Three Floyds Behemoth Barleywine

On tap (if I remember correctly) at Three Floyds brewpub. Quite a big barleywine-- loud and proud. Has that distinct 3F hop flavor-- helps hide the alcohol. I couldn’t drinkt his all night-- one glass was plenty. But it was extremely complex in flavor and well balanced for such a potent brew. 3-2-08 on tap at FFF: Better than I remembered. Did they tweak the recipe, or did the brewing gods just smile down on this batch? What a wonderful initial hop aroma and flavor. And then the complex barleywine flavors slowly take over the palate-- just sublime. Closest beer to a perfect rating that I’ve had in a long time.

Bottle. Powerful barleywine - quickly becoming my favorite style. Alcohol is very apparent - favorably. Thick mouthfeel. A very identifiable Three Floyds product as the citrus, resinous, pine flavors dominate the taste. A powerful hoppy finish preceded by a sugar sweet malty flavor. Very smooth and enjoyable. My full rec.

Bottle(2007) from Ughsmash. Pours a very dark amber color. Minimal foam. Sweet stick hop aromas. Some citrus. Flavor is pretty sweet. Has a moderate amount of citric bitterness to balance it out. Alcohol is well hidden, even in a fairly fresh bottle.

Bottle - 2007. Pours dark copper color with a nice sized off-white head on top. The aroma is intense! Loads of grapefruit/citrus hops that Three Floyds is known for. The hops are met with caramel malt, vanilla, and hints of alcohol. Flavor is very comparable to the aroma of the beer. An intense flavor of grapefruit hops met with the sweetness of the caramel malt. The beer is not completely balanced due to it being quite fresh but it is certainly not overly hoppy either. The alcohol does sneak in but it doesn’t take away from the flavor of the beer. On the palate this beer is low in carbonation but it doesn’t produce it into a very thick syrupy beer. As is this beer tastes absolutely wonderful. Can’t wait to try it aged for a year.

draft at 3F.....appearance was pretty slick. caramel-brown w/ a full,thick off-white head in a tulip glass. nice!....the aroma was full of sweet malt and balanced with a nice hop citrus overtone....taste was more of the same. very malty and was equalized by a strong hop component. it had a slighty alcohol finish....overall it reminded me of a bigfoot although i enjoed the BF just slightly better....good barleywine overall.

Big and full and... did I say big yet? The name is pretty accurate. Really sweet, with a bit more hops than I was expecting, but then again.... the brewer’s abundant use of hops should be expected by everyone by now. This was a good beer.

2006 bottle. Sure doesn’t seem like a barleywine to me! (Though it isn’t bad) A ruby ruddy red brown, light for the style with a thin light head. The nose is big with grapefruit, alcohol, slight leather and vanilla, and mixed tropical fruit in syrup. The mouthfeel is low on the carbonation, a bit sticky, but not too thick. The flavor is definitely 3F. Sweet, but not round caramel, big grapefruit, alcohol, a bit toasty. The malt reminds me of a less caramelly Brian Boru, while the hopes remind me of Pride and Joy. I think this beer could use some oxidation... I’ll come back to it with some age on it.

Bomber with yellow wax, 2007. It says to wait until fall 07 for best flavor but no way can I wait that long. Pours a beautiful bright red color with a bubbly off-white head. Aroma of hops, pine, sweet malts, caramel. Taste is smooth, sweet, hoppy, with a bitter finish. One of the best Barley Wines I’ve had. 12% hidden amazingly. Unfortunately this is probably the most expensive beer I’ve ever purchased. This is great but it’s so damn expensive.

Re-rate. 2007, yellow wax. Almost two years after brew date. Have not had this beer in any vintage since my initial rating. Let’s see what some age did to this bad boy. Pours a ruby/orange color with a nice eggnog off-white head. Aroma is all malt by this point, no hops remain. The malt is nice - deep caramel, dark fruits, fresh barley. Raisins and toffee make appearance, slight sherry, a hint of oxidation (wax be damned). Taste is fruitier than the aroma, candy, toffee and caramel. Relatively less sweet than expected. Bitterness subdued. I think this had aged well. I prefer this beer fresh and I would not say this has improved but it is a drastically different beer and has held up remarkably well.