8.4

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5

22 ounce bottle into snifter, bottled in 3/2018. Pours slightly hazy deep orange/copper/amber color with a 1 finger dense and fluffy light khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of big caramel, brown sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, and brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of raisin, plum, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, white grape, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Minimal booze in the aromas as it warms. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/bready malts, maple syrup bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with great strength. Taste of huge caramel, brown sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, and brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of raisin, plum, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, white grape, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Mild herbal, grassy, peppery, charred oak bitterness; and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, maple syrup, vanilla, toffee, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, brown bread/crust, dark fruit, apricot, red apple, white grape, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, maple syrup bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with a solid malt/bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with no cloying sweetness after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness. Light-medium carbonation and medium-full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/velvety/bready, and lightly slick/sticky/tannic mouthfeel that is fantastic. Mildly increasing warmth of 12%, with minimal lingering barrel booze after the finish. Overall this is a fantastic barrel aged English barleywine! All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, maple syrup bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the huge ABV, with the mildly bitter/tannic/drying finish; great soft feel. Amazing balance of rich malts and maple syrup barrel presence/integration; with restrained fruity English yeast, and solid earthy hop balance. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. A highly enjoyable offering, and amazing style example. Was expecting a bit more fruitiness for an English barleywine, but still spot on stuff. Malts and barrels are the showcase.