Shipyard Barley Wine Style Ale (Pugsley Signature Series)

i really liked this one. drank fresh so the hops were very previlant which i really liked. it cut the sweetness with a nice bitter bite on the finish. taste lasted for a while after last drink. finishes smooth and sweet with a crisp hop bite. great drink

Bottle: Deep red colour, creamy brown head. Aroma of viny,citrus,malts,and sweet caramelly, and some rasberry. Flavor had a creamy mouth feeling,spicy,caramelly, medium to full body, long spicy and coffee fruity finish. Nice!!

On draft at Oldsmar Tap House. Pours a brownish red, with tan highlights and thin wet lacing. Aroma is big on caramel and woodsy notes, with brown sugar. Flavor has a roasted aspect to it, with caramel, some oak, chocolate, and espresso in the finish. Dry, medium-bodied, smooth and good, alcohol is hidden. Not sure why this is rated so low.

22oz bomber from the local Hannaford. Pours a nearly opaque very dark brown with nearly an inch of light tan head that leaves some impressive lacing. Caramel, toffee, chocolate, butterscotch... Chocolate, coffee, caramel, toffee characterize the flavor. Hints of butter here and there, but diacetyl was impressively subdued. On the upper side of medium-bodied with moderate carbonation. Not bad, a solid example of an English Barleywine for sure, being more of a malt bomb with hops playing second fiddle as it were. Not sure it was worth the price - maybe it was... However this has to be about the best Shipyard I have ever tried. Way to go Shipyard!

Bottle is aged close to one year. Pure black color with a nice and thick caramel colored head. Aroma has a roasted barley malt scent with some chocolate and coffee undertones. Taste has a nice chocolate flavor with a little coffee in the back end. Nice and smooth aftertaste with a little bite.

I think this gets a bad rap. So it tastes more like a Guinness than a barley wine, big deal. I think that it is really a good beer once you get used to it. Pours a dark red with a tan, fading head. Aroma of brown sugar, yeast, and dry malt. Flavor, as I say, is something like a Guinness poured into an Old Guardian, with dry, bittering hops and caramel, as well as some booze and yeasty malt. Not really much of a barley wine, but a fine beer.

Bottle from BevMo in La Jolla: Viewed as a deep shade of mahogany with a fat patch of puffy khaki color of heading. The nose is fooled by a combination of different scents such as chocolate, caramel, and a fresh cigar aroma. Flavor is initially sweet and fruity with a presence of dried fruits like raisin or fig as well as moist chewy prunes. There is a strong toasty malt backbone dominating the drink but also has a hop bite to be noticed and appreciated.

22 fl oz bottle. Pours dark brown with a small tan head. Aroma is caramelish and fruity. Bitter, acidic and fruity flavoured. Overripe fruity and dark malty flavoured. Light chocolate and acidic flavoured finish.