13 December 2008

Beer Review, Back Burner

Southern Tier Back Burner Barleywine Style Ale
Lakewood, NY
10.0% ABV

Appearance: Dark orange-red, very hazy (almost opaque), with a thick off-white head that sticks around for a bit and leaves some lacing. Very good appearance. 4.5/5

Smell: Crisp hops up-front, with a nice solid caramel maltiness underneath. Slightly sweet. 4.0/5

Taste: Strong bitter solid hops on the front, very heavily malted in the middle, with a sweet aftertaste. Strong flavors of caramel and brown sugar. Pretty much your standard barleywine, but it doesn't quite gel as well as I'd like it to -- the hops and the malts seem like characteristics from two separate beers, and don't reinforce one another the way I'd like. 4.0/5

Mouthfeel: Thick, heavy hops and low carbonation. Slightly chewy. 4.0/5

Drinkability: A very nice barleywine, one of the better examples of the style. Well worth trying if you can get it. 4.0/5

Overall: 4.1/5

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