Rogue Old Crustacean Barleywine Style Ale

I always love the big Rogue bottles… this one is no exception and I thank Dave for saving me some of this brew for a tasting.  Rogue Old Crustacean Barleywine Style Ale has oft been spotted by my keen eye but I have passed it buy each time… not really sure why, but I finally had a chance to taste.  This one is strong… very strong and it has a bit of a sourness to it.  The hops dominate for sure but they lay into it more like an IPA than a barleywine, in my opinion.  The pour is dark brown and cloudy near the bottom with a clean finish.  At the end, the beer wasn’t bad but it wasn’t something I will seek again.  I would definitely drink it if you put it in front of me, though.

JBB6 Rating: Middle of the Road

BridgePort Old Knucklehead

A weight was lifted today.  I made it through something that has been heavy on my mind and so, I wanted to cap it off with something a little more sophisticated than normal.  Ok… really… wine isn’t necessarily more sophisticated than beer (IMO), but it just sounds fancier, doesn’t it?

So, BridgePort Old Knucklehead graced my glass tonight.  Bridgeport Brewery hasn’t really done that great on this blog.  Their brown and their pale ale were just ok…  I might have to change my opinion, though, after tasting tonight’s beer.

This Old Knucklehead comes from a long tradition of Old Knuckleheads and I am proud to say that tonights (012) is the newest of the bunch… even newer than what they have on their website (011).  This version is slightly higher in alcohol content (10% ABV) and doesn’t have some guy on the front. 

As far as taste goes, Old Knucklehead is strong, very strong.  You can notice the it has “legs” when you swirl it around the glass.  I tasted it at 53.7 °F tonight and it had very strong malt and hops with what I swear is somewhat of a rice wine flavor to it.  Next time I should taste it with some sake…  Good head, great dark amber color.  A beer that you don’t guzzle… this one is meant to drink slow and for maximum enjoyment.  Overall a great beer.

JBB6 Rating: Will Buy Again

 

Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barleywine

Rough day today.  Started out by sleeping in past work-out time which ultimately caused me to be driving during prime time driving time and right in the sites of a police man who gave me a ticket for speeding.  I can’t lie… I was speeding.  Very unfortunate as I have no tickets or accidents in WA state (except for this one, touch wood).  So, going to try to have it deferred and will see what happens.  Info on deferral is here if you are interested: King County Traffic Infraction Q&A.

So, started the day crappy and was really ready for a good beer tonight (especially since there wasn’t any in our all-afternoon meeting) grr…

Beer of choice, then: Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barleywine.  Chosen because I needed the high alcohol content (9.6%) and because it is 1 of 3 that I have left in the fridge.

About the beer… well… it was ok.  The first thing I noticed was a very busy pour with a small head.  Plenty of carbonation, but you can just see that it has more alcohol in it.  Second thing was the strong, pungent smell that had me thinking IPA.  Which it ended up tasting like, as well.  Very much like a super-strong, very hoppy IPA that has been pumped up (like Hans and Franz!).  Overall a bit strong for my taste, although, I might be of a different mind if I were to be having it with cheese or chocolate as the website suggests instead of french dip and corn…

JBB6 Rating: Middle of the Road

Note to self… this is review #94.