ORRELSE said:
Can someone post it?
Yep, I guess I should have done that in the first place. I wonder if the author is kin to Isaac?
A Visitor Welcomed in Cold Weather
By
ERIC ASIMOV
PEOPLE who love cold weather appreciate it not just for the skiing, the ice fishing or the joy of having their eyelashes turn brittle enough to break in the winter chill. No, they love it because when the insanity is over, getting warm feels so gloriously wonderful.
That is the moment for a cozy fire, woolen socks and a favorite robe; for Tolstoy, not a tell-all; for nutritious resonance rather than fleeting charm. And it is the time for barley wine, the robust, complex brewed counterpart to Port, Madeira or Armagnac.
That's right, brewed. Barley wine is not a wine at all but a beer, or to be geekishly precise, a top-fermented ale of exceptional strength, power and length. Barley wines are not for chugging after a workout. They are not refreshing but thought-provoking, sip by contemplative sip. Many even benefit from cellaring, most for a year or two, but some for a decade or more. Barley wines are sometimes dated with the brewing equivalent of the vintage year, and, even more so than wine, vintages can be entirely different.
I like to think of Bilbo Baggins, comfortable and secure in his paneled Hobbit hole, with a cupboard full of seedcakes and a mug of barley wine. Hobbits? Well, it's my own flight of fancy and not meant at all to minimize the assertive power of barley wines, which after all are as British as the folklore that inspired Tolkien. As Garrett Oliver writes in his essential book, "The Brewmaster's Table" (HarperCollins, 2003): "In the early 1700's the emergence in England of a wealthy merchant class, the development of pale malts, and a more scientific approach to the brewing process gave rise to ales that rivaled the finest wines in their finesse, complexity and strength. These beers were not for the masses, but for the aristocracy, who had grown tired of having their wine supplies cut off by pesky wars with France."
While their heritage may be British, barley wines have now inspired two generations of American craft brewers, who have taken on the style as a special challenge and an opportunity at personal expression. No beer tests a brewer's skill so much as barley wine. It requires a prolonged fermentation, and the brewer must cajole the yeast, which transforms sugar into alcohol, with as much care and precision as a jockey guides a thoroughbred through a crowded field to victory. The result is a strong brew, 9 or 10 percent alcohol at a minimum, as against a typical beer's 5 percent. Many American brewers aim even bigger, naturally, up to 15 percent, while staying true to the complex, evocative spirit of barley wine.
Not content to leave it to the aristocrats or even the Hobbits, the Dining section's tasting panel recently sampled 25 barley wines - 20 from the United States, four from Britain, and one version, quite good, from the Netherlands. For the tasting, Florence Fabricant and I were joined by Mr. Oliver, who is also the brewmaster at Brooklyn Brewery, and Phil Markowski, the brewmaster at the Southampton Publick House, a restaurant and brewery in Southampton, N.Y.
I was mightily impressed by the entire field. These ales were superbly brewed, and the range of styles was fascinating. Some - the British versions in particular - were sweet and creamy, yet not cloying, their complexity offering enough intrigue to keep me coming back for more. The American ales tended to be dryer, more robust and spicy, with heavy doses of American hops, which offer piney aromas and a pleasing bitterness, although if there was one flaw, as Mr. Oliver pointed out, some of the ales were a little too bitter.
And then there are ales that fit into no category but their own. Thomas Hardy's Ale is one such unique brew. This is perhaps the most famous name in barley wine, yet it is a surprisingly recent invention. The first Thomas Hardy's Ale was brewed in 1968 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the author's death. It became a collector's ale, with bottles going for hundreds of dollars in auctions, and was brewed annually until 1999, when the Thomas Hardy Brewery ceased production, citing its high expense. After a hiatus, O'Hanlon's Brewing Company of Devon, England, purchased the brand and began brewing Hardy's Ale again in 2003, according to the original recipe.
The panel sampled, blind, the 2004 Hardy's Ale, and found it to be both bewitching and puzzling. The amber-brown ale was surprisingly low in carbonation, but rich in body, with sweet fruit and chocolate aromas. Mr. Markowski and Mr. Oliver both identified it right away as an Old World entry, and Mr. Oliver compared it to a Pedro Ximénez , the luscious ultimate in sweet sherry.
