Sierra Nevada Bigfoot

12oz bottle. Cherry sweet citrus and orange in the nose.. fresh and uplifting smelling barley wine. Good sweet unique taste with citrus, lemon, and some berries.

a great fresh barley wine...great hop aroma and taste when fresh...and it has aged into a good even great barleywine when it is older...but I think it is best fresh!

Brownish reddish pour with nice frothy two finger head and aromas of ripe fruit and hops with a hint of caramel malt. Flavor was mild mannered, with a hint of an alcohol note with a nice earthy hop presence and malty backbone. Nicely blalanced and well hopped- chewy mouthfeel with dry finish.

2008 bottle: Freaking outsanding! Maybe a tad too hoppy, but still very good balance with the thick carmel malt sweetness. I think it would be almost perfect if the hops were down just a touch. Not a whole lot, but just a touch. Maybe get the IBUs down from 90 to the mid 70s and you’d have a real winner. First Barleywine I’ve tried so I don’t have much to compare to, but definitely an overall favorite. Another great offering from Sierra Nevada.

Initially sampled in 2005. 2008 version -- pours a deep brown-amber color with a moderate head that does settle down to patches. Real nice hop aroma with a fruity, candy presence. Strong hoppy flavor, tangy sour fruits with caramel malts. Very rich and full and the flavors balance well. Bitter and slightly dry finish and bitter hops tingle on the tongue long after the sip. Good stuff. Strong hops but the 2005 version I had before was a touch stronger hop flavor. Nonetheless this is an amazing beer.

12 oz bottle - 2008 vintage. Poured a deep red/mahogany color with a 1-2 finger tan head. Really nice looking. A little cloudly, but vibrant. Head stuck around throughout with tons of lacing. Aroma was great and complex. Hops were definately the first and strongest thing that hit my nose, a little suprising for the barelywine style but then again I guess its SN. Anyway really nice citrusy bitter hop aroma. Tons of nice dried fruit, candi and roasted malt flavors up there in the nose too. Taste was great and complex too. Started out with strong dried fruit/roasted/toasted malt taste. Really deep and really nice. Quickly transitioned to a very bitter and tangy (acidc) finish. This was wayyy more bitter than I expected but really nice. Hops really do balance the malt character here. I really didnt get the overly sweet taste Ive seen some people complain about. Carbonation was pretty lively and mouthfeel was medium/heavy but it was light/crispt enough that I could maybe have a few. Definately one to sip but more drinkable than I was expecting. A great beer. Ill have to age some, you can tell this one will only get better in a couple years.

2008 vintage. Reddish in color with a good head. Hoppy yet sweet in the aroma with some caramel. Slight alcohol in the taste with caramel. Chewey with a thicker body.

2003 - Malty and sweet smell. Malty and sweet and bitter. Balanced more towards malt sweetness. 2002 - Less malty and bitter. Better balance with some pepper.