Midnight Sun Arctic Devil Barley Wine

22oz bottle at our Monday tasting. Pours a burnt brown with a super thick foamy head. Nose is massive brown sugar and bourbon. Huge amounts of sweet malt and figs. Amazing smelling beer. Flavor is very sweet, lots of residual sugar but its quite balanced for a malt forward barley wine. The hops are there enough to keep it from being cloying. Caramel covered raisins dominate the flavor. Finishes is long on bourbon and has a decent amount of burn. The alcohol is not well hidden at all. Bottle was marked as 10% but 14% seems more like it. In this style its fine though. Complex with lots of malt characterisitics battling amongst dark fruits and caramel as well as the bourbon from the barrel. It all comes together in an absolutely stunning example of the style. The english would be proud. It was our favorite of the night.

Original review date 5/22/2009...I have sat on this one wayyy too long but it’s time. I think the Portsmouth snifter is the proper vessel for this deal. There’s a ginger head that’s about 1/2 finger and goes quickly. The body is flat milk chocolate/turbid coffee brown. Color is a little like a cherrywood-ish dunkel. This is a classic maltbomb barleywine going on. It is pure vanilla sticky sweet with some booziness and some earthy caramel malt - the heavy stuff. Very much a peanut brittle texture. Hop profile is on deep background and I fault nobody for this - it’s a creamy old-school barleywine. Wicked solid. I don’t really encounter beers made this way anymore and that’s my fault, but this one reminds me of a more robust version of backburner, which I enjoy immensely...but this one is without the apple (fault?) texture. Lots of vanilla and oak...maybe some hop pine but the star is some incredible rich, sweet and comforting velvety dark caramel maltiness. The booze on this reminds me of a couple of bourbon barrels - the color morphs into a dark bourbon after a while...it mixes into the whole effort and doesn’t offend. Palate feel matches nose and palate on this one. It’s deep, dark and malty but it doesn’t overpower. The oak in here actually soothes the booziness nicely and relaxes the palate after a while. It brings a bit of bourbon to the game to make it interesting. This sips much nicer than your average bear in the weight class. It has bench strength and depth. Enough hops to intrigue. Excellent.

Bottle. My third barleywine in a row. Probably my favorite of the group. Pours dark amber brown. Minimal head. Aroma of vanilla, malt. Flavor is sweet, lots of alcohol

bomber form sparky27 methinks... a dark nutty brown pour produces no head. the nose is full of sweet grain, malt powder, vanilla, white raisins, chocolate and some vitamin pills which comes from the barrels. the flavor profile matches the aroma almost exactly... with the exception of a few things.... a cloying sweetness and a big ol’ dose of alcohol burn which lends a bitterness on the finish (though it is not nearly enough to counter the amazing amount of sugars). the body is definitely thick with a syrupy unpleasant mouth feel... not my cup of beer though i can see why some folk dig it...8/4/7/2/15/3.6

woo whoo # 1300!! This is truly a great smelling brew.I can inhale this all day.A sweet bourbony nose. Caramel, toffee and sweet dark fruits.Flavor of dark fruits,cherries, toffee, and caramel with a boozy drive that warms the belly.A high heat spicy bite on the end that lingers with bourbon.

Bottle courtesy of dragonstout. Pour was dark brown almost black. No head. Aroma was vanilla, milk chocolate and cherries. Flavor was sweet up front. Vanilla, coffee, and almost a cherry cola flavor. Lightly carbonated like a soda as well...Finish came in a bit spicey. The alcohol came through in the flavor of black pepper. Blended well. Alcohol was present, but not over powering...Delightful barleywine!

Bomber. Made Jan 09. Pours a dark mohagany with a small but consistent off-white head. Aroma shows classic aged barley wine aromas of the English variety, certainly surprising seeing as this is so young. Dried fruits, caramel, sherry and port, spirits, bourbon and oak. Really nice aroma, Flavor is drier than expected, toasty with a tiny bit of alcohol. This is very complex. My review is not doing it justice but this is one of the best Barley Wines I’ve had. We’ll see how this ages.

2008 Bottle generously shared by ajm. Pours a dark shade of amber with a trim tan head. Smells and tastes sicky sweet -- much like cough syrup. Highly distracting. Faint caramel and dark fruit notes are present, but certainly overpowered. Didn’t get much from the barrel or malt, which was a downer.