Kuhnhenn Vintage Ale - Kuhnhenn Brewing Company

womencantsail

California

2.8/5  rDev -28.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Pours a cloudy dark amber color. Nose is kind of funky for a barleywine. It’s got the requisite Kuhnhenn booziness along with caramel and brown sugar. A bit of dark fruit, too. The flavor is kind of cheesy, which is off-putting. The booze is well represented, too. Sweet caramel, brown sugar, toffee, and toasted malt flavors with a light fruitiness. Surprising bitterness for a beer like this, too. Not my cup of tea.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2012 16:08:55 | More by womencantsail

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

3.23/5  rDev -17.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bottle to tulip.

A - Medium amber with a bright orange glow around the edges. A small layer of off-white head formed and quickly receded to a ring around the glass.

S - Sweet caramel, some brown sugar and toffee. Not an overly complex nose and very sweet.

T - A big sweetness up front full of dark caramel, molasses and toffee. A huge alcohol presence enters in the middle and lingers considerably in the finish.

M - Medium to full body with a good chew. Light carbonation.

O - Way too boozy and somewhat one dimensional. I guess that is somewhat par for the course for 17% ABV.

Serving type: bottle

08-25-2012 12:42:45 | More by TheSevenDuffs

Crosling

Colorado

3.4/5  rDev -13%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Ruby colored ale with a head that holds very well for such a strong beer. Nose doesn't have much character at all and is dominated by booze and maybe a touch malt. Flavor, however, is very nice. Doesn't have a lot of complexity or depth, but it's a nice strong sweet ale, with very well hidden alcohol. Notes of nougat, vanilla and toffee. I think it's a very nice strong ale, but the aroma sucks.

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2008 02:51:26 | More by Crosling

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Big thanks to jale for picking this bottle up for Amyliz4 and me. Served in an oversized snifter.

Pours a moderately-dark brown color with a short off-white head and some very light lacing. The nose carries plenty of dark fruit but also quite a bit of alcohol. Malt and sweetness throughout. Plenty of fruit through the flavor, though I wish there were a bit less booze, even for a 17% beer. Medium body with low carbonation and a boozy finish. Pretty good, but not quite up to the level of Kuhnhenn's other big stuff.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2011 22:56:20 | More by Thorpe429

thagr81us

South Carolina

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Big thanks goes out to the GBX Crew (beeruser & funkydelic) for sharing this one during a recent tasting! 2011 Vintage! Served from bottle into a Mikkeller oversized wine glass. Poured red-orange with a minimal off-white head. There was no lacing evident throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, sweet alcohol, sugar, wood, and caramel. The flavor was of sweet malt, sweet alcohol, wood, and caramel. It had a medium feel on the palate with medium carbonation. Overall this was a decent brew. I honestly went into this one expecting something fantastic. While it wasn’t bad, I definitely wouldn’t call it very memorable either. I was kind of glad that the sugar note I picked up on in the aroma didn’t come through on the flavor. Still fairly well balanced however. Worth trying if you get the opportunity.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2012 11:40:22 | More by thagr81us

cosmicevan

New York

3.63/5  rDev -7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

thank to bierenutz for sending this one my way. enjoyed out of a kuhnhenn tulip.

2011 vintage (not so vintage)

a - brew poured a transparent caramel color with a frothy off white foamy head that slowly dissipated leaving bubbly islands on the surface of the brew. Lacing is sparse and spotty.

s - nice caramel toffee malt with some boozy hop presence. smells big bold and thick...even syrupy.

t - slam you in the face booziness. finishes bitter. some semblance of caramel malts, but all is underscored by the raging heat of the alcohol.

m - surprisingly medium to light bodied. fairly boozy, but doesn't feel 17%...feels more 10 to 12%. i would've expected it to be more syrupy.

o - overall this is an extreme beer, but comes off relatively easy to drink for the sheer size (dfh take note). there are some nice flavors going on but it is very much all a backseat to the booze, however the booze is very tolerable. once you get adjusted to the abvs, the nice toffee caramel malts show up more. quite good for a beer this huge.

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2012 00:28:21 | More by cosmicevan

n2185

North Carolina

3.65/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a clear copper with a finger of beige head that recedes to a thin ring with no lacing.

S: Lots of caramel malts up front with notes of dark fruits like plums and red grapes. There are also some bubblegum and candy sugar notes.

T: Similar to the aroma, caramel malts and dark fruits, especially grapes, hit first. Candy sugar follows along with a piny bitterness from the hops and a light burn on the finish.

M: Medium-thick body with low carbonation, this beer is only a little sticky feeling. I could use a bit more body, though, as it ends up feeling a little watery.

