Moylans Old Blarney Barley Wine

Brewed by Moylans Brewery & Restaurant
Style: Barley Wine
Novato, California USA

Serve in Snifter

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Good sized head for the style. Dark ruby in color. Huge mouthfeel but I could use more hops because as the beer warmed the maltiness turned into cloying sweetness.

3rd October 2009
Bottle from a Las Vegas liquor store. Hazy dark amber beer. Thin white head. Semi soft and semi dry palate. Light on it’s toes! Typical barleywine. A little salty malt, hop bitterness. Trace of licorice. Drinkable.

Macon, Ga. - Wine Styles Liquor Store - 22 oz bomber. Pours a dark amber with a sticky, but thin khaki colored head that leaves a thin coat of lacing. Pleasant aroma with some molasses notes, some dates and a wee bit of alcohol. Flavor lacks that barley wine onslaught of malt of hops, very subdued. Some citrus notes, a bit of maple syrup a hint of nuttiness and chocolate and the alcohol is hidden well. Thick enough mouthfeel. Decent, but just not all that exciting.

2008 bottle Pours reddish orange with a very small white head. Nose is malty, caramel, ripe fruit, citrus and hay. Taste is slightly sweet with a big bitter presence that dominates through the finish. Mouthfeel is crisp and clean. Heavy body and long aftertaste. Amazing how well this has held up and even gotten better than it was fresh. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Bottle at Taphouse in Sydney. Pours a clear dark orange with an off white head. Smells of prunes, caramel, malt, hops. Tastes of a heavy sweetness, large bitterness with prune juice. Medium bodied, almost no carbonation, syrupy texture. Finishes very bitter with a long duration.

22oz bottle. Rating #480. Hazy dark brown with an orange glow and a light tan head. Big rich malty aroma, caramel and dark fruits. Mild hops, more caramel and a bit of booziness, good stuff. (2258)

A fine tribute to St Patricks day. Dark pour with decent head In bottle Good blend of malt n hop the high alcohol content was hidden. Labeled at 10% ABV, this is a live bottle and could be higher with age

22oz bottle, dark amber color, with a bubbly beige head, leaving some laces, sweet barley sugar, bran muffin, french toast, caramelized, biscuity, toasted, munich malt nose, with some english pudding, toffee, cookie dough accents, with some mild brandyish liquor, butterscotch pudding, caramelized graham cracker notes in the aroma follows through on a full-bodied palate with a nice warmth, sweet grainy toasted, caramelized, biscuity, munich, bready malt, sweet barley sugar, cookie dough, sponge toffee, graham cracker character, with some mild flowery leafy, grassy hop, brown sugar, brandyish flavors, with a faint butterscotch pudding, bran muffin, granola bar undertone, leading towards a warming, biscuity maltiness, brown sugar, lingering leafy hop bittering finish.

Thin khaki tan head that leaves some lacing on the glass. Color is a slightly clear dark maple syrup brown. Smell is nutty malt aroma. It is sweet and bready, like a fruit cake. Taste is also very malty. There is a mix of walnuts, molassas/brown sugar, and a bit of spices. Hops shows up as almost an after thought. Has a solid medium body. Overall enjoyed it.

No bottled on or freshness date, guessing this beer is about 6 to 10 months old. Pours a dark copper body with light bronze highlights. Head is 1/2 inch tan/sand color. Head retention and lacing are both good for a barleywine. Smell is big on dried stone fruits. Lots of apricot, fig, dates, and prunes. Caramel malts and candied belgian rock sugar is also prevalent. Smells almost as much as a dark Belgian strong ale as a barleywine. Hops are lightly present, very earthy, and alcohol is not really in the mix. Taste is of burnt caramelized sugar, hops are way more apparent now than in the nose. Hops are very earthy, hard to describe, almost like angostura bitters. Leaves a dirty, dull, bitterness in the mouth, almost the exact opposite from tropical and floral hops you get from beers like PtY and Hop Stoopid, not that I’m trying to compare this beer to them. Sweetness and Maltyness (yes I made that word up) really lack and let me down. Would have loved some sweet malt and buttery diacetyls to counter the weird bitterness. Instead I was greeted with slight oxidation and semi tart dried fruit ie: apricot and fig. On the bright side, for 10 percent alcohol, it is rather smooth. Mouthfeel is abit lighter than most barleywines. It is also a little higher carbonated also. Head was present but it just had too much stacked against it to make a difference in the consistency of the beer. Overall, this was an above average beer but a par barleywine. I like the style but the flavors were off and it made for an odd tasting beer. This beer gets points for being a smooth 10% barleywine but other than that, there are many others I’d rather drink before I would revisit this one.

Head small misty deep amber pour soft carbonation aromas earthy caramel alcohol chocolate fruit some toffee the flavours medium to strong bitter caramel toffee brandy citrus raisin plum lemon finish they say good body and taste I say a struggling barleywine some of the tastes okay but the bitter overdone an overrated barleywine