Robin Shepard
Next Door Brewmaster Dave Hansen is releasing a bold and spicy barleywine on Black Friday.
While barleywines are often considered an acquired taste even among the most ardent craft beer enthusiasts, this one goes a step beyond the expected, with lots of rye malt and a blend of Chinese spices.
What is it? Rye Panda from Next Door Brewing.
Style: Barleywines are full-bodied beers, deep bronze to dark brown in color. They showcase complex blends of malts and hops, and carry wine-like strength that often tops 10 percent ABV.
Background: Dave Hansen has been brewmaster at Next Door Brewing for about a year. Prior to taking the job at this eastside brewpub he was working at MillerCoors in Milwaukee where he was lead brewer for the Leinenkugel’s Big Eddy series. That’s where he honed many of his ideas about making big beers like the Big Eddy Cherry Doppelschwarz. Hansen hasn’t wasted any time in putting those experiences into play at Next Door. Fans may remember his Integrator Dopplebock from last January.
Now he’s capturing attention for his barleywine. It’s strong, topping 10 percent ABV. That strength comes from a range of dark malts and three types of rye. The beer is also bittered with Newport and Nugget hops. Added to that is a combination of Chinese spices: Szechuan peppercorns, brown mustard seeds and Tien-Tsin peppers. Of all the spice in this big beer, the peppercorns stand out with their own touch of light heat in the flavor and distinctive aroma.
Hansen drew inspiration from a 2015 Big Eddy beer called Ryewine Ale. “It was the Big Eddy I was most proud of,” says Hansen. “Rye Panda is a combination that I’ve had in the back of my mind and wanted to try for a long time.” (Big Eddy beers have not been made since 2017. After their production ended, Hansen soon left MillerCoors and landed the brewmaster job at Next Door.)
Rye Panda is being released on Black Friday at Next Door Brewing, where it sells for $9/bottle. Over the next few weeks, a limited number of bombers will turn up around town at local liquor stores.
Tasting notes:
- Aroma: Maltiness up front in the nose, followed by light hints of pepper from the peppercorns.
- Appearance: Hazy, dark amber to bronze color. A medium bubbly tan head.
- Texture: Medium- to full-bodied, bubbly with roundness.
- Taste: Solid caramel maltiness and bready rye throughout. The spices are assertive and come out midway through the flavor profile.
- Finish/Aftertaste: Spicy, malty, bready rye dryness and a lingering touch of black peppercorns. There’s alcoholic warmth that builds.
Glassware: Barleywines are big beers that deserve to be sipped from a snifter. The inward flare of the glass also helps focus the spices under the nose.
Pairs well with: Thanksgiving desserts like pumpkin and apple pie. The malt and spices in the beer blend nicely with the soft sweetness of the pies.
The Verdict: I usually shy away from spice-added beers because all too often the result is overwhelming, especially with holiday-labeled beers loaded with cinnamon and nutmeg. But here, the pepper and mustard flavors go up against the assertive and dry rye malts and create something unexpected. I’m recommending this barleywine, especially to those who appreciate something different. The hefty dose of three different ryes blends better than I thought they would with the pepper and mustard seeds. The result is an assertive spicy bready dryness with black pepper-like heat. Sip this one slowly to appreciate the layers of spice and how they change as the beer warms.
