Central Waters Bourbon Barrel Barleywine Ale

This bourbon barrel aged barleywine is from Central Waters Brewing Company of Amherst, Wisconsin. It is aged for a year. This is the 2014 vintage.

The beer pours a very dark amber, garnet, burnt orange in color. There is a short, light tan head. The aroma is sweet, caramel, sweet potatoes, bourbon, with a bit of a fruity tang and some vanilla and wood. The taste follows the aromas directly. This is malty and sweet, with just enough hops and wood to prevent being cloying. It is full-bodied, round and smooth, not at all boozy despite its 11.5% ABV. I wouldn’t mind just a bit more bourbon. It will be nice to revisit this in a couple years and see how it develops.

I tried this again on February 21, 2015 and it is drinking great, wonderful toffee, caramel and butterscotch flavors, and the bourbon is still rocking, along with a woody astringency to keep the sweetness in check. This is just an awesome beer!