After the tasting, Mr. Oliver remarked on how youthful the Hardy's was, and as a point of comparison he pulled out a bottle of 1992 Hardy's, which he happened to have brought along. Now this was something special. The brew was lighter in color, less sweet and more carbonated - the remaining sugar ferments over time, releasing carbon dioxide, making the ale stronger - and subtle, with flavors of caramel, fruit and earth, and a bitterness that lingered in the mouth. If the 2004 evolves like this, anybody who saves a few bottles will be in for a real treat in 10 years or so.
It's hard to imagine the American barley wines undergoing such a transformation, yet they were no less compelling. Our top-rated ale, Hog Heaven, from the Avery Brewing Company, epitomized the American style, with spicy, potent flavors and a piney bitterness that endured in the mouth. The No. 2 ale, Horn Dog from Flying Dog, was an entirely different sort of brew, soft, rich and almost tranquilizing, reminiscent of caramelized nuts.
Incidentally, many barley wines come equipped with gnarly sorts of names, like Horn Dog, Old Numbskull, Bigfoot, Blithering Idiot and even Old Howling Bastard. Perhaps they see Hobbits as a target audience, but one thing is clear.
"Obviously, these aren't being marketed for women," Ms. Fabricant noted.
The fraternity of brewers might well consider whether they are missing out on a significant market. Who wouldn't like Anchor's Old Foghorn, one of the first American barley wines, with its bright, balanced flavors, or even the entry from the Netherlands, the Nieuw Ligt Grand Cru 2003, from De Hemel, a complex, unusual brew in which Ms. Fabricant found an intriguing bitter orange quality?
The quality in general was so high that we could not possibly include all the ales we liked in our top 10. Not to be forgotten are ales like Dogfish Head's Old School, which managed to mask its 15 percent alcohol behind fruitcake flavors; Young's Old Nick, a creamy-rich British classic that is a mere 7.2 percent; and Mr. Oliver's own Brooklyn Monster Ale, another creamy, balanced brew.
For once in our beer tastings, we found that mishandling during shipping or storage was not an issue - all the brews were in relatively good shape. Perhaps this is because the barley wines are sturdy enough to withstand wide swings in temperature or that they are only shipped in cool weather, and temperature is not an issue.
One thing that may be an issue is the name, barley wine. Apparently the government believes that the American people would find the term puzzling, and so the government requires labels to call barley wine "barley wine-style ale." What the phrase lacks in elegance it makes up for in confusion. Come to think of it, I'll take Old Numbskull anytime.
Tasting Report: Stoke Up the Fire and Pull on Those Cozy Socks
Avery Brewing Company Hog Heaven; Boulder, Colo.
***½
22 ounces, $5
Fresh, spicy, balanced and deeply aromatic; quintessential American-style ale with plenty of hops.
Flying Dog Horn Dog; Denver
***
12 ounces, $2.25
Rich, soft, thick and delicious; a complex, sherry-like sipping ale.
Anchor Brewing Old Foghorn; San Francisco
***
12 ounces, $3.25
Big, bright and balanced with toasty herbal aromas.
J. W. Lees Harvest Ale 2003; Manchester, England
***
9.3 ounces, $5.25
Quite sweet yet well balanced, with a creamy texture and exotic fruit aromas. (Importer: B. United International, Redding, Conn.)
Southampton Publick House Old Herb 2003; Southampton, N.Y.
**½
12 ounces, $6
Aromas of leather and molasses; perfect with an armchair, old books and a fire.
Thomas Hardy's Ale 2004, O'Hanlon's Brewing Company; Devon, England
**½
8.5 ounces, $6
Unique, with low carbonation, complex malt and chocolate aromas and fruit flavors; should develop for years. (Phoenix Imports, Baltimore)
BEST VALUE
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Ale 2005; Chico, Calif.
**½
12 ounces, $1.75
Rich, with fruit and herbal aromas and a pleasing bitterness.
De Hemel Nieuw Ligt Grand Cru 2003; Netherlands
**½
330 milliliters, $10
Complex, dry and intriguing in an idiosyncratic way. (Shelton Brothers, Belchertown, Mass.)
AleSmith Old Numbskull; San Diego, Calif.
**½
25.4 ounces, $10
Toasty malt flavors are almost like milk chocolate; subtle and pleasing.
Victory Brewing Company Old Horizontal; Downingtown, Pa.
**½
12 ounces, $1.75
Creamy, rich texture; clean and balanced with lingering flavors.
