Imperial Barley Wine Style Ale - Mendocino Brewing Company

BrausBeforeHaus

Virginia

3.78/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Overall a fine brew.
Picked this 4-pack up for $8.99 at Total Wine. Good deal to say the least.
Appearance can be intimidating, a dark amber with smells that evoke more complex type of drink than you expect for the price.
Taste is satisfying, with your typical English barley wine assortment of dark fruits and malts.
Mouthfeel is complex but not overly heavy. Good finish with a bit of alcohol burn to remind you that you aren't in the kiddie pool anymore.
Overall a good complex barley wine which is both satisfying and drinkable, especially at the price.

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2013 04:41:05 | More by BrausBeforeHaus

CFHMagnet

Ohio

3.63/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Pour was a little heavier than average. Got just a bit of head that dissipated in seconds. This left a thin ring around the top of a muted, murky brown body. No lacing is noted.

Smell is of dark fruits and roasted malts. A hint of brown sugar shows up and permeates the whole nose after it warms a bit.

Dark fruit and roasted malt starts off the flavor. Searching for more finds hints of caramel and vanilla. Slightly bitter aftertaste.
EDIT: After this beer warms a bit, dark grape flavors are lightly hinted at the end.

The carbonation is just about right, not too heavy on this. Feel is medium bodied. The back of the tongue is lightly coated.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2013 21:15:45 | More by CFHMagnet

streetcommander

Virginia

4/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured in lager glass. Beer temp is 56F.

Pours a dark mahogany with tan head. Laces and maintains a foam slick throught the session. Very nice.

Smells of malts, caramel and a hint of spice. Hops are present as well, pine in nature.

On the draw, immediately hit with a lurid bitterness and crisp viscosity, not at all slimy or syrupy. Carbonation is on point, not overly carbonated.

Flavor is full bodied. Malts, brown sugar, caramelized roast drippings, and yes booze. Very well balanced, not at all harsh. Very well done. Very smooth and drinkable at 11abv. One could easily drink 4 or 5.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2012 22:16:08 | More by streetcommander

zeff80

Missouri

3.88/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Poured out a clear, rich copper color with a one-finger, khaki colored head of short-lived foam. It left little to no lacing.

S - It smelled of sweet maltiness, booziness and floral notes.

T - It was very boozy and sweet. Lots of malt, toffee and caramel.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A medium to full bodied ale with a dry finish.

O - This is a pretty nice barleywine. Strong and very full flavored.

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2012 15:14:58 | More by zeff80

acevenom

Louisiana

3.93/5  rDev +8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured into a goblet. Pours deep toffee brown with a thin off-white head that doesn't last for long. Some light can pass through the beer and I notice some visible tiny bubbles. The aroma is of toffee, malts, dark fruits, and plenty of booziness. The taste follows the nose. There's some grainy maltiness with some hop bitterness in the back end. I get some of the toffee, dark fruits, and plenty of booze. The body is medium to full with moderate carbonation. There's a dry finish. This is a very good beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-16-2012 23:51:27 | More by acevenom

TheSixthRing

California

2.7/5  rDev -25.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Appearance - Pours a hazy ,dark amber with a 2 finger white head. Average retention. Leaves behind small, spotty lacing.

Smell - Sweet, boozy and a berry fruit aroma.

Taste - Follows the nose. Sweet berry notes, raspberry and blackberry. A hint of grassy bitterness. Heat creeps in near the finish, leaving in it's wake a dry, astringent resonance. Becomes cloyingly sweet, sip after sip.

Mouthfeel - Full-bodied and syrupy. Has a moderate, somewhat bubbly carbonation. Finishes dry from the alcohol heat.

Overall - This is, at very best, an average barleywine. Little complexity, met by a lot of boozy character. Greatly unbalanced, and the unforgiving berry sweetness is matched only by the forwardness of the alcohol. I probably could have finished it, but I found myself not wanting to, so it went down the drain. Would not buy again.

Serving type: bottle

11-16-2012 03:04:08 | More by TheSixthRing

RochefortChris

South Carolina

3.15/5  rDev -13.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Not as good as I thought it would be and I can’t really tell it’s "imperial". Aroma is a bit week for such a strong beer. Mouth feel is nice and chewy as a barley wine should be. Definitely noticeable alcohol presence but with no burn in the throat. Not a bad beer, typical barley wine but one I probably won’t have again.

