Victory Old Horizontal

Brewed by Victory Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Downingtown, Pennsylvania USA

Bottle. This beer’s initial pour is a work of art; a thin orange head that quickly goes down with a red/brown body. The aroma is mostly sweet fruit and some candies, but fairly light. The taste is really a great effort; some dark and citrus fruits, a sweet candy aspect, a bitter hops, and a some malts. Maybe the best BW I’ve had. So damn smooth, but also very complex.

bottled 12-03-04dumped into a snifter glass to give off an orange/redish body with a white ring around the glass.i gathered a lovely aroma of red liquorice,hops,and cotton candy.the flavor was much in the same.i was surprised at how well balanced this was considering its age.very smooth and drinkabke,yet still full of that barleywine flavor.yummy.RE-RATE 3-07-07-WOW either this went down hill (like storm king did)or this just isnt the b.w. ithought it was.a little thin,a little watery...damn is it me?

Nice pour, sweet, hoppy aroma. Flavor alternates between nice sweetness and fairly bold, piney/sweet hops. Very nice, even finish that stays around but not in an annoying way. I see a common theme with these victory beers - great, almost IPA-ish hop flavor in other strong ales. Much like storm king’s great hoppy flavor, this one satisfies and leaves you longing for more. Alcohol barely noticable at 10%+. Wonderful. ****** March 2007 head to head of 05 and 06 vintages. 2005 has mellowed well, but still boasts a substantial hop flavor that mixes well with the malty sweetness. 2006 looks darker and has almost Doppelbock-like qualities in malt flavor and aroma. Newer vintage is obviously stronger and more alcoholey, but still complex and rich. 2/29/08 - its re-rate day! Somehow I lost my rating of the 2000 bottle of this - I remember it being a tad thin and oxidized but still damn good. I decided to try an 05, 06, and 07 back to back tonight - I still find the 05 to be rather sweet and grainy, but with some very good honey sweetness. 06 is my least favorite - not all that great right now. 07 is pleasantly suprising, probably the best of the bunch with some time under its belt - nice hop usage with a light fruit tartness. I took this down a few points, but its still an old standby and one of my favorites - not as good to me as it was as a newbie rater, but still my favorite Victory beer.

Bottle courtesy of, and thanks to Philip, the mid-west wonder! Pours murky brown and topped forthwith by a thin ring of brown froth that subsides to a ring. There’s sediment here, though I suspect there is not supposed to be? Vanilla bean aroma with heavy caramel malt and roasted brown sugar nuances and then add a touch of chocolate. Very sweet caramel flavours, vanilla extract, burnt sugars, and lots of woody/nutty aftertastes. Skooth and silky, and a pleasure to drink, even if it is 20 degrees Celcius outside. Thanks Phil!

Props to Surffisher for sending this gem my way. Pours a cloudy brown/amber color with a white head. Ah, quite a rich nose on this. It’s sweet of caramel and oak with a bit of citrus notes and raisins and nutmeg. The alcohol warms my nasal passage just a bit. This is very dense in the mouth, just a tiny sip coats my palate with a sticky sweetness. I’ve had barley wines that are too sweet, this isn’t quite one of them. There is also a bitter grapefruit presence which helps to smooth things out. The finish is of maple and faint Scotch with complex dried fruit notes. Excellent brew to enjoy on one of the first nights with temperatures in the 30s. Great warmer.

(Bottle, thanks Rickgordon and beachbum25) Pours hazy amber/red. Dried fruits and fresh fruits, hops, raisins, fudge/toffee-ish malt in aroma with apples and oranges. Rich malty sweetness in flavour with fruits and peppery alcohol. A bit salty with liquorice hints. Young taste. Medium mouthfeel and body. Lingering afterbitterness with a light sweetness.

Bottle from john_adam2002. Pours with a thin creamy head of fine bubbles blanketing the surface of dark amber beer. Great looking beer. Malty citrus aroma. Flavor starts off leaning towards a nice hoppy bitterness, but then leans towards malty sweetness as the beer warms up. Well and very drinkable, despite the 10.5%. Could do with a bit of aging, but very good as is! Mmmmm tasty.

Bottle courtesy of onenote81. Pours a hazy dark brown with red highlights. One finger tannish white head that settles slowly. Aroma is sweet and malty with notes of caramel, honey, wood, vanilla, some slight notes of floral hops. Flavor is sweet and malty with notes of flora hops, brandy, caramel, honey, grass, yeast, caramel, grass, hay pine and malt. Generally medium to full body with a sweet and malty finish.