O: A pretty solid barleywine. The most remarkable thing about this beer is its ability to hide its very high abv very well. I thought the beer was maybe 9-11% based on tasting it and was very surprised to learn that it was 17%. Unfortunately, it lacks the complexity needed for a great barleywine.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2012 01:13:31 | More by n2185

BigMcLargeHuge

Arizona

3.68/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Courtesy of RB's very own hopscotch. Pours hazy copper with orange edges and initially explosive tan head that dwindles to nothing in about two minutes. The aroma begins sweet and malty followed by fruity esters that aren't all that dark. I also get dusty alcohol hotness. Then the dark fruity esters join in showcasing cherries as the main dark fruit player. The taste has fresh peach and apricot fruitiness followed by darker fruity esters and an increasing hotness into the finish. The after taste has the hotness receding but retains an increasing malty, caramel and cherry goodness. Darn good.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2009 17:59:33 | More by BigMcLargeHuge

MasterSki

Illinois

3.68/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle from Summer Solstice 2011. No ABV listed on this bottle. Served in my Kuhnhenn snifter.

A - Off-white foam settles to a thick collar, near-complete cap, and a few tiny spots of lace. Lightly hazed caramel body that gets darker if you aren't careful with the yeast. For 17% color me impressed.

S - Intensely sweet, with scads of booze-soaked fruits - pineapples, candied apricots, toffee, Sultana raisins, as well as grain alcohol and fusels when it starts to warm up. There's definitely still residual hop presence, with some mild cheesy decaying beta acids, pine, and herbal flavors in the periphery.

T - Taste is heavier on the toffee and dark fruits, with more balance provided by bittering hops and toasted grains. Alcohol seems less present to taste, but the flavor also seems more muted and lacking in depth. Perhaps a hint of milk chocolate and a nebulous tropical fruit quality to it as well.

M - While the booze may not be obvious in the flavor, there's some serious warming going on, and I've got a definite buzz after 6oz or so. Body is medium-full, carbonation is low, texture is sticky and chewy. Spot-on for the style and ABV.

D - At nearly a year this is approaching enjoyable, but I suspect additional aging would be of benefit (and I rarely recommend this). Might be stellar in 2016, but might also be undrinkable - gamble accordingly. Still, I finished all 12oz on my own and was never tempted to poor it out - that's pretty impressive for a 17% brew.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2012 02:46:32 | More by MasterSki

ChainGangGuy

Georgia

3.73/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours a cloudy, dark amber body with a foamy, tall beige head.

Smell: It's toasted caramel, raisins, booze and they all have glasses of grain alcohol in their hands (even the booze).

Taste: Syrupy caramel and toffee with a resounding sweetness. Dried dark fruits rehydrated in cinnamon liqueur deliver a jolt of acidity. Finishes so hot, you need to crack open a window.

Mouthfeel: Medium-full body. Medium carbonation. Nicely warming alcohol presence.

Drinkability: A fine sipper suited to cold weather drinking. It's no lawnmower beer, but you could possibly run the lawnmower on it... If there's one thing about Kuhnhenn, it's that they don't fuck around when it comes to the abv of their line-up!

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2008 03:08:38 | More by ChainGangGuy

FosterJM

California

3.73/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

969th Review on BA
Bottle to Snifter
12 oz

2011 Summer Solstice Release

Thanks to ErikKoppin for this one.

App- A bit like a think root beer with a bit of spirit amber/light brown in it. A bit of a 1/4" ring of bubbles and only a very few lines of cling to it.

Smell- Very boozy with a bit of caramel, malts, nougat and pineapple. Seemingly a bit thin on the nose but yet very boozy as mentioned.

Taste- This was very full of flavor. You have the Barleywine flavors mixed with some barrel, mixed with some DIPA and a little malty. Not really like another beer I have had but still tasty even with all that booze and flavor behind it.

Mouth- A creamy medium body with a a low/medium carbonation level. A good bit of peppery booze with a trailing thick citrus on the back end.

Drink- Only my 2nd Kuhnhenn beer and this was good but needed a bit more thickness to match the ABV. At 17% needs more to cut this, maybe a bit thicker? Maybe a little sweeter.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2011 07:25:42 | More by FosterJM

woosterbill

Connecticut

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

16oz flip-top growler into a Weyerbacher tulip. Huge thanks to Tony for sharing this huge beer.

A: Clear medium amber body with a 1/2" of fine off-whte head. Incredible retention and lacing for such a gigantic brew. You'd never guess from looking at it that it weighs in at 17%.

S: Huge, dry, fruity booze. Smells like a dry dessert wine, if such a thing exists. Grape skin, dates, grapefruit (but NOT from hops), and dry, bready malt. Ridiculous in ever sense of the word.

T: Lots of grapes and booze, with the latter really taking over. This tastes like a mixture of barleywine and vodka, and yet it's kind of ok.

M: Viscous medium body with a touch of prickly carbonation. Just fine.

