English Barleywine Vertical Tasting - 2017

A few months late (but better late than never) I'll be doing a vertical tasting of English Barleywine I've brewed for the last 4 years on Memorial Day (2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017).  Each beer was brewed with different malts and different yeasts so they're each slightly different but they shared a lot of the overarching goals for flavor profiles and body.

Left to Right:  2014 Plain, 2014 Brandy, 2015, 2016, and 2017

You can read about my previous three tastings here:  2014 Tasting, 2015 Tasting, 2016 Tasting

One thing I've learned from doing these is that the beers do hold up very well and that the age does improve them.  They soften and mellow considerably.  I also think that the malt flavors become more complex with the aging.

It is becoming more and more challenging to do these tastings as I add more beer.  This includes takes notes as well as setting up the photos.  I also wasn't able to finish all the beer this time.  I'm thinking next year I might try to get a couple more people involved to give some more notes.

I am exciting to see  how they've aged over the last year (tasting was done with cellar temperature beer).

2014 Plain Tasting Notes:

• Aroma:
• Rich caramel and malt most prominent with a bit of fruity ester.  Has a bit of musty and overripe fruit smell to it.  Rather sweet smelling
• Appearance:
• Very clear with a lovely red color.  One finger head after a vigorous pour.  Quickly fades to nothing.
• Flavor:
• Rich caramel and sweet malt flavors dominate.  The finish has a bit of alcohol presense.  No bitterness or hop character.  Subtle yeast character in the background.  Has a bit of roast malt character that lingers in the finish.
• Mouthfeel:
• Medium bodied and fairly dry.  Very smooth beer.  Slight alcohol warming
• Overall:
• Lovely smooth beer with a rich malt and caramel flavor.  This one is continuing to age nicely.  Has a really nice complexity.  My favorite beer this year.

2014 Brandy and Oak  Tasting Notes:

• Aroma:
• Very similar to the plain.  Almost has a maple syrup aroma
• Appearance:
• Same as plain
• Flavor:
• Caramel malt flavors like plain although it is slightly different - more caramel and less dark malt somehow (bottle to bottle variation maybe?)  It has a bit less fruity ester as well.  A bit firmer alcohol presence and I think I get some of the oak used in this half.  I think I also get some of the maple I picked up in the nose from this one.
• Mouthfeel:
• Almost the same as the plain but with a slight bit of astringency
• Overall:
• Similar to the plain but has a bit more sharpness in terms of alcohol and astringency.  Still a lovely and complex beer but I prefer the plain half.

2015 Tasting Notes:

• Aroma:
• Bready malt with some fruity ester.  Also has a bit of musty and earthy aroma
• Appearance:
• Copper color and a bit hazy.  Pours with a couple finger head that settles to a light ring
• Flavor:
• Fruity with bready malt.  Has an interesting ester character which balances out the malt and caramel.  A bit of alcohol character hits in the finish.  Yeast ester flavor lingers.
• Mouthfeel:
• Medium bodied with a nice sweetness.  It is more than slightly astringent which hits in the finish and serves to balance the sweetness a bit.
• Overall:
• Interesting yeast character with some nice malty complexity.  I don't enjoy it as much as the others due to the astringency.

2016 Tasting Notes:

• Aroma:
• Very malty with caramel aroma.  Maybe get a bit of tea-like or herbal aroma which I'm guessing is from the hops.  Very nice smelling beer
• Appearance:
• Pours with a couple fingers of head.  This lasts quite a bit longer than the others.  Light brown with nice clearity.
• Flavor:
• Rich malt flavors in this one with a caramel sweetness (experience is almost like eating a cookie - quite nice).  I has a bit of bitterness in the finish
• Mouthfeel:
• Medium bodied and slightly sweet.  Slight astringency.  A bit of warming alcohol.
• Overall:
• Really nice malt complexity in this beer.  Hides the alcohol nicely

2017 Tasting Notes:

• Aroma:
• Bready malt with some fruity ester
• Appearance:
• Golden with nice clarity.  Pours with a couple finger head that fades to a thin layer fairly quickly
• Flavor:
• Bready malt with a slight sweetness.  A bit of fruitiness balances this.  Not a lot of alcohol comes through.  I don't really get any hop flavor and only slight bitterness.  Malt flavors carry through to the finish
• Mouthfeel:
• Medium-full bodied.  A little sweet.  Very smooth
• Overall:
• Nice rich malty beer.  Not as much fruit character as some of the others but still complex in its own right