 unclemattie (1556), Georgia, USA
Jul 22, 2007 12oz. bottle; 2006 vintage; 9.5%. dark amber, copper color. aroma is sweet malt. slight woodiness. flavor is very medicinal. very chocolaty. cereal finish. WOW!
drpimento (478), La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA
Aug 12, 2006 Poured with a great foamy, frothy tan head that yield some runny lace. Unfortunately, I ate some radishes before hand and my mouth is a little confused from that. I do taste some great hop that dominates and yet compliments the caramely malt. Distinct barley wine hop nose. Drank it in a goblet that’s narrow on bottom so beer is translucent there and wide on the top where the beer is almost opaque. Strange effect, good beer!
TheBeerLover (1011), DC Metro Area, USA
Jan 25, 2006 John Barleycorn 2001 vintage pours to a beautiful, deep caramel/ruby red color with a slight tan head that quickly fades and a soft carbonation. The nose on this beer grabs your attention as soon as you pop the cap. Very fragrant, zesty, spicy waves of Saaz hop aromas, marry with touches of citric/orange aromas, and an underpinning of sweet malt aroma. The palate is soft and fat on the tongue, with lots of big sweet and caramel malt flavors, fresh bread, and slight toffee and estery flavor. The body is big on this beer, but not too brawny as it softly glides over the tongue. This beer finishes malty up front, then ends with a very zesty, grassy, hop bite paired with a nice warming alcohol burn that lingers.
This was a very unique and special barleywine. The 2001 vintage has a wonderful Saaz hop character in aroma and bitterness, coming in at a mighty 60 IBU’s. It also has a sold malt back bone, giving that big hop character some balance, and a nice wallop of alcohol strength(9% abv), makes it a warming, comforting brew.
Five years of age on this beer has mellowed that intense hop character and more complex malt flavors and aromas have come out.
Indra (1826), Prairie Village, Kansas, USA
Mar 31, 2003 2001 bottling. Intense aroma, plenty of fruitiness, some apple, citrus and cherry, baking spices, faint tea leaves, wafting alcohol and lightly spicy hops. Red-orange color, finely hazed, initially fine head that all but dissipated completely. Great balance of caramel, bready, fruity malt sweetness, spicy, lightly piney and herbal hop flavors, bitterness and warming alcohol. Low effervescence on the palate and syrupy, oily mouthfeel. This is just a very nice beer, and the two years' aging certainly could not have hurt.
DocLock (4083), Lower Pottsgrove, Pennsylvania, USA
Aug 8, 2006 Thanks to Ross for this one. This one looks like a smacked ass, which is what a good barleywine should look like...muddy dark brown in color with 1-finger splotchy khaki head. The aroma is very fruity, oaky, peaty, woth some hops, caramel malt, and feety cheese hints. The flavor is richly caramel malty, very fruity, figgy, with a big oaky bourbon, cabernet, cognac, and citric finish. Nice complexity and balance.
|
