JugOPunch (74), leominster, Massachusetts, USA Apr 4, 2006 12oz bottle (aged about a year): Light brown pour. Sweet mellow aroma with a charge of alcohol. Flavor is malty sweet and slightly bitter. The alcohol is much stronger in the aroma than the flavor. This is actually a lot more drinkable than I expected. Quite balanced actually. Excellent night cap.
BeerBelcher (750), Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA Oct 5, 2008 As I’ve mentioned before, I am not a big fan of super-malty beers like bocks. Many barley-wines also emphasize that super-sickening-sweet malt ball flavor that I really don’t care for. So, I tend to favor the barley-wines that are super-hoppy, versus those that are super malty. I really liked this barley-wine, and it was neither super hoppy nor malty; it had a really good fruitiness that was not overly sweet, a bit sour, and still malty enough to satisfy.
Appearance was a dark brown with a minimal head. Aroma is a bit sweet and brown sugary, with a touch of sourness that reminded me of cherry, nad lots of fruit. Flavor was more of that fruit/cherry/fig taste which was both mildly sour, slightly sweet, and very good. Malt backbone was substantial, but for a barley wine this beer was oddly...balanced. And very good tasting. Mouthfeel was a bit sticky and thick (what you’d expect from a barley wine) with some astringency you’d expect from a beer with an 11% ABV (which this beer hides quite well).
I really enjoyed this beer, and would recommend it highly. I bought this 4-pack from Discount Liquor shortly after it came into the state of WI. Juelze (702), Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA Oct 5, 2008 Pours a rich copper color with thin off white head. Aroma is of fruit, almost berry like with caramel and with some alcohol. Taste is of caramel, fruit, unripe banana, and a bit of spice. Pretty smooth for the alcohol level, but it does have a bit of hotness. Still, one hell of a barley wine. stefanje (595), (Santee) San Diego, California, USA Oct 2, 2008 12 oz bottle courtesy of daknole. Pours a cloudy amber-brown with a small off-white head. The aroma is rich with molasses and dark fruits. The flavor is big with more ripe dark fruits, molasses, barley, maple syrup and alcohol. The mouthfeel is smooth and full with soft carbonation. The finish is long and semi-sweet. Overall: A very enjoyable strong ale. thanks dakine. Petrucci914 (374), Waukesha, Wisconsin, USA Sep 27, 2008 Pours an amber color with medium frothy off-white head that leaves bits of lacing. Aroma is carmel malts, blackberries, and dark fruit. Taste is the same with some alcohol in the nose. The palate is dry and bitter, and not too pleasant. Other than that, a pretty solid BW. Glouglouburp (2006), Montreal, Quebec, Canada Sep 21, 2008 <b>In short: </b>A light Barley Wine. Quite drinkable but a bit bland<br />
<b>How: </b>Bottle 12oz, drank fresh a few days after purchase<br />
<b>The look: </b>Clear redish-copper topped by a small beige head<br />
<b>In long: </b>A lot of juicy caramel with light red fruits flavours raging from berries to strawberries. Far from a decadent barley wine body this is the type of malt profile I’m used to get from a beer with a name like “Double-Red ale” or something like that. Discreet hops. Moderately sweet. Not very tasty and surprisingly “light” for a barley wine. Not offensive, not tasty, some kind of sweet “big” session beer without much character. On the plus side, the alcohol is extremely well hidden, on the minus side so is the taste.
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