Old Cellar Dweller - Driftwood Brewery

atomeyes

Ontario (Canada)

4.94/5  rDev +17.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75

Tried this side by side with the Old Barrel Dweller.
I actually liked this more.

The dry hopping was amazing. A beautiful tangerine nose with a faint hint of raspberry. The beer had a great balance of sweetness with a bit of hoppiness. the alcohol was there but not too hot.

a beautiful sipper on a cold Ontario winter night. would drink again and again. one of the best barley wines i've had.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2013 21:00:14 | More by atomeyes

KStark

British Columbia (Canada)

4/5  rDev -5.2%

05-10-2013 14:48:53 | More by KStark

SebD

Ontario (Canada)

4.28/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

2011 bottle courtesy of FondueVoodoo in CANBIF 2013

Appearance: It has a nice hazy orangy/amber color to it. It has a nice light beige head that dies down somewhat fast and leaves some lacing.

Smell: The aromas definitely give out hints of dark fruit, (alot of raisins), bready malts, sweet caramel, toffee, brown suguar, mild hops and some booziness.

Taste: Like the aromas, it has alot of sweet dark fruit, caramel and toffee along with some brown suguar, a nice piney bitterness and a boozy warming feeling at the end. I'm not tasting much of that breadiness that I picked up in the aroma.

Mouthfeel: It has a low carbonation with a very nice overall balance and feel.

Drinkability: It's a very smooth drinkable beer accompanied with great flavors and aromas.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 20:47:47 | More by SebD

maximum12

Minnesota

3.9/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to Rutager for sending me this bottle as well as its barrel-dwelling brother in a receipt of great-looking Canadian beers. 22 oz. bottle split with my wife after a not-so-good start to the evening.

For the second straight bottle I almost have to use a broadsword to remove the wax & get to the bottle cap. Why, why, why? It's an oxygen barrier, not a recreation of the Berlin Wall. Pour has a touch of carbonation, & looks like a horse track after a passing thundershower. Nose is quiet: caramel, toffee, sweet malts.

Old Cellar Dweller is a boozy shot to the nether regions. Alcohol slips almost unnoticed down the throat, before stomping its warm boots all over the inside of my chest. There's some taste here too; lovely caramel & toffee. Brown sugar overload adds to the sweetness. Odd, nice, unfocused fruitiness lingers in the middle. Nice light hop bitterness at the end. My brain is starting to marinate. I like it.

Simple, sweet, straightforward, & enough alcohol to kill the flu virus. Sometimes simple is best. This is one of those times. Very good beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 02:56:52 | More by maximum12

FalconA

Washington

3.75/5  rDev -11.1%

03-25-2013 20:45:38 | More by FalconA

dirtylou

Washington

4.51/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

22oz bomber, 11.5% abv per the bottle

Served in a lost abbey teku - rich garnet body, nice bubbly beige lace. Layered aromas of dark fruit, sugars, caramelized grapefruit, booze. The 2012 vintage I had on tap recently was noticeably hoppier than this slightly aged bottle - I tend to prefer the fresher batches it would appear (surprise, surprise as aging beer is stupid). Regardless, this is exceptionally complex and layered - glazed citrus, sugars, pine sap, booze soaked dark fruit.

Serving type: bottle

03-25-2013 00:31:11 | More by dirtylou

mdaschaf

Washington

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

03-24-2013 23:54:12 | More by mdaschaf

IanSpindler

Alberta (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

03-17-2013 02:29:44 | More by IanSpindler

Texasfan549

Texas

4/5  rDev -5.2%

02-24-2013 19:13:33 | More by Texasfan549

DaPan

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

02-14-2013 12:32:20 | More by DaPan

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

4.3/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25

Thanks to Chris for this bottle.
2012 Vintage poured in to tulip.

A - Poured murky dark brown and settled almost completely opaque with just a slight ruby glow around the edges. A thin layer of cream coloured head formed on the pour.

S - Sweet caramel, toffee, brown sugar and a big hop profile with a citrus aroma.

T - Follows the nose. Sweet caramel, toffee and brown sugar with some generous hopping that lends a big bitterness and some citrus flavours.

M - Medium, almost full body. Chewy. Light carbonation. Excellent mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2013 16:09:01 | More by TheSevenDuffs

ericj551

British Columbia (Canada)

4/5  rDev -5.2%

02-07-2013 00:12:19 | More by ericj551

CheapBeerBuzz

California

4/5  rDev -5.2%

02-06-2013 04:37:49 | More by CheapBeerBuzz

injuredreserve

Louisiana

3.75/5  rDev -11.1%

02-05-2013 00:47:07 | More by injuredreserve

largadeer

California

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

01-26-2013 23:37:07 | More by largadeer

thefullpython

4.75/5  rDev +12.6%

01-23-2013 08:34:56 | More by thefullpython

cbnz

British Columbia (Canada)

