Druid Fluid - Middle Ages Brewing Co., Ltd.

Jason

Massachusetts

4.47/5  rDev +14.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Dreamy reddish amber hue, you’d swear there was a shade of burgundy in there also. Good lacing for a higher alcohol brew as some tend to poop out … not this one though.

Smell: Big juicy fruit moshpit in the nostrils, getting lots of fruitiness from exotic from the esters / higher alcohols and citric from the hops … all very ripe. Add a touch of yeast, a slathering of malt sweetness and side of toffee and you have a chaotically complex aroma.

Taste: Muscular and flexed palate, full bodied and creamy smooth with an expressive light crispness. A tad chewy up front with that same juicy fruit in the aroma, toffee is pronounced a bit more as the buttery diacetyl and malt sweetness infiltrate the taste buds. Pungency from the hop build a solid bitterness to counteract against the sweetness, fruitiness falls in places both from the yeast and hops. Higher alcohols are esters with a ghost appearance of the solvent kind.

Notes: Yeah, I just want to say “juicy fruit” again. This beer does not surprise me coming from this brewery, I expected something of this greatness to come fro them.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2002 15:48:36 | More by Jason

Todd

Massachusetts

4.13/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

First, thanks to sponberg for bringing the sample from NY at our last BA gathering!

Presentation: 12oz brown bottle with a golden foil wrapped neck. No bottled-on info, or vintage date.

Appearance: This is an unfiltered brew. Pours a hazy dark copper beer with light ruby hues, crowned with a healthy off-white cream head -- settles to a lovely lace with plenty of stick and retention.

Smell: Subdued big malts but plenty of raw fruity aromas and apple-skin, leafy hops, slight touch of must.

Taste: Initially, this is one smooth-ass beer, full-bodied with a thick, sticky, slightly chewy mouthfeel. The beer then goes coarse with a rather unique character ... loads of raw, leafy hop flavours and feel, tart apple, apple-skin, crisp, sharp citrus snap and bitty grain edge -- Ringwood yeast all the way! Sweet tropical-like fruitiness. Malt flavours are a bit masked by this flavour experience, but pull out with woody, toasty, light roasted and burnt caramel and raw honey notes. Finish is coarse, a bit oily, bone-dry and lingers for quite a while. A bit of wet paper (oxidation) here and there too. Alcohol is well hidden (in a spooky way) but hits the brain at half-way point.

Notes: A very English-like barleywine, with very complex characters that are not typical of your US-made variety. Well worth a try if you're looking for a big beer that's different. Damn tasty!

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2002 17:14:47 | More by Todd

jaxon53

Connecticut

4/5  rDev +2.3%

06-18-2013 08:18:57 | More by jaxon53

LPJones

New York

2.5/5  rDev -36.1%

05-27-2013 02:01:58 | More by LPJones

nh2032

New York

3/5  rDev -23.3%

05-05-2013 00:52:19 | More by nh2032

Casey3236

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%

03-31-2013 08:22:52 | More by Casey3236

CaptDavyJones

New York

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

03-29-2013 01:14:30 | More by CaptDavyJones

BGsWo22

New York

4.5/5  rDev +15.1%

03-20-2013 23:09:27 | More by BGsWo22

daysinthewake

California

4/5  rDev +2.3%

02-21-2013 05:00:15 | More by daysinthewake

rlee1390

Indiana

3.95/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A-Semi clear amber orange, some carbonation and a one finger head

S-Grass, malt, bread, tad bit of hops, caramel and molasses.

T-Starts with caramel and molasses. Some grass, bread and malt. Very slight bitterness in the finish.

M-Light to medium bodied and not much carbonation.

O-A decent Barleywine. One of the better beers made by Middle Ages.

Serving type: bottle

02-20-2013 23:46:57 | More by rlee1390

DrinkSlurm

Connecticut

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

02-03-2013 06:03:58 | More by DrinkSlurm

Amalak

New York

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

02-03-2013 06:00:15 | More by Amalak

DmanGTR

New York

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

01-29-2013 17:54:08 | More by DmanGTR

MaseFace

Kentucky

4/5  rDev +2.3%

01-11-2013 01:57:56 | More by MaseFace

BurgeoningBrewhead

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +2.3%

01-03-2013 06:50:25 | More by BurgeoningBrewhead

tdm168

North Carolina

3.8/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - dark amber with a large, soft, dense, off white head that has great retention