Serving type: bottle

10-03-2012 19:01:18 | More by RochefortChris

Brenden

Ohio

3.45/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

The color is a thick, ruddy medium-dark brown, something of a heavy bronze. A tight medium-brown head develops and displays pretty good retention, fading off to a foam that leaves spotty lacing as the beer drops.
Something is lost in the heavy alcoholic presence of this beer. There's not much nuance in the aroma, and a lot seems to be lost as heavy fusel notes and even something akin to rubbing alcohol sit strongly in the front. That said, it isn't terrible; it doesn't go so far as to remind me of paint thinner or terpentine as some heavily alcoholic macros end up going with. The malts base is still there, and I can still get most of the notes I find in the flavor.
What I get in the flavor is a sturdy backbone of darker malts, a big dark fruits sweetness, some caramel, a sugary sweetness (residual sugars?) strong all the way through and, riding alongside the whole way, that big boozy presence. It comes together a bit better in the flavor here. Hops lie underneath the malts, offering a bit of citrus and, to a lesser extent, grassiness.
The body is on the bigger side of medium, not as thinned out for all the alcohol as it could be; in fact, it's almost a little "chewy," so to speak. There's a gentle crispness and a light carbonation throughout.

Serving type: bottle

09-29-2012 16:11:28 | More by Brenden

snaotheus

Washington

3.63/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle poured into a pint glass

Pours coppery with almost no head, and almost no visible carbonation. Smell is musty and sweet. Hay and dust. Dark fruit, like plums.

Taste is sweet and fruity with some alcohol bitterness. More of that plumminess. Maybe some dates and raisins.

Mouthfeel is a little still, and slightly sticky. Somewhat chewy.

Overall, this is a pretty good barleywine.

Serving type: bottle

09-16-2012 20:57:44 | More by snaotheus

LXIXME

New Mexico

3.68/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Small light brown head quickly dies leaving no lacing above a clear burnt dark reddish amber colored beer.

Rich grains and alcohol aroma overwhelm anything else that might be going on.

Big roasted grains blend well with the alcohol in a full flavored taste on this barley wine.

A very light dry aftertaste that brings with it some of the caramel malts.

A medium bodied barley wine that has more of a beer taste than a lot of barley wines I've have tried, which to me is a big plus.

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2012 22:45:05 | More by LXIXME

Pintofbrown

Iowa

3.18/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

I had this "imperial" barleywine in a nonic pint.

Appearance- This barley wine has a copper, almost ruby look to it with an insubstantial tan head.

Smell- A little sweet from what seems to be dark fruits. I get no hint of hops. Alcohol comes through, reminds me of a brandy. The malt is bigger as well, more toffee and bread-like.

Taste- I would say the overall impression of the drink has to be unbalanced and a little too warm. The drink starts out sweet with the bread malt and dark fruits mixing a little, but then the heat plays around on the back of the throat.

This produces some flavors that seem "off" in this beer. It also brings down the finish considerably. Even if the drink finished smoother, this one might be a bit too sweet, and really lacking in hop presence.

Mouth feel- It is slick, but unfortunately, not really smooth or full. That would have really helped the beer. It is too oily really.

Overall- This imperial barley wine certainly shows its alcohol demeanor early and often, negatively affecting the smell, taste, and feel of the beer.

Give this barley wine some flavor hops and smooth out all of that alcohol bite and I might consider picking this one up again.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2012 00:18:30 | More by Pintofbrown

teetotaler

Colorado

3.6/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

aged this bottle in the blair-witch cellar for 2 years. i figured, the dogs in bed and the wifes outside, so why not?

poured into the trusty duvel tulip

3/4" mottled tan and leather head, like crema on an espresso. despite it's attractiveness and seeming thickness, it dissipated within 2 minutes. held up to the light, the bulk was largely opaque with raisin-brown tinting around the edges. though the head had dissipated, carbonation was still very active throughout (this would become a problem later).

the smell was indicative of a barley-wine powerhouse. malt, dark fruits, chocolate and booziness so thick you could cut it with a knife. a bit too boozy at the start, but it Is 11%. age hasn't mellowed the nose one bit (of the beer, not my nose).

the taste followed the nose with a malty tongue bath. no booze burn. dark fruits pound the back of the throat and sinuses like a belgian yeast. the carmel in the nose is lost in the cloying richness.

mouthfeel is appropriate for the style. thick, coating the mouth, lingering, a few steps down from syrupy. the tingle of the carbonation is delightful in this style, keeping it from becoming too heavy, while delivering the alcohol to my brain and limbs much too quickly (yep, it became a problem)

overall, it's not the most complicated selection of the style, i've had quite a few over time. age may have focused the flavor, for the aroma is enticing, but the taste is one-sided. not a bad selection, but this would've been better with a lower ABV (it's crazy saying that. i started with barley wines Because of their high ABV). mendocino should leave the "imperial" designation to stouts and possibly IPAs, but leave barley wines where they are.

