Real Ale The Kraken

Brewed by Real Ale Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Blanco, Texas USA

Serve in Snifter

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Draught. Dark orange pour with small head. Nose is oak, wood, books, pepper, caramel. Flavor is oak, wood, earth, hops, slight must. Tastes delicious! Nice dry mouthfeel.

Draft. Aroma is sour and fruity. You also catch some barley wine aroma in there as well. Appearance is flat looking no head and copper. The taste is of a sour taste over the barley wine. Really a good mix overall. Very well done. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Real Ale’s Sisyphus has always been a bit too sticky sweet for me, but the oak aging that transforms it into The Kraken adds several layers of flavors that balance out just right. The sweetness is still there but balanced by a bit of winey acidity. Beautiful!

The aroma starts out with sweet, sharp notes of vanilla, wood and nectar, with accompanying fruity tart notes of ripe apricots and even perhaps a bit of banana. There is also a subtle element of floral hops. It’s impressive. As the rich perfumes work their way up your nostrils, a minor but sharp note of rubbing alcohol manages to lurk in. The taste obediently mirrors all these notes, being mostly bitter and sweet but also featuring a tart component. The palate is thick. Impressive.

On tap @ Anvil Pub. Deep amber pour witha bit of off-white head. Smells great - dark fruit, vanilla, bourbon, oak, and caramel. Flavor is similar with a sticky mouthfeel and bits of toffee. Wonderfully barrel aged - lots of wood and bourbon. I love this beer!

Deep amber with a thin ring of cream head. Nose is vanilla, wood, sticky, toffee, and sweet. Very smooth on the palate, big barrel notes upfront, followed by rich toffee, cotton candy, dried fruits, and a sticky finish.

On tap at the The Holy grail..Pour is a dark honey with white head and some sticky lacing...Nose is malts, vanilla, resin,pine, fruits..Taste is chewy malts, vanilla, pine,wet wood, hoppy, caramel, toffee, spice with earth..palate is dry with light bitterness..Not to thick and over powering like most aged barley wines..The best aged barley wine ive had.

Draft @ the Saucer, Houston .. . sweet tangy nose- wine, oak, vanilla, and cranberry .. . sweet, tangy, biting- oak, wine, and barrel .. . delightful finish, i could drain a few of these .. . a winner from Real ALe
.. .
He doesn’t have any poison.
- I don’t have any on me, but I do keep some in my fridge at home in the relish jar.
There’s poison in that jar? I thought I was allergic to pickles. What’s in the jar with the skull and crossbones?
- Well, that’s mayonnaise. It’s a decoy.
And the mayo?
-: That’s shampoo.
You’re telling I’ve been putting shampoo on my sandwiches?
- If you’ve been using the mayonnaise, then yeah, probably.

A: The beer pours a murky, dark amber note with a small white head. S: The oak is super strong and really provides most of the aroma to the beer. A lot of spicy oak notes, a bit of char, and some sweet vanilla. Quite a bit of fruit, perhaps some black cherries that have a subtle tartness. T: A big time fruit character on the flavor with a lot of cherry as well as some raisins, maybe a touch of green apple. The oak is again very strong and adds a nice tannic and spicy note. Plenty of vanilla to go with it, and a slight char/smoke flavor. Even with all of that going on, there’s still some of the base sweetness of Sisyphus. M: The body is medium and the is light carbonation. D: Sisyphus is one of my favorite beers from Real Ale, so this was a real treat. A really nice beer.

What the hell were they thinking, making a beer as delectable as this so easy to drink? I’m not often keen on barrel aged beers, but when they hit, well... I got lost in this and thus words are lost on me.Yum.