S - bread, caramel, candy sugar, citrusy hops, grapefruit, some vanilla

T - bread, caramel, citrus, bitter, pith or orange rind, alcohol

M - medium to full bodied, warm, smooth, well carbonated

This beer is good but in my opinion needs some work. The malt character is there but the hops are a bit strange or unbalanced. The citrus notes do not sit as well as they should with the malt character. As a fan of Barleywines I will still recommend this as a beer that's worth a try, but I would view it more as a DIPA or strong ale than as a Barleywine.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2013 01:49:25 | More by tdm168

coolhandbeer

New York

4/5  rDev +2.3%

12-10-2012 01:05:35 | More by coolhandbeer

thebuck

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%

12-07-2012 03:43:39 | More by thebuck

Jwale73

Rhode Island

3.53/5  rDev -9.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

22oz. bottle served in a tulip. Pours a caramel hue with a semi-hazy clarity and a half inch, loose, cream-colored head that eventually disperses into a creamy slick. Some lacing, but no adhesion. Nose expresses prunes, a slightly vinous character, toasted malt and a trace of wet cardboard. Taste consistent with nose; however, a bit more subdued. There's also a light earthy hoppiness and some ethanol; however, things are a bit muddled by the carbonation levels - it definitely needs a swirl to open it up. Mouthfeel is light-medium (but closer to light) with an overly assertive carbonation level and a slightly oily texture. Overall, a fairly mediocre example of the style. Not something I need to revisit again anytime soon.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2012 00:44:18 | More by Jwale73

mitch3114

New York

3.18/5  rDev -18.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Picked up 22 oz. bomber from Price Chopper in Clifton Park, NY tonight

Served at around 50-55 degrees F, in a snifter glass

A- Beautiful rosey-amber color with a fluffy, bubbly white head of two finger thickness with aggressive pour. As I drink and swirl it around in it's vessel, it creates a nice uniform, sticky lacing. Very consistent looking with little to no sediment suspending.

S- Hops, sugar, alcohol, raisin, citrus, hops, toffee. Not too complex, but interesting enough.

T- Piney bitter hops, citrus, hops, banana peel, bitter...hops. This seems to be unbalanced to me. It is a bit too hop forward and the alcohol taste seems absent for a beer of this style and strength. I'm not getting the complex flavors and fruits that others seem to pick up on this one. It seems to be missing something...

M- mouthfeel is medium if not a bit light for the style. Little carbonation, and as i near the 1/3rd mark, there is zero carbonation.

O- The high ABV is hidden very well on this one. It is very smooth and easy to drink the first half. But the second was much harder because of the bitterness. It was actually hard to finish. Not a beer I would visit again in it's current state of maturity. Perhaps a year or two in the cellar to bypass the adolescent wildness that this brew has created, will do some good for it. I do enjoy a good IPA, double IPA, etc. but I don't want my barley-wine to be this bitter. I think some extra belgian candy sugar or something would have helped to balance this out. Or, maybe this is just too young for my preference. Maybe I will pick up another bottle to put away for some time...

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2012 05:17:52 | More by mitch3114

SLeffler27

New York

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%

11-18-2012 05:58:53 | More by SLeffler27

Andragos

New York

4.75/5  rDev +21.5%

11-17-2012 04:31:41 | More by Andragos

DrewV

New York

3.9/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours an amber-gold color with a solid 2-finger head that fades quickly.

S: Smells of bready yeast and fruity malts up front. Someone said "Juicyfruit", and that's exactly what it is. Very sweet smelling, very inviting. No harshness or estery alcohol in the aroma.

T: Much like the aroma, very sweet, but not cloying. Very light body and fruity flavor with an extremely mild bitterness. No alcohol detected in the taste. Maybe some grape-y flavors. Honestly, I don't get any toffee or caramel or raisin or fig. Nothing "dark" here... just mostly lighter flavors, along with a yeasty breadiness.

M: Light carbonation, medium-light body. This is an easy drinker.

O: Not bad, a decent beer overall. I can't say this strikes me as a particularly aggressive barleywine -- it's more of a Belgian IPA than a barleywine. During the course of a 22-ouncer, I got accustomed to the taste. If you're looking for an easy-drinking brew that packs a decent punch and doesn't particularly tax the palate, this is a good choice, although a bit pricey. A solid B+/A- overall.

Serving type: bottle

10-21-2012 02:29:39 | More by DrewV

nyrblue2

New York

3/5  rDev -23.3%

09-16-2012 03:18:56 | More by nyrblue2

Dope

Massachusetts

3.9/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a murky, rusty red-brown. Decent white head with fluffy lacing.

S: Caramel, raisins and some fig.

T: Toasty bread and caramel. Dark fruit like raisin, fig, and prunes. Green grape juice. Touch of brown sugar. Finishes mildly bittter with earthy hop overtones.

M: Fairly heavy, a touch drying.

O: Pretty typical decent hoppy barleywine. Heavy and strong. Heavy raisin and grape, quite fruity.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2012 00:18:03 | More by Dope