Serving type: bottle

08-04-2012 04:58:54 | More by teetotaler

LiquidAmber

Washington

3.53/5  rDev -3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Review from 11/2010 notes. Poured into a Nostradamus flute glass. Pours a dark ruby amber. Minima off-whitel head, light lacing. Aroma of malt and odd esters. Very malty; sweet caramel malt, some dark fruit, maple flavor. Finish is odd and somewhat dry with strong malt. I like the maltiness of this, but it is not very well balanced.

Serving type: bottle

07-08-2012 03:35:32 | More by LiquidAmber

liamt07

Ontario (Canada)

3.73/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle shared by Steve, 12oz into a tulip. 2011 vintage.

Clear reddish brown with a white head that fades to a thin ring of retention. Sweet malty nose, brown sugar, light fruit character and a bit of marshmallow. Tastes of candy floss, candi sugar and caramel. Medium feel, not too boozy and a quite low carbonation. A sweet English barleywine, somewhat enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

07-04-2012 00:07:26 | More by liamt07

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.6/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Another big beer for my birthday. Boozy aroma. Brown, with a whisp of a head. A big caramel that grows on me, more of an English barleywine. 2011 version so maybe hops have faded, yet the carbonation is still right there. Boozy finish and a meal in itself.Thanks for bringing Stephen.

Serving type: bottle

06-26-2012 19:37:12 | More by northyorksammy

homebrewhawk

Kansas

3.55/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz. bottle served in a snifter. Poured a deep amber with a finger of off white head. Sweet malt in the aroma with some caramel and some hops. On the malty side. Plenty of malt sweetness. Alcohol is well hidden for 11%. Just enough hops to balance out the sweetness. Pretty balanced. Full bodied. Decent.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2012 01:50:34 | More by homebrewhawk

YouSkeete

Massachusetts

3.95/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a very hazy dark amber/red with a short yellow-tan head. Big malt character through the nose with lots of creamy citrus, toffee, plums, dates, molasses and alcohol with soft tones of lemongrass. Fermented dark fruits, caramel malts and molasses on the initial sip followed by notes of hop bitterness and toffee. Smooth, mildly dry toffee/wood aftertaste. Creamy, boozy mouthfeel. Full bodied with moderate carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

04-23-2012 00:00:58 | More by YouSkeete

emerge077

Illinois

3.43/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Obscure barleywine on sale ($8/4pk), sure why not?

Murky reddish brown body, a dense yet thin layer of white foam sits on the surface, settling slowly to a free island of floating skim.

Smells like toffee, oxidized malt, and a whiff of alcohol. Barleywine!

Creamy feel, no hint of alcohol in fact. Guessing this was aged a year plus at the store. Light hint of residual hop bitterness in the aftertaste. Bulk of the flavor is comprised of sweet malt complexity, cellophane-wrapped caramel squares, multigrain bread. Drying aftertaste. Medium bodied, lower carbonation levels. Overall not bad once it warms up. A middle of the road ABW that is cheap for being 11%, and hides it pretty well (after aging).

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2012 01:13:09 | More by emerge077

UCLABrewN84

California

3.6/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a slightly murky dark orange with a 1 inch foamy orange-tan head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Foamy rings of lace line the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, caramel/toffee, brown sugar, and citrus zest aromas. Taste is the same with a bit of a mineral/metallic flavor on the finish. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good barleywine but it smells better than it tastes in my opinion.

Serving type: bottle

04-04-2012 04:41:39 | More by UCLABrewN84

jdense

Oregon

3.23/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle purchased in Boise ID, consumed with beer buddy in La Grande.

Reddish amber clear body, , off-white head, quick dissipation, no visible carbonation. Light brown sugar notes in nose, floral hops. Taste is pretty boozy, light sugar notes. Mouthfeel is medium good effervescence a bit sticky. Needs some cellaring, too boozy right now.

Serving type: bottle

03-31-2012 17:50:33 | More by jdense

ColdPoncho

Ohio

3.73/5  rDev +2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A - Deep ruby/mahogany body with a nice bit of tan head. A fairly pretty looking beer for sure.

S - Sweet dark fruits (plum, cherry), toffee and caramel. That's about it.

T - Dry and a touch smoky. THe dark fruit character comes through. A little bitter, but not so much of a hop thing.

M - coating and thick. There is a viscosity to this that kind of feels like it clings to your mouth.