O: Another crazy one from Kuhnhenn, and I can't say I'm surprised. They really know what they're doing with beers of astronomical alcohol, although this one didn't provide quite the memorable individuality of their gigantic fruit beers or BBBW. It did, however, pair spectacularly with Winnimere cheese...

Cheers!

Serving type: growler

06-12-2011 12:47:53 | More by woosterbill

jethrodium

California

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle generously shared by colonelforbin. Thanks Mike. Pours a dark reddish amber with a light tan head that settles to a ring and leaves some light lacing on the glass. The aroma is a light roastiness, some nuttiness, some alcohol, and some caramel. The taste is sweet with caramel and a light nutty note. The finish has a decent bitterness and is warming with alcohol. Low carbonation. Medium body.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2012 05:35:30 | More by jethrodium

plaztikjezuz

Michigan

3.83/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

ok i know what you are thinking, wait this vintage ale is from bo's, not kuhnhenn's. well you would be half right, wayne, the ex-brewer from bo's now works at kuhnhenn. so we now have kuhnhenn vintage ale, huzzah!

pours a very deep copper or a light mahogany with a thin head that fell into a few stray bubbles over 20 minutes.
the aroma is fruity, malty, hoppy, apricots with a good aroma of alcohol.
the flavor is rich and malty, with a good bitterness, it is a little sweet, there is an herbal hop component, the beer for being as fruity as it is iver very clean of "off flavors" for being this strong. tha alcohol is there and present but not over powering like it should taste for as strong as this beer is.
not exactly like bo's vintage, but man this is a kick ass beer, and very close.

Serving type: bottle

12-22-2007 07:46:02 | More by plaztikjezuz

hopdog

Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12oz bottle acquired in trade with pantanap (thanks!).

This one was one of those slow creeping gushers. The kind that didn't spray, but kept on creeping out of the bottle.

Poured a deeper brownish / amberish color with a larger sized off white head. Aromas of dark fruits, nuts, caramel, and a little 'stale'. Tastes of dark fruits, brown sugar, caramel, toffee, and just all around sweet. Some alcohol in the finish but not 17%.

Notes from 5/20/08

Serving type: bottle

11-10-2008 14:30:42 | More by hopdog

DrJay

Massachusetts

3.9/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

2007. Courtesy of grub. Thanks!
There was a mighty pop when it was opened. Murky caramel amber with a yellow beige cap of coarse foam that quickly fell, leaving a bit of a collar. Some short-lived stickage. Malty aroma, lots of caramel and toffee, grain and alcohol, some dried fruit, mild higher alcohols, sherry. Bitterness was solid, but got lost in the mix. Lots of fruit up front, hints of apple along with figs and other dried fruit, then caramel and molasses hit mid-palate. Alcohol dominated the end and lingered into the finish with the fruitiness and grain flavours. Mild fusel character (rose and solvent) that worked well and wasn't overpowering. Very sweet throughout. Quite a beast. Lots of warmth, but little in the way of hotness. Certainly numbed the tongue though. Full bodied and syrupy, lowish carbonation, decent texture for such a big beer. Quite a good drinker for the high abv.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2009 03:43:19 | More by DrJay

Viggo

Ontario (Canada)

3.93/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle, big thanks to grub for picking this up for me at last years Solstice party.

Pours a crystal clear bright ruby red, really brilliant colour, thin light tan head forms, quickly settles to a thin ring around the glass, no lace but some legs. Smell is intense, boozy alcohol, figs and raisins, lots of caramel, tropical fruit, sherry, earthy, very malty bastard, huge mix of caramel, alcohol and fruit. Taste is similar, very boozy up front, but lots of caramelized malts and raisin, very intense flavour, bready malts, honey, alcohol, all in a big insane mix. Mouthfeel is full bodied, almost syrupy with low carbonation, lots of heat on the way down. Pretty insane, a good night cap. Thanks Russ!

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2008 04:49:56 | More by Viggo

chanokokoro

Illinois

3.93/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

2011 Vintage, fairly aggressively poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a Kuhnhenn branded snifter

Pours a deep golden amber capped by a two and half finger off-white head. Average retention, some light lacing that disappears quickly. Dates, hints of plum, and some spice on the nose. Dates, hints of cherry, plums and prune, a slight touch of fig, some light brown sugar and molasses and warming alcohol. Some citrus notes and mild bitterness on the finish. Slick, smooth full body, a bit soapy and syrupy; very typical of a barleywine. Mild carbonation. Really enjoyable brew. I expected a lot more heat for a 17% abv barelywine, but it was fairly well-balanced.

