Seabright Old Okole {Oh Ko Lay}

Brewed by Seabright Brewery
Style: Barley Wine
Santa Cruz, California USA

Serve in Snifter

On tap at the brewpub ages ago; review from notes. Pours a clear amber color with a firm tan head. Citric sweet aroma -- candied oranges, caramel, pine. Flavor is much the same, lots of deep sweet maltiness and a strong fruity hop profile. Plays well off the alcohol notes but this is a little tough to get through a snifter. Palate fatigue from all angles -- boozy, sweet, thick. A nice offering in extreme moderation.

A fairly well done barleywine of the hoppier variety. Nice malt body, bit of alcohol burn in the finish. Doesn’t greatly stand out, but it’s a nice barleywine.

Draught at the brewpub. red-brown color with a small beige head. Fruity and piney hop aroma and a good amount of caramel as well. Malty flavor with some deeper caramel and dried fruit, but a big hop flavor and bitterness come together with smooth alcohol in the finish to really balance things out. Moderately fruity but very resiny and piney. Full bodied. After the last couple years of sweeter barley wines, I like the hoppy balance of this one. Definitely similar to something like SN Bigfoot.

Clear copper brown with a fizzy tsp head. Molasses caramel spice and toffee aroma and taste.

On tap at the 2003 Toronado Barleywine Festival: Nice creamy mouthfeel. Full maltiness. Underlying citric hop notes. Very well balanced. Nice. (Note: This beer took 3rd place in the festival.)

On tap at the Toronado Barley Wine Festival 2003. Dark pour with little carbonation. Butterscotch and toffee flavors. Additional comment from another taster was that this tasted like weak coffee from 7-11. Go figure.