O - I think this is pretty good. Tastes good, looks good, feels kinda funny.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2012 02:20:29 | More by ColdPoncho

OneDropSoup

Pennsylvania

3.13/5  rDev -14%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured into a snifter: Nice reddish-brown, just barley transparent, with the slightest "milky way" dusting & some loose bubbles in the collar. Bright ruby highlights, kind of looks like a cherry wine. Nice color, but looks kind of flimsy otherwise.

First smells are a thin caramel, a little maple, an edge of alcohol, & a slight cinnamon character. Some dark, cooked fruits emerge, but they're all a little musty or like shredded paper. Not bad, though.

At first brings some dark fruit sugars, then a taste that's half dry booze & half papery, even a little like dry fruit skins or gourd. Huh. Not great, but tolerable. Booze gains traction & ends real dry.

Medium-bodied, with some heat & "dead-tongue" alcohol feel, not great.

The highs were mediocre & the lows were noticeable in this one. I'm no pro at detecting oxidation, but I have a feeling that was a culprit here.

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2012 22:34:07 | More by OneDropSoup

BigMcLargeHuge

Arizona

3.9/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to ratebeer's own markwise for this one. Is this really an imperial barleywine? Not sure what that means. 12oz bottle pours amber with copper edges and tan head. The aroma is rich with apricot infused pine hops, some mango and more pine hops at the end of the draw. The taste is pretty nice with pine hoppiness that gets sticky with maltiness. To midway and into the finish a mild level of tropical fruitiness joins in too. Nice bold pine hop forward barleywine.

Serving type: bottle

01-14-2012 06:42:12 | More by BigMcLargeHuge

NeroFiddled

Pennsylvania

4.05/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Mendocino Imperial Barleywine Ale

I'm not sure what an "Imperial" Barleywine is, but OK. It's 11%, whereas their other barleywine, "Talon" is only 10.5%. And this seems much more English, whereas the Talon was more American. But "Imperial"? Really? I think they're just using it to fit in with their "Imperial IPA" and "Imperial Stout". Moving forward...

In the glass it's a hazy mahogany brown beneath a very nice head of frothy yellowed-white foam. The head retention is quite good and it initially leaves rings of lace about the glass following each sip - although in the end they end up sliding down into the glass. (I've used a beer-clean glass for sure - no soap, just hot water and then air-dried).

The aroma expresses a very delicate spice and soft, sticky-sweet dried-fruit notes over a caramelish and doughy malt base.

In the mouth it's full bodied and creamy with a moderate carbonation. - I should also note here that I served this at cellar temperature, which would affect the head upon pouring, allowing it to foam up a bit, and thus soften the mouthfeel. It also opens up the nose a bit, and allows the flavors to come through more fully.

The flavor is fuller than the nose suggests, as is usually the case, and I can see that at least some of the spice in the nose is coming from alcohol. It's not overpowering or "hot" however, and to a certain extent it's expected of the style so... OK. The fruitiness is quite nice though, and I get a bit of cherry, some raisin, and fig. The malt is richer, but not really any more complex than the nose suggests. Well, maybe a little bit, but in all honesty I think it lacks the depth that a better quality malt bestows. And some hops are present, which is nice, lending a leafy and minty note that combines with the malt to become almost herbal. In fact, it develops into a very welcome note of black licorice towards the end of the glass. It's solidly bitter, and not overdone: stiff, but balanced; and that herbal/licorice character it develops helps to balance it in the lingering finish.

So what to say of this beer in conclusion? Stylistically it works. There's nothing off about it. Hedonistically it falls a little bit short for my personal tastes, but I still like it. I wish the malt character was a little wider, but if every beer hit the mark for what we've decided we personally "like", then there would be a lot less beers to choose from, and eventually a lack of beers that would allow our tastes to evolve. Right now I'd like to see a little more golden malt here, but a year or two from now I might feel it needs a little more hops. So let me take a step back and say that I really enjoyed the cherry note in the fruitiness, and that overall it was a pretty good barleywine. Would I recommend it? Yes. Certainly worth trying for barleywine fans. Probably not so much for newbies.

Serving type: bottle

12-14-2011 14:56:21 | More by NeroFiddled

mikesgroove

South Carolina

3.93/5  rDev +8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

caramel brown with tons of thick foamy tan head dripping down the sides of the glass

sweet, almost sickingly so. Lots of caramel and sugar was apparent and very strong up front, with a slight hint of alcohol in the middle of it. Not very strong, but still a hint of some mellow alcohol tones in it. There was a slight smell of earthy and grassy type hops thick sugar front that dominated from the first sip. The alcohol had defiantly mellowed as it was hardly detectable in the flavor. The overall flavor seemed to have a very mellow feel to it. Very sweet with lots of sugar and caramel. The distinctive hop finish

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2011 18:46:09 | More by mikesgroove