Apparently the third version so far of a barleywine created by HopHemel in Hasselt aged on calvados barrels - and one of the two components of the "American Heaven" I had at a private tasting last week, so I was really happy to find this in my home collection, for comparison and for enabling me to reminisce about that lovely day in the outskirts of Ostend. Thinnish but stable and regular, off-white, beautifully 'Brugse kant'-like lacing, breaking yet generally well-retaining head on a clear(ish) deep and pure orangey-amber robe with coppery glow and a suspension of minute yeast particles floating around everywhere - generally, the most classic looks one can associate with the intended genre. Aroma of dry caramel, (real) pecan nuts, bubblegum, green banana, calvados indeed but in a somewhat generic kind of way, quince, red apple peel, unripe pear, biscuit, subtler notes of yellow raisins, cognac, vanilla (oak wood of course - more clear warming up), clove, hard-boiled egg (still warm), dried basil, honey, very vague chicken soup somehow (but so faint that most consumers will probably miss it). Dried-fruity, yet only subduedly sweet onset, hints of dried fig, medlar, raisin but more green banana and green pear to be fair, sweet but less so than usual for this style; medium carb in a slick, vinous, 'full' body consisting of layers of hard-caramelly, hard pecan-nutty and dry-biscuity malts, again perhaps even lacking a touch of 'candied' sweetness but showcasing the calvados effect convincingly, with an impression of slick, hard apple peel left behind along with a peppery, warming alcohol glow, becoming a tad tiring and wry in the end. Notes of woody tannins become stronger after swallowing, even a tad astringent; phenolic clove and ginger effects appear too, almost adding a slight 'Christmassy' feel. Not sure if I should have kept this can any longer - I normally prefer my barleywines at a certain age (one year or more) but I doubt if this one would benefit from such a treatment. Lacks a bit in structure and content for what was intended - but for a 'Belgian barleywine', something I keep standing behind as a (sub)style concept with Bush and Stille Nacht in mind, this one certainly qualifies. Not bad at all, but I miss the depths of flavour a truly successful barleywine can offer - once again I must applaud Bart Vanpoucke for combining this with De Meester's barleywine, because the blend was more than the sum of its two parts, that much is clear now that I had both parts separately.

1/VIII/24 - 33cl can from Geers (Oostakker), shared @ Ardennes Holiday, BB: 1/III/26, lotnr: HH-24003 (2024-656)

Clear orange blond to amber beer, small creamy beige head, a little stable, non adhesive. Aroma: lots of ripe to overripe banana, malty, grains, hay, cow fodder, a bit spicy, sugary impression with some bubble gum. MF: ok carbon, medium body. Taste: malty start, grains, pretty bitter, hoppy, bubble gum and banana (things that don’t belong in a Barley Wine if you ask me, and are probably due to using a Belgian Abbey style yeast). A little woody impression as well. Aftertaste: a bit sweet, alcohol, lots of tannins, bitter, earthy, pretty nice and complex finish that saves the day on this beer! Probably has a good ageing potential, too bad it’s canned and not bottled…