They Brew it, I sell it, You Drink it... and so do I..

Sunday 3 June 2012

5Day Barley Wine Spree - The Real Last Day

It's been a long week, and I've already had a couple of pints tonight.

It's late and I should really be in bed, but I'm not going. No. Tonight I'm finishing off by drinking one of the Barley Wines I had promised you all for the last day of my spree, and thought it would be nice to share it with you while I have the chance.

Bigfoot BW from Sierra Nevada has always been a bit hit and miss with me. I can remember the taste of previous batches, with it's uber bitterness and overly hopped glory, far too much for any BW in my opinion. What can I say, old habits die hard, and I felt compelled to come back to this monster once more for the 2012 edition.

Well, it definitely smells hoppy. Caramels and candy floss play host to bundles of sappy, pine like fresh cut grass. Slight honeycomb sweetness creeping in the back too on the aroma - it smells like a destroyer before you even get close to it.

Most of this kind of dies away in the flavour though. There's still plenty about it, don't get me wrong, but it smells much different than it tastes. The taste is very rich. Dried fruits are the main player in this story - I thought it would be much more bitter than it is. It's still a crazy beer, and I'm finding it pretty hard to describe, so I'll just recommend you go out and grab a 2012 bottle for yourselves.

Is it a Barley Wine? Yes and no in my thoughts.

For reference, the second BW I was going to have on the fifth night was from Nils Oscar - a personal favourite. As it happens though, I think I may have had enough beer tonight, for once, and will retire to my cave to slumber before my next run in with the barley infused beverage.

The next 5Day series will probably focus on my personal favourite: Imperial Stouts.

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