2004 draft. First of all, I checked with the head brewer to make sure this was a different recipe than the Big N Bold Barley. He said it was and that it had a much higher hops content and a higher alcohol content. Light mahogany brown with some yellows mixed in. Good lightly brown/off-white head. It was very clear however. Aroma has an amazing amount of spicy hops with an equally big shot of dark, rich, vinous malt. Something like liquor soaked raisins. Yeast perceptible as well as a strong alcohol presence on the nose. Starts out very dry, with a rich barley flavor, dark rich figs and lightly sweet dates. Alcohol adds a great amount of dryness, the mouthfeel is surprisingly soft (relatively speaking). Hops add a high amount of acidity on the finish and there is a hint of thinning. For the alcohol and high gravity, this is very well done. Though the hops add some acidity, they are not highly bitter and this is much more along the lines of an English barley.

Wow, had no idea what to expect for a hopless beer. This was incredible, had I not tried the raspberry Eisbock, this would have been far and away my favorite beer during my visit to Kuhnhenn. Light gold color, with a decent white head. Smells of lightly sour/bitter herbs, ripe green apples and other tart fruits. Opens up with with the mouthfeel of a cider, fairly light and bubbly, but with a taste of pure balance and goodness. Had plenty of fruit character, kind of reminded me of Ocean spray cran-raspberry. Good malt flavor balances it, and it has a nice sour twang on the finish. New style for me and, here we go again, I'm off to hunt down more gruit and waste more time finding rare and eccentric beers. . .gotta love beer.

On tap January 2004. Dark brownish toffee like color with a mix of dark yellow and hazy orange. Big creamy off white head that sticks around. Aroma is full of malty goodness, with some light chocolate and lots of prune. Some dryness from the alcohol as well. Full body, tapering off a bit towards the finish. Very pleasant English style. Good thick, creamy mouthfeel. Lots of rich malt flavor, chocolate, sweet prunes, brown sugar, light maple. As it warmed it kept tasting more complex with plenty of spiciness and rich fig/date flavor. Some alcohol is perceptible and helps dry out the heavy malt flavor. Bitter for an English Barleywine, I suppose, but no high alpha hops apparent. Very good. Hell, it certainly surpassed Bell's boring cherry and sugar concoction in my books.

Historic Batch #1 brewed in 2002. What a great time at the brewery. Bret Kuhnhenn went in to his cellar and pulled a bottle out for me to try. Man was this stuff incredible. Aroma is pure heaven. Perfect ripe red raspberry jam aroma, sticky, sweet, boisterous. Wow. This is one of the most drinkable beers I’ve ever had. I had to restrain myself from downing it in just a few sips. Big sweet raspberry flavor meets lovely dark dark chocolate malt. Huge body on it and wonderfully wedded are the raspberries and malt. Alcohol is nowhere to be found. The more it warmed, the more I was able to explore the flavors hiding behind the raspberries. Dark, dry chocolate, vanilla, and almost a nuttiness that I cant put my finger on. Exceptional. I went home and had a Kulmbacher Eisbock that night, and the magic of the Kulmbacher seemed paled after trying Kuhnhenn’s gem. The fact that they were able to successfully brew a beer of this magnitude with raspberries is very impressive.

Batch #2 brewed in late 2004. Already oxidized, lightly so, and not in a bad way. The beer has a rich, thick body, but yet a very big lack of carbonation protests that this be a syrupy, cloying monster. So score one for oxidation. It also adds to the lovely sherry-like flavor of the beer. A gentle, sweet sipper, with abounding complexity and by no means outdone or overdone with raspberries. The malt is soothing, rich and sweet, but yet the beer is balanced so nicely with honey, caramel and rich chocolate. It’s a shame that these bottles come so small. Quite a bit different from the first batch, much less raspberry influence, less thick chcolate and much less thick of a body. Perhaps that’s just the oxidation from the bottle size. I hope I can try it on draught or from the 500mL bottle.