barleywine binge!

BrewSwag 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
blackwaterbrewer

blackwaterbrewer

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 26, 2008
Messages
704
Reaction score
7
Location
virginia beach
i can't stop drinking barley wine. it started with Lagunitas Gnarleywine. now, all i can think about is thick, malty, "plum flavored" beers that are 11% abv. i have a thick stout (7%) and a hoprod ipa clone (8%) on tap and they just wont satisfy my craving for warming alcohol and sweet, fruity goodness.

HELP!
 
I was looking up barleywines at work today. I may have to make a trip to the local beer store, as I don't think our grocery stores carry any of the commercial examples (i.e. Sierra Nevada Bigfoot).

It's been probably two years since I've had a barleywine -- with the cold weather coming, it will be a long-overdue treat.
 
this lagunitas Gnarleywine is the best one i have had. it begs you to drink more than you should. perfect by the fire with a good (or bad) book or movie. i am now drinking Sam Adams imperial Double Bock. it is really good, but not as complex as the Lagunitas.
 
BIGFOOT!

I think I might stop by the grocery tonight and see about that Lagunitas though...
 
blackwaterbrewer said:
this lagunitas Gnarleywine is the best one i have had. it begs you to drink more than you should. perfect by the fire with a good (or bad) book or movie. i am now drinking Sam Adams imperial Double Bock. it is really good, but not as complex as the Lagunitas.
Click to expand...

I'll look for the Lagunitas.

I saw that Bigfoot is released mid-January. Is that characteristic of most brewery's barleywines?

Surely I should be able to make a run to my local bottleshop and find some barleywine, right?

Oh, and I like the Sam Adams Double Bock as well.
 
Avery Hog Heaven is good as well.

Bout to crack a Lagunitas Brown Shugga. I like most of their stuff, with the exception of their "Hairy Eyeball BW" I thought that tasted like the 'tussin. I have a bottle or 3 in the basement hoping they will get better.
 
I have a Barleywine I bottled right before I deployed, I am looking forward to getting back, stepping of the airliner, kissing the wife, and drinking the Barlewine she is bringing with her.
 
If you can't get enough barleywine, but don't have any in stock, might I make a strange recommendation: supplement your beer with a shot of something complimentary. For example, I have an apfelwein that came out too tart. But I found that if I add a shot of Wild Turkey American Honey or even Laird's Applejack brandy, it turns into the most delicious beverage available. And potent, as well: it cranks my apfelwein from ~7%ABV to somewhere around 12-13%ABV. Two pints of that on the night, and I'm out!

Boilermakers FTW!
 
i picked up the Mikkeller Big Worse Barleywine last weekend. I tried it the other night and it was GREAT!!!! much better than the Bigfoot IMO. I think I'm in love.
 
I'm lucky enough to live near the Lagunitas brewery. My brew club had a function there, and one of the brewers was kind enough to pull out several aged examples so we could do a vertical tasting. It only gets better with age.
 
I absolutely love Three Floyd's barley wine: Bohemoth. It's a seriously hopped up take on the style, much like many of their other beers.

Lagunitas Gnarlywine, Stone's Old Guardian and SN Bigfoot are also really good.

I recently had Green Flash's barley wine as well as Arcadia's Cereal Killer barley wine. I was not a huge fan of either.

Check out old ales or stock ales as well. They are basically the same type of brew (I'm not sure of the official style difference). Bell's Third Coast Old Ale is really good. And I've got a four pack of North Coast Old Ale in my fridge right now.
 
I've been drinking lot's of barleywine lately too. My favorite is Hogs Heaven by Avery, with Stone's Old Guardian and Lagunita's Gnarlywine right up there as well.
 
Just had Anchor's Old Foghorn - quite delicious - put a few aside for aging. Can't wait for Bigfoot '10.

Brooklyn's Monster Ale is also awesome.
 
DAMN i just drank a lagunitas brown sugga. makes me want to quit brewing because i could never make anything like that. the way the flavors fade from one to another is incredible. it finishes with this fresh hop flavor that your pallet is craving after all the maltiness. DAMN
 
bdnoona said:
I absolutely love Three Floyd's barley wine: Bohemoth. It's a seriously hopped up take on the style, much like many of their other beers.
Click to expand...

You're killing me. I haven't tried it yet, but I have a bomber of the 07 release waiting for me. Have you had one with some age on it?
 
I can't wait to get back to brewing. I'm planning on making up 5-10 gallons of my Chocolate stout, and then 10 gallons (minimum) of Barleywine within a couple months. I'll be using various recipes from here and I will be aging them as long as possible. I love having high gravity brews around and I'm always willing to stop after 1 or 2 from the tap, I just havent had the chance to brew in MONTHS!

I'm giddy w/ excitement here. Oh, I just finished my last '09 Bigfoot the other night. I had my mom bring it back for me when she went out to Nor-Cal to visit my sister in August. It was the last 6'er in the store. This year I'm buying a case when they come out locally....
 
My favorites:

Alesmith Old Numbskull - Great beer and tops when barrel aged. Best at 3-4 years old.

Firestone Walker Abacus - Barrel aged barley wine. Smooth, tons of amazing vanilla and oak flavors. Best whenever you can get it on tap.

Sierra Nevada Bigfoot - Always needs 4-5 years. Fresh is just ok. Aged is super nice.

Deschutes Mirror, Mirror - Great when released. Partial barrel blend, smooth, complex, beautiful.

JW Lee's Vintage Harvest - The best bottles now are 2000, 2002. That era. A lot like a sweet port wine. Very different from all of the American Barleywines.

Stone Old Guardian - 3-4 years in a cellar and this becomes a smooth, amazing treat.

That's a good top 5 for now.
 
OT for a second...Lagunitas has a similar flavor in all of their beers. Avery Hog Heaven has the same flavor. Can anyone tell me what this flavor is? Is it a specific type of malt?
 
It would be worth every penny for you to get a plane ticket to seattle and go to the Big Time Brewery and drink as much Old Wooly Barleywine as you can.

It just came out on December 1 and they pour it 'til they run out, which usually doesn't take very long, maybe two months. They also sell bottles at the pub.
 

Similar threads

orgenomescii
Brewing like a Barbarian: Ancient Irish Descriptions of Malting & Brewing
Replies
2
Views
1K
McMullan
McMullan
yard_bird
Simple: Imperial Stout
2
Replies
43
Views
2K
yard_bird
yard_bird
J
Will wine yeast eventually ferment out all available sugar?
Replies
7
Views
3K
DBhomebrew
DBhomebrew
Cannonball Jones
Traditional Amis method of making jiuniang/酒釀/boozy rice.
Replies
0
Views
567
Cannonball Jones
Cannonball Jones
mashdar
Chocowheat Dry Session Stout
Replies
0
Views
492
mashdar
mashdar

Latest posts

Back
Top