Should a barleywine feel "hot" going down your pipe?

I brewed a barleywine back on June 4th and transfered to a secondary on June 30th. I took a hydro reading today and it was 1.032. I started off at 1.110. So, I am at about 70% attenuation with a ABV of 10.26%. I tasted the hydro sample and while it tasted good it had that burning alcohol feeling going down. Is this normal for a higher alcohol beer? If so, will the "hotness" fade over time?

Sounds like it needs more conditioning time to settle down that warmth. I have a RIS that is a little over 8 months old and it is just getting there.

Should not be hot but warm.

19B. English Barleywine

A smooth warmth from aged alcohol should be present, and should not be hot or harsh.

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19C. American Barleywine

Alcohol warmth should be present, but not be excessively hot.

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http://www.bjcp.org/2008styles/style19.php

Just curious... What temp did you ferment at?
Did you have active temperature control?

I understand that barley wines are aged to mellow out the hot alcohol flavors. Try to keep the beer in the bottles/keg and let it age.

jason.mundy said:

Just curious... What temp did you ferment at?
Did you have active temperature control?

I understand that barley wines are aged to mellow out the hot alcohol flavors. Try to keep the beer in the bottles/keg and let it age.

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I fermented it around 70F. But, I am sure that it got a bit hotter during the initial fermentation. I did not use a swamp cooler back then. I do plan to bottle it in a couple of weeks and let it set for at least 6-8 months.

Yeah, it's WAY too early to judge. 8 months minimum, and that hotness will fade a lot. Give it a year and it'll be unbelievable.

Q2XL said:

I tasted the hydro sample and while it tasted good it had that burning alcohol feeling going down.

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Uh, your hydro sample was room temp right? Warm beer brings out hot alcohol flavors, so of course it tasted hot. I've found that with strong commercial beers like an IIPA that are super well balanced when served at a proper chilled temperature, if you drink them at room temp they can have almost disgusting hot alcohol burn.

So just a warm hydro sample alone isn't going to tell you whether the beer is good.

The hotness will go away the more you drink.

agusus said:

Uh, your hydro sample was room temp right? Warm beer brings out hot alcohol flavors, so of course it tasted hot. I've found that with strong commercial beers like an IIPA that are super well balanced when served at a proper chilled temperature, if you drink them at room temp they can have almost disgusting hot alcohol burn.

So just a warm hydro sample alone isn't going to tell you whether the beer is good.

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I like to drink barleywines at around 60 degrees. A good beer should not have a burn.

I think your temps will produce a bit more harsh alcohol, but with time they will mellow a bit. You really have to be careful with bigger beers, because the fermentations can get out of hand.

If it's only since June???

You betcha it will taste hot...

When people think of Barleywines they thing in terms of a year for mellowing, or at least several months.....like 6-8 minimum.

My 1.090 Belgian strong took 6 months before it stopped tasting like rocket fuel....

You absolutely NEED to give it more time to mellow....


Lazy Llama came up with a great chart to help us all know when something is ready...



I wouldn't touch a barleywine I made til it was a year old....

Revvy said:

If it's only since June???

You betcha it will taste hot...

When people think of Barleywines they thing in terms of a year for mellowing, or at least several months.....like 6-8 minimum.

My 1.090 Belgian strong took 6 months before it stopped tasting like rocket fuel....

You absolutely NEED to give it more time to mellow....

I wouldn't touch a barleywine I made til it was a year old....

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I'll disagree a little bit with that chart. I made the bourbon vanilla imperial porter and with a starting gravity of 1.093 and with half a bottle of knob creek in the keg, it was not too hot after 3 weeks, and it is often suggested to drink that beer young. Not every big beer comes out hot. Some do interesting things with time and can certainly improve, but controlling temps and using a neutral yeast should give you results that are not so abrasive.

Start drinking it NEXT June.

Bobby_M said:

Start drinking it NEXT June.

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+1,000,000,000

Bobby_M said:

Start drinking it NEXT June.

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That's what I will do. Thanks everyone.