The ultimate BarleyWine

[John LeMasney]

Alright. I'm asking you to go deep. What is your favorite Barley Wine style ale? You have to get past the murky texture of some, the over-sweetness of others, but I've found some gems. My current favorite, which is a recent find, is Uinta 15th Anniversary. It's hoppy, deep, and rich, but well balanced, not overpowering, and expertly balanced. What's your favorite BWSA?

[Scott]

John; you have hit on one of my favorite styles of beer, Barley Wine. I have tried about 45 different Barely Wines and I would have to say that these are my top ten.
1. Samuel Adams Utopia 2007
2. Ridgeway Insanely Bad Elf Imperial Red
3. Ridgeway Criminally Bad Elf
4. Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine Early 08
5. Fish Brewing Co. Leviathan
6. Three Floyds Hvedegoop (Beer Advocate has this styled as a Wheat Wine)
7. Rogue Old Crustacean Barley Wine 2007
8. Dark Horse Three Guy Off the Scale Barley Wine
9. Three Floyds Behemoth Barley Wine 2005
10. Dog Fish Head Olde School Barley Wine

I have never heard of “Uinta” before where is these beer brewed at?

Scott

[John LeMasney]

I've hard about utopia, never seen it in the wild. I see Ridgeway popping up all over now. I'm going to have to get me some of that. Stone's Old Guardian is definitely a favorite of mine too. Crustacean is nice, but seldom available here. Uinta just started showing up here in NJ. They're out of Utah.

Uinta on BA

Thanks for the great list, Scott. I appreciate it -- I'll have to gather my list, too. In the meantime, here are my BWSA reviews on beercritic:

j.



Scott said:

John; you have hit on one of my favorite styles of beer, Barley Wine. I have tried about 45 different Barely Wines and I would have to say that these are my top ten.
1. Samuel Adams Utopia 2007
2. Ridgeway Insanely Bad Elf Imperial Red
3. Ridgeway Criminally Bad Elf
4. Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine Early 08
5. Fish Brewing Co. Leviathan
6. Three Floyds Hvedegoop (Beer Advocate has this styled as a Wheat Wine)
7. Rogue Old Crustacean Barley Wine 2007
8. Dark Horse Three Guy Off the Scale Barley Wine
9. Three Floyds Behemoth Barley Wine 2005
10. Dog Fish Head Olde School Barley Wine

I have never heard of “Uinta” before where is these beer brewed at?

Scott

[Virgil G]

Can't go wrong with behemoth. It was my 1000th different beer last year.

[John LeMasney]

Three Floyds is just a concept for me here in NJ. Not even the glorious acquisitionists at OakTree, Super Saver Pennington, or Canal's Burlington have been able to make it happen.

Sigh. Thanks for the feedback, Virgil!

Virgil G said:

Can't go wrong with behemoth. It was my 1000th different beer last year.

[Rob DeNunzio]

After they've been lost in the back of the cellar for a couple years, these seem to be the ones I keep coming back to:

John Barleycorn, Mad River
Bigfoot, Sierra Nevada
Gnarleywine, Lagunitas
Old Stock, North Coast (technically not a BW, but c'mon people)

Pretty mainstream by craft beer standards, but still pretty great.Harder to come by but even more wonderful are the ones made by Alaskan, JW Lees, Big Sky, and my all-time favorite, Deschutes' Mirror Mirror. Good stuff all around.

[John LeMasney]

I <3 the Bigfoot -- nice, affordable, available, and delicious. No access to Mad River yet. I have some Lagunitas here -- I'll keep an eye out for Gnarlywine. Old stock is amazing, I agree.

The others have escaped me, except JW Lees, which is available at Super Saver Pennington, NJ, but not at a supersaver price. ;) Still it's easier to pay out for something when a friend is recommending it. ;)

Thanks, Rob!

Rob DeNunzio said:

After they've been lost in the back of the cellar for a couple years, these seem to be the ones I keep coming back to:

John Barleycorn, Mad River
Bigfoot, Sierra Nevada
Gnarleywine, Lagunitas
Old Stock, North Coast (technically not a BW, but c'mon people)

Pretty mainstream by craft beer standards, but still pretty great.Harder to come by but even more wonderful are the ones made by Alaskan, JW Lees, Big Sky, and my all-time favorite, Deschutes' Mirror Mirror. Good stuff all around.

[KegGremlin]

I agree with Rogue Old Crustacean, Alaskan, Dogfish Head Olde School, and Sierra Nevada Bigfoot, but I think Great Divide Old Ruffian should be added to the list!

[John LeMasney]

Old Ruffian -- my local bottleshop (super saver Pennington, NJ) had it for 4.99/bomber for a while. Spent a few 20's that month, I can tell you. ;) I think I got my taste for BWSA with the Ruffian, then had a more sensible palate when tasting DFH brews. There is no point in calling 120 minute an IPA, for instance, it seems much more like a BWSA after all is said and done.

KegGremlin said:

I agree with Rogue Old Crustacean, Alaskan, Dogfish Head Olde School, and Sierra Nevada Bigfoot, but I think Great Divide Old Ruffian should be added to the list!

[Shawn, the Beer Philosopher]

American Barleywines ... The best of the lot available around here is SN Bigfoot, of course, but I have fond memories of a bottle of Hair of the Dog Fred I sampled. Victory Old Horizontal is good stuff too.

English-Style Barleywines ... the obligatory J.W. Lees and Brooklyn Monster Ale was nice too. I have to give props to a "local" micro in historic Ste. Genevieve, MO here too ... they have a barleywine on draught-only that is very, very nice.

[KegGremlin]

How about Young's Old Nick as far as english barleywines? I like to cook with it too.

[John LeMasney]

Never had it, but I've seen it quite a few times. I'm gonna have to check it out. ;)

KegGremlin said:

How about Young's Old Nick as far as english barleywines? I like to cook with it too.

[Shawn, the Beer Philosopher]

Enjoyed DFH's Olde School Barleywine tonight. An interesting brew, for sure. The nose brought a Belgian strong dark ale to mind, while the palate was 100% barleywine. Pleasant alcohol warmth on a cold night such as this one. Somehow it managed to avoid the "boozy" aspect a lot of high gravity ales suffer from. At 15% ABV, this one is nothing to trifle with, though.

I'm going to bed.