Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barleywine Style Ale - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

JudgeRoughneck

Louisiana

4.83/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

This is a dense, deep, dark, amber- ruby colored brew with a muted glow and a big bright off-white head that fades fast and leaves some delicate lacing.

The nose is amazing. First thing that hits is hops. They are old, resinous, herbal, and quite inviting. Amazingly subdued alcohol is nicely blended with yeasty aromas. The more I sniff the more I just smell grapefruit. Continued quaffing just makes this grapefruit smell more intesne. I am very impressed at the way niether the alcohol, esters, or malt are running the show here and it avoids that vapory smell. Those qualities are left in the taste, where I feel they belong.

The taste starts off with sweet, sweet, malt and citrusy and herbal hops. Vapor alcohol and berry esters show for just a second. Next comes a sublime bouquet of dark berry, red apple, and citrus fruit flavors which are scrubbed off by a slight yeast bite in the finish. Damn that is good.

The mouthfeel is light bodied but thick feeling. It is amazingly NOT slick. It does not feel like my tounge is lifting weights like other barleywines do and it really helps this beer's dangerous drinkability.

As a rule, I'm not that into barleywine. I love this one because I think it retains all the complexity of the style, yet avoids all the things I dislike usually. My favorite barleywine easily.

ADDING ON JAN 2010 - I aged a bottle of this from 2008 beer for 2 years? The longest Michael Jackson suggests in old book of his. The nose, interestingly, developed an amazing complexity, and I have very nice things to say there. Hop aroma has taken a backseat to a host of other aromas including fig, date, sage, with candied fruit flavors intensifying in the flavor and dominating a mix which also included anise, blackberry, mint, and a leathery finish. The alcohol character became a liitle oppressive and despite all the fascinating complexity this beer developed, I felt its drinkability declined severely.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2006 22:58:17 | More by JudgeRoughneck

Rdc67

Kentucky

4/5  rDev -4.1%

05-22-2013 19:48:48 | More by Rdc67

KVNBGRY

Florida

4.25/5  rDev +1.9%

05-22-2013 15:14:06 | More by KVNBGRY

GabeQ

Tennessee

4/5  rDev -4.1%

05-22-2013 15:02:08 | More by GabeQ

SmellsofMahagony

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +1.9%

05-22-2013 02:45:29 | More by SmellsofMahagony

Andrew61923

Connecticut

4.3/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

2013 vintage poured into my Tree House tulip. I'm not sure how I've never had this beer before. Picked up on a whim as a single...we'll see if I go back to get more, as you can't beat the pricepoint for such a highly rated beer (given I end up liking it).

A: After an aggressive pour, I'm left with a gorgeous amber body with a soapy two finger off-white head that gradually fades to leave a substantial halo with some perfect lacing. So far, so good.

S: A lot hoppier than I would have expected, as this is one of the more hop-forward barleywines I can recall. Lots of juiciness for a beer I usually equate to more malt-based with a good amount of caramel sweetness in there as well.

T: Talk about complex. I'm having trouble even picking up on what I'm tasting. I'm getting notes of pine, caramel, Grapenuts, and toffee all mixed together quite nicely. Not at all what I was expecting from what I picked up in the nose.

M: Pretty much spot-on. The carbonation is a tad high, but for a beer that apparently ages so well, I'm willing to forgive this. Not syrupy in the least, which I think is most impressive.

O: I would never say that barleywines are my desired style of beer. That being said, I do love hoppy beers and I was pleasantly surprised by the hoppiness of fresh Bigfoot. I will likely pick up another single if I can find one to age for a while to see if I enjoy the brew that way, but I was happy with this. Now I understand the hype!

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2013 01:29:32 | More by Andrew61923

mikeincharleston

South Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +7.9%

05-22-2013 01:21:45 | More by mikeincharleston

Kingcurio

Oklahoma

4.25/5  rDev +1.9%

05-21-2013 01:51:39 | More by Kingcurio

Lucoli

New York

3.5/5  rDev -16.1%

05-21-2013 01:19:11 | More by Lucoli

BogBoyJD

Ireland

4.5/5  rDev +7.9%

05-20-2013 22:32:44 | More by BogBoyJD

johntfox

Florida

4/5  rDev -4.1%

05-20-2013 22:04:27 | More by johntfox

Kreko7

California

3.75/5  rDev -10.1%

05-20-2013 21:27:36 | More by Kreko7

BarrelAgedBrian

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +7.9%

05-20-2013 19:47:31 | More by BarrelAgedBrian

tipfortap

New York

4.5/5  rDev +7.9%

05-20-2013 17:22:09 | More by tipfortap

thampel09

New Jersey

4.5/5  rDev +7.9%

05-20-2013 13:37:20 | More by thampel09

Kmat10

Alberta (Canada)

4/5  rDev -4.1%

05-20-2013 04:06:24 | More by Kmat10

YeastEnthusiast

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -10.1%

05-20-2013 03:30:30 | More by YeastEnthusiast

Dcunicelli

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -10.1%

05-19-2013 22:21:52 | More by Dcunicelli

birdsellam

Indiana

4.5/5  rDev +7.9%

05-19-2013 18:07:42 | More by birdsellam

Fubar1453

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev -4.1%

05-19-2013 14:17:41 | More by Fubar1453

nick_asian

Nevada

4.25/5  rDev +1.9%

05-19-2013 07:17:51 | More by nick_asian

jkroese

Iowa

4/5  rDev -4.1%

05-19-2013 02:48:49 | More by jkroese

AGoodStout

Kansas

4.75/5  rDev +13.9%

05-19-2013 02:19:56 | More by AGoodStout

Photekut

Azerbaijan

4/5  rDev -4.1%

05-19-2013 02:02:39 | More by Photekut

bluestar0828

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev -10.1%

05-18-2013 21:09:11 | More by bluestar0828