Critical Hit
(has 1 batch)
Ninkasi Brewing Company in Eugene, Oregon, United States 🇺🇸
Barley Wine - Barley Regular|
Score
7.29
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R&D Series. In the Ninkasi tradition, this barley wine is hopped to high heaven –using more than 16 pounds per barrel! Critical Hit’s rich, malty expression is balanced by 16 varieties of hops that linger on the palate. Its high gravity nature warms the cheeks and soul. Critical Hit does maximum damage, so you might have to roll to save if you take this ale for granted!
Massive citrus, earthy, resinous, and grassy hop flavor is balanced with the melanoidin complexity of port and sherry notes, creating a powerful and warming taste experience. Big citrus, earthy, grassy, and pine hop aroma with port and sherry notes mingle in this beer conditioned for over a year. Aggressive bitterness dominates up front with a large array of hop flavor spanning citrus, earthy, resinous, grassy and dank. Subtle caramel and melanoidin compounds oxidize (in a good way) to create the port and sherry notes that are a trademark to these extremely strong beers called barley wine. The bitterness of the beer helps round out the intensity of alcohol and the malt complexity to make a non-cloying and very, very tasty beer. This may be the one beer that you still need to sip rather than quaff but it is deceptive for the style.
Hops: Columbus, Millenium, Northern Brewer, Simcoe, Falconers Flight, Galena, Peerle, Santiam, Ahtanum, Fuggle, Glacier, Hersbrucker, Liberty, Spalt, Hallertau
Massive citrus, earthy, resinous, and grassy hop flavor is balanced with the melanoidin complexity of port and sherry notes, creating a powerful and warming taste experience. Big citrus, earthy, grassy, and pine hop aroma with port and sherry notes mingle in this beer conditioned for over a year. Aggressive bitterness dominates up front with a large array of hop flavor spanning citrus, earthy, resinous, grassy and dank. Subtle caramel and melanoidin compounds oxidize (in a good way) to create the port and sherry notes that are a trademark to these extremely strong beers called barley wine. The bitterness of the beer helps round out the intensity of alcohol and the malt complexity to make a non-cloying and very, very tasty beer. This may be the one beer that you still need to sip rather than quaff but it is deceptive for the style.
Hops: Columbus, Millenium, Northern Brewer, Simcoe, Falconers Flight, Galena, Peerle, Santiam, Ahtanum, Fuggle, Glacier, Hersbrucker, Liberty, Spalt, Hallertau
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8.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
2012 Vintage Bottle [#05026 of #12000] Deep brown coloured body with a large, four centimetre tall tan head that shows nicely, but the best part of this one from the eyes is the bright ruby glow when held up to the light - nice! Aroma of robust caramelised sugars and toffee with a dose of earth, grain, figs, prunes, plums, raisins, nuts, very light but noticeable english hops, some smoked peat and a touch of cedar and oak towards the end. Medium to Full-bodied; Robust earth flavours throughout with a good dose of nuts and grain along with some pitted fruit sweetness from the figs and raisins and a touch of dry cedar and wood flavours at the very end, but the alcohol and astringency is strong, decently well masked, but considering the time aged, this one should have been a touch smoother. Aftertaste is robust, deep and flavour with a super complex sweetness along with malt profile that shows well and the body is nice and almost syrupy, which makes this one a good sipper. Overall, a nice and robust Barley Wine that shows quite well and has some very good qualities, while remaining nice and complex throughout. I wish I would have aged mine for another three+ years, but this was definitely drinkable now at 2 years, but I think it could have gotten even better! I sampled this 65 cL bottle purchased from Pear Delicatessen in Seattle, Washington [state] on 18-February-2016 for US$10,80 sampled at home in [the real] Washington on the other end of the country on 18-February-2018, exactly two years after purchase. 2012 Vintage // Purchased 18-February-2016 // Sampled: 18-February-2018
Tried
from Bottle
on 08 Jul 2018
at 06:11
7.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Poured from the tap. Amber brown with beige head. Toffee and caramel malt, fig and raisin, mild alcohol. Good flavours, decent cohesion.
Tried
from Draft
on 30 Jul 2017
at 00:31
7.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 6.5
Tap at Imazato. A purplish accented mahogany brown with a hoppy sweet but piney malt aroma. Many were saying Triple IPA. Pretty good but didn’t stand out to me after Pohjala OO Cassis and Eclipse Buffalo Trace.
Tried
from Draft
on 30 Jun 2017
at 09:33
4.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 5
Flavor 3
Texture 8
Overall 3.5
Bottle, vintage 2014. Pours clear amber, medium beige head, dissipates fairly quickly, some lacing. Aroma is pine, caramel, oranges. Flavor is fully sweet, hugely punishingly bitter, Eww. Medium body. Ouch. This one hurts
Tried
from Bottle
on 14 Apr 2017
at 01:58
8.1/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
On tap at Alibi Room. Vintage 2014. Pours a dark amber with a white head. Aroma is sweet, with caramel and dried fruits notes. Taste is complex with tropical fruits and piney bitterness, caramel, roasted malt. Hoppy bitterness aftertaste. Very good!
Tried
from Draft
on 03 May 2016
at 20:17
7.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
Brown amber, thin head. Lots of bitterness, hop earthy foresty notes. Sweeter caramelly malts. Has light fruits. Decent bw
Tried
on 26 Apr 2016
at 19:09
5.4/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 4
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Bottle thanks to Derek. Pours a cloudy brown with medium white head that lasts. The aroma is earthy malt and citrus. Medium mouth, roast, earth, dark fruit, bitter finish, ok.
Tried
from Bottle
on 25 Apr 2016
at 23:21
8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
650 ml bottle. Pours a dark copper with moderate head. Aromas of brown sugar toffee and fruity/rubbery hops. Flavors of same with additional elements of grass, copper, and bitter citrus peels. Really nice and should cellar well.
Tried
from Bottle
on 16 Feb 2016
at 23:17
7.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Bottle from Brewers Haven, 2013 vintage. Big malt bomb. Hazy dark copper body with small creamy, soapy head. Aroma : malt; taste : malt. Big hop finish coupled with slow building warmth. Medium weight, silky feel, bitterness lingers, coupled with pleasing simmering heat. Nice warmer.
Tried
from Bottle
on 12 Dec 2015
at 19:50
8.6/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 10
Overall 8.5
2015-03-31, draught at Alibi Room, Vancouver, 600th Menu Party, 8-4-8-5-15=40
Dark amber color, with creamy beige head. It has a good flavor of dark malts (a good job there), and an impressive hopping, with all in it (bitterness crazy level, resins, some fruits), lightly dusty. Also, light cheese aroma.
Huge, ungraceful, but satisfying.
Reminds me of classic American Barley Wines, like Sierra Nevada Bigfoot, Great Divide Old Ruffian...
2014-05-02, bottle from Whole Foods Westlake, Seattle; vintage 2012, bottle 03368/12000, 8-5-8-5-17=43
Brown color with dark amber hue, small head. The aroma of dark caramel and components of hop sweat and hop resins immediately brings back to older times (Old Foghorn).
Full bodied but not heavy, with round mouthfeel, and moderate sweetness; the dark caramel flavor dominates the opening, with accents of biscuits and dark bread; then the bitterness appears, with its load of dark hop resins, and reminiscent of Italian digestive liquors (Cynar, Rabarbaro Zucca). The stickiness on the lips, in the end, is also a good sign.
Old (American) school; I will get back to this one again.
Tried
from Can
on 02 May 2014
at 17:09