Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8.5 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8

27 February 2026. BCBS Tasting @ Stacks (Sint-Kruis). Cheers to Ward for hosting the event!

Clear dark brown, no head. Coffee bean, mocha biscuit, dried plum, fig, toffee, bourbon, brandy. Sweet raisin, fig & prune in a toasty & toffee-like malt body, some bitter mocha. Herbal hops in the finish, some earthy coffee, dried fruits and boozy bourbon alcohol. Medium to full body, oily texture, average carbonation. The structure is a bit looser here than in the regular barleywine, coffee adds earthiness but doesn't add much value. Feels like a light Stout. Then again, it's very hard to call this 'disappointing'.

Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7.5

bottle - cellared for a few years by friend, and shared during our dart night. expected better, it was good, but not one of my favorites of theirs

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

Bottle thanks to Stuu's Chicago adventure.
Appearance - jet black with an edge of red light at the sides.
Nose - dark chocolate, sweet spice, coconut and coffee with woody edge.
Taste - more chocolate and coconut, prunes, caramel and chocolate orange.
Palate - full bodied, sweet middle and chewy finish.
Overall - lovely stuff!

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

Bottle hauled back from the states by Stuu666. Pours clear mahogany with a thin ring of white head. Aromas of nuts, dried fruit and booze. Taste is rich, sticky, fruity coffee. Boozy finish. 8.2, but that's an impossible score to give.

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

bottle at ashs ...deep red brown ..thin tan lacing ..soft sweet caramel toffee fruit nose ...soft sweet caramel toffee fruit ...big vanilla ..soft sweet bozzy fruit ..juicy caramel toffee fruit

Does everyone take a long deep breath out, shake their head and go phew after drinking all goose island bourbons? Just me? Okay.

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9.5

2018 bottle at Goose Island Taproom, pours a deep dark amber mahogany with a small beige head. Aroma reveals a wonderfully integrated mix of coffee, bourbon and dark dried fruits. Flavour is rich and elegant, with intense dark dried fruits, coffee, bourbon barrels, and dark sugars. Wonderfully integrated, dynamic and extreme. Just fantastic.

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

Bottle shared by Silver. Clear, mahogany brown with small beige head. Burnt caramel, some oak, roast. Hints of coffee but it's quite subdued (thankfully).

Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7.5 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Thanks Adam for the assist on this bottle Adam! Pours an unclear chestnut brown with a small beige head that dissipates to a ring. Lots of warming bourbon on the nose with toffee, caramel and some oxidation present. No coffee to speak of on the nose. More of the same toffee and toasted malt on the palate with some piney bitterness at the back end. Warming bourbon, oak and some mild coffee notes on the finish. Would have liked to try fresh, but still a fun tick.

Not an overly sweet barleywine - very balanced between sweetness, coffee, and bourbon with a nice warming finish. Excellent!