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2013 05:14:07 | More by chanokokoro

Urbancaver

Ohio

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

2011 vintage

Pours a pretty reddish orange. A nice bit of offwhite head. Not too thick but viscous as I would expect for a 17 percent beer.
Smells rich and malty. a nice hop presence. booze underlying it all. An almost fruity nose.
Tastes sweet and fruity. Thick, boozy, but certainly doesn't taste or feel like 17 percent. lots of malts and fruity characteristics. A few sips in the burn hits. Enjoyable but potent

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2011 02:22:46 | More by Urbancaver

Lothore

California

4/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Immensely thankful to get this one from hoppymeal!

A- Pours a rosey, peach hue. Cloudy with a big, tan, fizzy head.

S- Smells very sweet, raisins, dates, hints of red grape, carmelized sugar.

T- Taste is fairly complex, very boozy. Hints of raisins, caramel, brown sugar, ends with alcohol and a lingering hoppiness.

M- Thick with quite a bit of carbonation.

D- Not my favorite kuhnhenn brew but not bad by any stretch of the imagination. Tastes quite a bit like a belgian quad or belgian strong dark.

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2008 03:08:42 | More by Lothore

Pointman

Michigan

4.05/5  rDev +3.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Wow - I had this the first time at the Winter Solstice Release party, but didn't write a review. Now I have stored this 6 pack (at an OUTRAGEOUS $28/6) almost until the Summer Solstice.

Very cloudy dark red pour with a TON of head - maybe overcarbonate? Hardly any lacing....

Very sweet and dried fruit nose....

Taste is sweet with dried prunes? But it tastes really good...lol. I do recall the one on draft had a strong alcohol taste. This somewhat aged bottle masks the alcohol completely. This is a 16.5% alcohol beverage....I wish I knew how to have that added to the main review page...

Mouthfeel is a little goofy...good, but there is a latent carbonation...

Overall, I do like this beer. It is very drinkable, too bad it costs sooo much....

Cmon K-Bros...get reasonable with your prices...

Serving type: bottle

06-03-2008 02:30:45 | More by Pointman

grub

Ontario (Canada)

4.08/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

12oz bottle purchased at the winter solstice party dec 21/07. label also notes "Burns 2007" at the top, indicating it was brewed by their new brewer, Wayne Burns, formerly of Bo's. website indicates 17% ABV. sampled jan 12/08.

pours hazy deep orange, almost reddish brown. a small gold head rises up then quickly falls to a ring around the glass. no lace.

aroma is good. light alcohol. tons of caramel. big bready malt. great fruity character - raisin, light citrus. bit of toasty character.

taste is good. alcohol. big fruity character - lots of raisin and date, bit of cherry and cranberry. big bready malt. low bitterness level. tons of caramel. bit of honey sweetness. bit of grapefruit. earthy hops. interesting and unique.

mouthfeel is good. medium-low carbonation level. nice big body.

drinkability is very good. the alcohol is noticeable and warming, but not overpowering. with all the great fruity character it makes me think of a nice port. the alcohol and malty/fruity character balance well against each other. though i don't know if i'd call it an american barleywine, i really enjoyed it.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2008 03:36:09 | More by grub

emerge077

Illinois

4.08/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks Jay for sharing this. 2007 bottle.

Deep orange body, almost opaque. Thin foam collar, connected by a thin skim in the center. Borderline harsh fusels, vodka-infused apricots, dried tangerines.

Citrusy orange marmalade with bits of peels, canned peach or pineapple, generally lots of tropical fruits. Very rich feel, very sweet and strong. Aftertaste is a lingering sugary citrus confection, with an underlying sting of alcohol. It's best shared, or at least needs to spend a year in time-out to mellow the unapologetic booziness.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2008 03:09:14 | More by emerge077

krkearney

Pennsylvania

4.08/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

12oz bottle, 2007 vintage. Pours a deep brownish copper color, capped with a fairly large brown head that gradually diminishes. There's a lot of fruit in the aroma; apricot, raisin, and dates, which are joined by caramel, brandy and port. Huge amounts of dark fruit flavor, prunes and dates really stand out. Caramel malt, toffee, vanilla and alcohol round out the flavor, leading to a brief vanilla finish. Smooth body, with minimal carbonation. Another very big beer from Kuhnhenn; very drinkable for its ABV.

Serving type: bottle

11-15-2008 03:36:53 | More by krkearney

Schroppfy

Ohio

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

12 oz. Burns bottle purchased at the Kuhnhenn Solstice Release party 12/21.

Incredibly candied and hoppy. Liquid fruitcake for the holiday season. Iron, earth and big pine in the flavor, with an oaky astringency. When cold the alcohol is much less apparent. When warm this gets sticky, even more sugary. Nice burnished copper color, very little carbonation. Somewhat hot. Thick mouthfeel, even when cold, which is a wild accomplishment. Feels handcrafted in the extreme.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2007 17:02:11 | More by Schroppfy