasted meats / smoked malts; awesome nose. Full, impressively dense mouthfeel: soft carbonation; lots of dried dark fruits, caramel, and maple syrup; the bourbon character is soft, toasty, slight vanilla presence, and lots of sweet dried fruits; beautifully aged at this point, with a touch of dried caramel coming through, seeming like oxidation (though light); remarkably drinkable and well-integrated; a touch of sour-mash character from the bourbon, adding a bit of acidity; minimal alcohol, if any, which is pretty sweet for 14.5% beer; I could drink a ton of this, and will likely never get the chance to. Awesome, perfectly blended stuff. A touch of smoked meat and smokiness / charred malts. Long finish: sweet, intricate bourbon, dried dark fruits, and maple syrup; great bourbon barrel aging serving to restrain a previously unhinged barley wine. This is how barrel aging should go.

12oz bottle thanks again to jeremy for bringing this one along....a dark toffee brown pour with wispy light brown swirls in terms of head.... aroma was very assertive on the bourbon along with sticky chewy caramel and toffee. a really nice nose i must say....flavor was somewhat oxidized but still had lots of wood, bourbon, caramel, vanilla, and dark fruit. mouthfeel felt somewhat thin. carbonation was a little lacking. overall, it was still pretty nice.

Stud tasting 1.0 held at general_gaos. Thanks for putting up with us colin! Pours a brownish red with no head. Aroma is vanilla, oak, strong malts, and cherry. Flavor is up front celery, blood/minerals, sea weed, booze, cherry, foot, funk. Finishes boozy, warming, some tartness. I guess even at a stud tasting you get one turd. I think the other two guests enjoyed this one, so it was just me, not the bottle

A- Pours a ruddy, brownish hue with little to no head. S- Smell is absolutely phenomenal. Tons of brown sugar, hints of bourbon, fig. T- Wow. Before describing the taste my first thought is ... smoooth. Starts off slightly fruity, possibly hints of cherry mixed with figs, brown sugar sweetness comes in to balance. The end is an alcohol warming balanced exquisitly with very sweet, sugary notes. M- Thick with a good bit of carbonation left for a beer this old. D- This is another out of the park brew by kuhnhenn. I truly hope they produce more so I have another chance to drink this one. The main thing I truly loved about this one was the balance. It was huge yet seemed to balance the alcohol perfectly with rich sweetness that a lot of other "extreme brews" fail to do. Totally lives up to the hype in my opinion. Although there probably aren’t many bottles left in circulation, if you have a chance trade whatever you can for this one.