4/5  rDev -5.2%

01-21-2013 00:28:58 | More by cbnz

604growler

British Columbia (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

01-16-2013 16:28:17 | More by 604growler

JonnyBeers

British Columbia (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

01-11-2013 18:09:52 | More by JonnyBeers

Mages64

Washington

4.83/5  rDev +14.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

2012 vintage red wax from firefly.
Appearance: deep brown with Marion edges. Big fluffy head with lots of lacing.
Nose: big pine hop nose, alcohol heat, malty and caramel. Some brown sugar notes too.
Taste: huge hop flavor with a solid malt backbone. Hops and malt are super balanced and play immensely well together.
Mouthfeel: alcohol heat is noticeable but I love my barleywines with some booze underneath. Full and thick with tight carbonation.
Overall: one of the best non barrel aged barleywines I've had.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 17:15:02 | More by Mages64

GrindFatherBob

New York

4.38/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Reviewed from notes. Consumed 3/5/12 just catching up.

2011 Vintage

Thanks to Mages64 for grabbing 2 of these for me, you're a great dude.

A- clear ruby with an inch and a half of beautiful beige head, decent retention, sticky lacing

S- sweet and biscuity malts, huge citrus hop character

T- I can vividly remember the maltiness of this, it was fucking huge and bready. Big hop bitterness, tropical, grapey, citrusy, floral. Alcohol was well hidden for 14%, didn't really burn or anything.

M- Sharp, coating, well integrated heat, lingering bitterness entwined with the giant malt base.

O- probably my favorite of the american variety of barleywines that i've come across. would love to get more if possible.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 15:55:43 | More by GrindFatherBob

KalanM

British Columbia (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

12-31-2012 04:25:11 | More by KalanM

Googs

New York

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

12-28-2012 17:30:37 | More by Googs

FondueVoodoo

British Columbia (Canada)

4.1/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

***2008 Vintage***
For my 100th review on Beer Advocate we're breaking out a gem.

A: A solid chestnut brown, a bit tawny and ruddy hazed brew with a hint of lacing and variable bubbles, each glass has an island of foam adorning the top.

S: Scent of fruit cake, deep malts, dark dried fruits of raisins, dates and currents and an alcohol ester similar to a dark rum. Some notes of acrid dark coffee and sweet from start to finish.

T: The fruitcake taste is still there with rum raisins especially. Dark acrid coffee with deep dark toffee, not as sweet as the nose would suggest. Alcohol does show through - but that's reasonable at 12%. Really hangs on at the end with an acrid dry flavour that clings to the sides of the tongue.

M: Burst of fizz at the front of the palate, with a pleasant coating throughout the drink that allows those flavours linger. Alcohol esters are vaporized, giving a small amount of heat.

O: Great sipper that is best enjoyed slowly with great cheese, the saltiness allows the sweeter notes to develop. Would be great to try a vertical tasting of OCD vintages to see how it develops in the bottle.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2012 04:43:42 | More by FondueVoodoo

smekermann

British Columbia (Canada)

4.58/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

2011 vintage

My problem with barleywines is that they're generally too sweet and cloying, making them about as appealing as wearing a wet pair of underwear on a chilly winter evening. Admittedly, I'm not a barleywine connoisseur; I've had my fair share of them, but I don't really go out of my way to try them. I've had Thor's Hammer recently, which fit my previous description (sweet, cloying) to a tee and before that I've had releases from Stone, Rogue and North Coast most of which were pretty damn enjoyable, and in Rogue's case, sort of mouth-destroying. I don't mind that, though. I enjoy and respect a beer that can take me down in one bottle, which is why I guess I respect this style of beer.

Old Cellar Dweller is probably the best barleywine I've had so far. This is obviously very subjective, but it hits all the right notes with me: it's dry as a bone, it's bitter as hell (100 IBUs) and it's insanely boozy (again, this is the 2011 version so it's 14%). It doesn't try to hide the booze, which doesn't really bother me. I'm not sure how you'd even begin to hide booze in beers over 12%, really.

The taste is pure malty, roasty bitterness with a hint of sweetness in the aftertaste and maybe an even fainter hint of almond. The reason this beer is somewhat dangerous is that it's not cloying; it's surprisingly dry for being 14% and full-bodied, but given the circumstances, it's outright drinkable. Don't be fooled, however: this is a beer that should be shared between at least 2-3 people or to be enjoyed over a period of several hours, preferably with a nice medium to full-bodied cigar.

Overall, I think this beer is fairly comparable to XS Old Crusty. It's probably a more ass-kicking beer (14% abv versus 11.2% or whatever Old Crusty is nowadays), and it has only 10 less IBUs than Old Crusty. It also is slightly more enjoyable in terms of mouthfeel and aftertaste. Old Crusty pretty much assaulted you with hops and burnt malt. This does almost the same thing but it feels... classier, somehow; more balanced. This is based on what I remember of Old Crusty, as I haven't had that beer in a couple years, so I may be talking out of my ass. Nonetheless, if you like Old Crusty or beers similar to it, you should give this a shot (if you can find it). It's a really impressive take on the style.

Serving type: bottle

12-25-2012 01:28:32 | More by smekermann