Less Deal, More Devil

Well, I should have known that the fervent beer traders would not be slowed by a Virus. Apparently, the beer seller, Tavour got cans of wax dipped (?) Barleywine and were able to sell it for $50! Now, I have not had Anchorage beers lately but I know of their high reputation. But that is not a price I would pay for any one can of beer because my expectations would never meet the actual experience. And I certainly wouldn’t get in the way of those who think they MUST have it.

Featured Review – Old Jetty Barrel-Aged Barleywine 2019 from El Segundo Brewing

Continuing the reviews of beers bought from the Glendale Tap cellar, we go old with the 2019 barrel-aged Barleywine release of Old Jetty from El Segundo Brewing.

This ale was aged in bourbon barrels and strides in at 13.2% ABV. Old Jetty is both prickly and smooth at the same time. There is loads of bourbon character but at the same time the sweetness is restrained. A bit of syrup note here. Great brunch beer.

Last Beer Review of 2018 – Bigfoot from Sierra Nevada (2013 & 2017)

I probably tallied north of 60 beer reviews this year. I know that there are some who hate the practice or don’t think that personal preferences can be of use, but I think it is instructive to see which beers struck a chord and which elicit such little word count as to telegraph the yea/nay response.

On to the last review of the year, I have dug into the cellar and brought out the famed barleywine from Sierra Nevada, Bigfoot.


2013
Faint port like aroma. Bitter at the end. Showing some age I think. Caramel notes and a slight oak-y bourbon flavor. A bit vinous.

2017
Lighter and brighter. Bitterness is there but not pounding. A little burnt tasting. More pine notes on this one.

Of the duo, I would take the 2013 first.  It had a swirl of different flavors and aromas going on in it’s 12 ounces.

How Heavy?


What makes a Friday better? A new beer bottle release and pizza. On September 28th, Yorkshire Square in Torrance will release How Heavy This Mash, English Barleywine. And invite Enduro Pizza over too.

And there will be a special oaked version of the beer on cask that night as well.

The Hand


As we close in on the close of the series for Game of Thrones has Ommegang tipped their hand a bit? (sorry, horrible word choice). Will a Queen rule the Seven Kingdoms? Either way, I am glad to see a barleywine for the next GoT beer. It makes a nice change of pace from previous entrants.

That Bear has a Temper


Verdugo West has a new winter barleywine out and maybe it refers to the California Golden Bear or someone has that nickname. Either way, Bear Temper lands at a big 12% ABV. According to the brewery, “Sweet notes of caramel and toffee that’ll give you a bear hug to keep you warm through the winter.”

Limited can availability but on tap as well.

Up From the Cellar – 2013 Barleywine from Oakshire


Every twice in awhile, I get a wild hare and go to raiding the beer cellar. Sorry, been listening to the S-Town podcast.

Going back to the halcyon days of 2013 for a barleywine from Oakshire Brewing of Eugene, Oregon.

This one did bubble over even though I let it rest for a bit. As I cleaned up the mess, I got a vinous note in the aroma that worried me a bit. And when poured into the glass, there were flecks of brown stirring around.

Some oxidization had happened but as the beer warmed up, it became much more oaky and bourbon barrel. The caramel notes were intermingling with the remaining hop character as well in the this opaque light brown beer. Getting a touch of chocolate as well.

I would hazard a guess that this beer was better a couple years ago. The fade to barrel has simplified a beer that I hazard a guess was happier and less sweet.

…and a Bottle of Rum


I recently selected a Rum accented barleywine for a “hypothetical” taster tray from Le Castor and now, one a little closer to home is on the horizon from AleSmith. I love seeing anything barrel-aged that isn’t whiskey or bourbon. + love the pun name.

Typology Tuesday – Barleywine

Typology Tuesday
As fate would have it, I have run across a few American versions of the venerable barley wine style. Two from breweries new to the Los Angeles area and a third a newly distributed canned offering in a super cute little yellow can.

Does that constitute a trend? Doubtful, because to me, American-style barley wine is now separated into sub-styles that push it further from the English source and blur category lines.

Once the “experimenters” as I call our brewers got hold of the traditional barley wine, the style was bound to be split into two camps. And now, I would say that the American-style is split into the hoppy, very nearly an Imperial IPA camp and the barrel-aged versions that dominate the top ten lists.

Personally, I would like to see more of what I have tasted recently. Iron Triangle tucked south of Downtown L.A. has a barley wine on their list that hews more toward the English with toffee notes and a sweetness unencumbered by hop bitterness. Hours north of Los Angeles, Transplants Brewing in Palmdale had a barley wine in their opening day line-up that again amped up the sweet over the bitterness of hops.

The third wheel was Lower De Boom from 21st Amendment which pours a dark reddish brown (though the can is bright yellow). Again the first notes that I pick up are sweetness with a bit of candied orange peel taste. The beer had a little carbonated kick but mellowed into mostly silky mouthfeel. Even 8.4 ounces was too much as the beer got heavier with each sip. The can proclaims “packed with citrusy hops” but they were not the focal point of the flavor for me.

My issue with the American portion of the barley wine divide is that the name itself is less than useful at this point. Many do not have the vinous characteristic to cover the wine half of the name and, well, the barley is there in copious amounts and still overridden by hops or spirits or both. None of the dominant flavors correspond to the name. I understand that the above is more pet peeve but the utility of a style is as a shorthand to use with fellow craft beer fans or to explain a beer to a newbie. When I have backtrack and explain the explanation or make caveats, then I feel that the descriptor is suddenly less so.

I have been racking my brain for a better term and have yet to find the right mix to connect it to the English barley wine in its past and with which it shares many components while also creating a better term going forward but I have yet to do so.

Maybe I need to test out more and see if inspiration strikes!

IMG_5911

Sucaba is Back!

Screen Shot 2015-01-10 at 9.58.54 AMThere are two mysteries surrounding §ucaba.  Well three if you count the weird Double S at the start of the name.

1 is this fact:
“We’ve never talked about it, but §ucaba is actually a blend of two separate beers,” Brynildson said. “The base beer is what you would call §ucaba, but each year the final blend also includes around 10 percent of another barrel-aged beer, which gives it this chocolaty, dark cherry dimension.”

2 is how you say
So what’s the official pronunciation? “There is none,” Brynildson said. “SUC-a-buh, SOO-cah-ba, SOO-cab-uh, you hear it all, so it’s kind of fun. But in the brewhouse, we still call it by its original name.”

Either way, this is one of the Firestone Walker beers that you buy two or more of.  One to try and one to cellar.