Zipline Barrel-Aged Barleywine

This is a 14.7% ABV barleywine that was aged in bourbon barrels. It is from the Zipline Brewing Company of Lincoln, Nebraska. 

The beer pours a hazy dark brown with a touch of garnet. There is a half- inch of thick and creamy tan head. The aroma is bourbon up front, vanilla and oak, sweet, brown sugar and caramel. The taste follows the aromas, lots of upfront bourbon, the sweetness of bourbon and barleywine sugar notes, tempered by lots of astringent oak, sending off notes of fruit, like cherries. The beer is smooth and round with a tingle of carbonation.  It drinks amazingly easy for its alcohol level, with no burn, but a subtle warming effect. This is a nice one!