Smuttynose Barleywine Style Ale
Okay – first of all, let me temper this by saying that I don’t REALLY enjoy barleywine-style ales. Granted, I’ve had a couple in the past (Dogfish Head, Sierra Nevada, Brooklyn) that made me change the way I felt. But, I’ve had a lot more that have reinforced my relative disdain for this style (I say ‘relative’ because, let’s face it, a bad beer is still a good drink, and a barleywine ale usually has at least 9-10% abv, and that can’t be all bad). Anyway, on to the review. This barleywine ale comes with no big surprises. it pours a rosy amber and smells heavily of alcohol and brown sugar. The beer is rather viscous and the flavor is heavy with a syrupy sweetness and hints of anise. Down the throat it lingers and burns slightly, ending with just a hint of the anise at the back of the throat. So, overall, it’s a rather plain barleywine style ale. Fans of the varietal might enjoy this, but I probably won’t buy it again, as there are certainly better interpretations out there. On the high side, it feels pretty high in alcohol, but the abv isn’t advertised, so I can’t verify this.
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