Robin Shepard
The barleywine is a sit-up-and-take-notice style ideal for winter, with bold flavor and strength. The higher alcohol level provides warmth that will take the chill away on the coldest January night in Wisconsin. Hinterland Brewery of Green Bay has a version with a big bill of American hops and months of aging in Kentucky bourbon barrels.
What is it? Bourbon Barrel Barley Wine by Hinterland Brewery of Green Bay
Style: Barleywines are full-bodied beers, deep bronze to dark brown in color. They showcase complex blends of malts and hops, with wine-like strength that often tops 10% ABV. English versions of the style emphasize malty sweetness, while American versions are usually hoppier. Traditionally, because of their strength and the time it takes to brew them, barleywines were made for special occasions and celebrations. Among a few modern standard favorites are: New Glarus Barley Wine, Great Dane Jolly Old Scratch, and Sierra Nevada Brewing’s Bigfoot Barleywine.
Background: Hinterland first offered a barleywine in 1999, not long after its start in business. Since then, it’s appeared only sporadically in the brewery’s taproom/restaurant. The last time brewer Joe Karls made one was at least seven years ago. This year’s version is also the first time the brewery has made a bourbon-barrel-aged version, and it’s the first to be sold in bottles. This gives Madisonians the chance to enjoy Hinterland’s take on the barleywine.
“I’ve always been a fan of Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot,” says Karls, “so I wanted an American style modeled after it, as close as possible.” Hinterland’s version is made with Golden Promise and Vienna malts. It’s the Golden Promise that lends a nice hint of honey sweetness. A heavy dose of Cascade and Columbus hops provides a noticeable bitterness (estimated at 85 IBUs), so it clearly leans to the American side of the style.
Karls uses bourbon barrels from the Heaven Hill Distillery of Bardstown, Ky. “I like first-use barrels because they’re nice and mellow, not overpowering in any specific flavor,” he says. The beer was brewed in May and then sat in the barrels for over five months before it was bottled. “Aging in those first-generation barrels during the warmer summer months helped to accelerate the uptake of bourbon and oak characteristics,” For this winter’s release, Hinterland produced nearly 120 barrels of its barleywine, and nearly 60% of that will be bottled. The beer finishes at 9.4% ABV and is sold in single 16-ounce bottles for around $10.
Tasting notes:
Aroma: Solid malty nose.
Appearance: Hazy bronze, with ruby-amber highlights; a medium marbled tan head.
Texture: Full-bodied, round and bubbly.
Taste: There’s an initial layer of sweet maltiness from the Golden Promise malt before the spicy blend of hops and malt and their following warmth take over.
Finish/Aftertaste: Warmth, with some dryness from the hops.
Glassware: The barleywine should be poured into a snifter and served somewhat warm at 45-48 F to bring out the rich complexity of its malt and hop aromas. It's a beer to sip, while appreciating and respecting its strength.
Pairs well with: Barleywines, especially American versions that feature assertive hops, are best on their own. They make for nice after-dinner drinks or nightcaps on a cold winter’s night.
The Verdict: Hinterland’s barleywine is a complex spicy blend of hops and malts, clearly fitting expectations for an American rendition of the style. There’s a roughness to the abrasive hop spiciness. The sweeter hints of bourbon and oak from barrel-aging are there, but held way in the background. I do like how the barrel-aging serves as a nice complement to the spiciness, especially because the bourbon-spirit flavor doesn’t try to compete with the beer flavor.
However, this is still a young, hoppy and hot alcoholic barleywine. Extended aging of a beer like this can take some of that resiny bitter bite away, mellowing the hop character and softening the alcohol burn. Given that, this is certainly a beer that can be, and maybe should be, cellared longer.
