§ucaba (Abacus) - Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

Displayed for educational use only; do not reuse.

BA SCORE
100
world-class
-
1,866 Ratings

rAvg: 4.54
pDev: 8.37%
Reviews: 621
Hads: 1245

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

California, United States

Style | ABV
English Barleywine | 12.50% ABV

Availability: Rotating. bottle (498), on-tap (114), growler (9).

Notes:
2011 Reserve Series Bottle Notes:
O.G. 27 Plato
F.G. 4.7 Plato
I.B.U. 42 units
Yeast: British Ale (House)
Cases: 1500 produced
Color: 36SRM (Dark Ruby)

View: Beers (48) | Events (0)

Reviews

Sort by: Latest | High | Low | Top Reviewers | Show Hads:

« first ‹ prev | 1-25 | 26-50 | 51-75 | next › last »

Reviews by tarheels86:

tarheels86

California

3.95/5 rDev -13%
look: 2 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

651mL thanks to peteinsd. Pours a flattish clear deep mahogany. Yellow bubbles. Looks like FW10, FW11. Nose is big maple, toasted coconut, toffee maltiness. As it warms it exhibits more savoriness/umami with rich coconut. Taste is rich, big coconut bourbon, lovely dessert profile with mild heat. Not too much sugar, beautiful coconut. Very beautiful palate- not too sticky with a nice fruit juicy character and mild sugar. Super yummy dessert beer. Similar to FW11. Shame it doesn’t pour with a head. Moderate alcohol heat is not distracting at all. Still, Parabola is the Cuvee de Firestone. 11/17/2011 8/2/8/4/16=3.8

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2012 14:50:00 | More by tarheels86

More User Reviews:

SDStoneEnthusiast

California

4.5/5 rDev -0.9%

05-25-2013 05:54:20 | More by SDStoneEnthusiast

sholland119

Pennsylvania

4.74/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

2011 vintage opened on 5/24/13.

A-Pours a lovely ruby brown, low to moderate carbonation leaves a thin tan ring and a small pool of tan head in the middle of the glass.

S-Some nice boozy head overwhelms the nose with some dark figgy fruit underneath. A hint of marshmallow.

T-A perfect barleywine. Sweet and rich, moderate booziness and a nice hop underbite. Sweet raisins, marshmallow, alcohol. Terrific.

M-Medium bodied, rich but not wearying on the palate. Right on.

O-Outstanding, even better with a bit of age.

HV

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2013 00:02:15 | More by sholland119

Joenajera

California

4.75/5 rDev +4.6%

05-24-2013 18:16:36 | More by Joenajera

Andrew61923

Connecticut

4.7/5 rDev +3.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75

2012 vintage poured into my Sierra Nevada tulip. Toasting the graduates of 2013 with this one.

A: Pours a deep ruby red with a finger's worth of cream colored head that fades to a nice halo along the edges of the glass. Nothing groundbreaking, but a good start.

S: A lot going on with the nose. The barrel makes its presence known for sure with big hints (oxymoron?) of vanilla, toasted coconut, and caramel. A lot of sweetness, which makes sense given the style of the brew and the daunting ABV.

T: Wow. This is an amazing, and a big, beer. The bourbon that I picked up is a bit more subdued on the palate, but is still definitely there. Much of the same sweetness with a lot of vanilla and some more raisin coming through. I'm excited to see how this develops as it warms up.

M: There's no way this is 12.5%! Incredibly smooth and velvety on the tongue, the flavors last incredibly long and make me yearn for another sip. I think I'll have to indulge...

O: There's a reason this has such a strong reputation. It has the impressive ability to meld together a smooth drinkability with an amazingly complex taste, and is truly a unique drinking experience. I have a 2011 bottle sitting around too...I'll have to see how that's drinking soon.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2013 03:17:02 | More by Andrew61923

IHyphySF

California

4.75/5 rDev +4.6%

05-24-2013 00:32:27 | More by IHyphySF

Michael_20P

California

4.75/5 rDev +4.6%

05-23-2013 23:07:16 | More by Michael_20P

zoober911

New York

4.5/5 rDev -0.9%

05-23-2013 03:05:47 | More by zoober911

Abrengle

Washington

4.75/5 rDev +4.6%

05-23-2013 01:29:04 | More by Abrengle

firecrack0r

California

4.5/5 rDev -0.9%

05-22-2013 23:05:06 | More by firecrack0r

ThirdEyePA

Texas

4/5 rDev -11.9%

05-22-2013 20:00:19 | More by ThirdEyePA

grover37

District of Columbia

4.5/5 rDev -0.9%

05-22-2013 04:20:48 | More by grover37

mikeincharleston

South Carolina

4.75/5 rDev +4.6%

05-22-2013 01:10:59 | More by mikeincharleston

PalatePilot

Colorado

4.75/5 rDev +4.6%

05-21-2013 22:44:58 | More by PalatePilot

Justinsosmart

California

4.68/5 rDev +3.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

On-tap as part of a Firestone tap takeover. Pour is a dark chestnut brown. Very barrel-forward in the nose and in the beginning. Lots of vanilla is present. Mouthfeel is amazing, i can drink this all day. Warming towards the end, I would love to see this after a year.

Serving type: on-tap

05-21-2013 22:03:37 | More by Justinsosmart