Sierra Nevada Bigfoot

2009 on tap. this beer is enormous. tastes of hops, grass, and citrus. big nose with hints of grapefruit and hops. Good hoppy barleywine.

2008 12 oz. I have had several of these over the last year and I’ve waited to rate it out of respect for this cult classic, but I can’t change what this beer is. Smells of strong flowers, sharp hops and a perfumed dark honey or candy. Looks gorgeous dark red almost ruby like, with white rocky head. Taste is once agaiin from the west coast extremist view of barleywine, way overly hopped and almost astringent with the only evidence of malts hitting the tongue just at the first moment and then quilckly disapating, extremely bitter with no balance. Mouthfeel has a little heft, very nice body throughtout temp range. This beer is ample evidence on its own that there needs to be a separate category for american barleywines. Sorry Sierra Nevada. Good one time experience.

355 mL. 2009 version. Pours a deep ruby with a thin yellow head that dissipates. Little to no lacing. Aroma of heavy caramel malt, grapefruit, toffee, pine, resiny hops. Huge hop presence. Taste at first I would swear is an Imperial IPA but the heavy caramel malt reminds that this is a barley wine. Big whole cone hops taste accompanied by citrus, black licorice, and even some fresh mint. Spicy alcohol in the finish quickly covered up by resiny hops and grapefruit. Definitely the hoppiest barley wine I have tried but also my favorite of the style thus far. Excellent.

07 version on tap at 1702. anice aroma ofsweet malt and some biscuit. beautiful ruby color with short lasting whitish head. heavy sweet malt balances quickly with a spicy hop presence. lingering alcohol finish. really surprised the hops are so pronounced after a year. beautiful.

2009 12 oz bottle. Nose is much more bitter/malty/hoppy than I expected. Eyes closed I could guess IIPA. Red brown pour with big fluffy tan head that settles down to a creamy oil-slick. Boom! Huge mouth taste and feel. Big fruity spicy burst. Seriously malty then hoppy second and third flavor. It’ll be interesting to sit on this for 6 mo. a year or more. NOT your sweet spicy fruity barley wine right now.

Served in a 12 oz bottle, 9.6% ABV Aroma: Fruity with minimum alcohol Appearance: Dark amber, clear with tan head that dissipates quickly, beer clings to side of the class Flavor: Strong maltiness, sharp hop bitterness, mild winey/plum notes Mouth feel: Warming in the mouth, rich body, low carbonation, sharp hops/alcohol burn in the back of the mouth Overall Impression: The mouth feel is luxurious; the sharp bitterness detracts for malty goodness. As the beer warms the maltiness comes through, this beer should be drank warn.

Ruby-Amber color...1 finger head, if that. Has a very nice flavor or sweentess, but that hops is killin me! im not a favor of big hoppy-bitter beers, and this is almost too much. I can drink it, and its almost worth the bitterness, just because of how great the malt in this one tastes. maybe If I let this one age a bit it will help mellow things out....has the same bitterness to it that the celebration ale has, but this is far better than that one.....

Bottled 12 Fl. Oz. Trade with nearbeer. Appearance: It pours a beautiful, slightly hazy reddish brown beer with a small beige head. Decent lacework. Aroma: Huge amounts of caramel, dates, figs, oranges, raisins, niaouli honey, grapefruit, wood, cranberries, mint toffees accompanied by a lot of hops. Very complex, interesting and pleasant. Flavor and palate: Full bodied. Strong bitterness. Caramel, niaouli honey, cranberries, mint and wood showing up. Wonderful hop profile. Slightly sour. Strong bitter finish with licorice, grapefruit, lemon and mint appearing. Overall impression: A top notch barley wine. I reveled in every sip. Thanks a lot nearbeer!