Before The Dawn - Steel Toe Brewing

4DAloveofSTOUT

Illinois

4.16/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

thanks to egrace84 for the bottle share!

poured into crooked stave tulip glass.

Appearance: black bodied beer with thinf brown cap that quickly drops to mo head.

Smell: Big spicy rye malts. Oak, vanilla, smoke, and cherries. Big notes of black licorice.

Taste: Rye whiskey upfront. Black licorice. vanilla and oak. Finishes with roasty / smokey notes and a lingering light char.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied beer with low carbonation. Smooth beer with a little bit of a booze burn.

Overall: This one is big on the rye malts and black licorice. I do really enjoy the charred aftertaste that just lingers on for a while. This is a solid BA American Barleywine that travels the path less ventured.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2013 06:45:55 | More by 4DAloveofSTOUT

feloniousmonk

Minnesota

4.59/5  rDev +7.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Steel Toe Brewing Before the Dawn Barrel Aged Black Barley-wine Ale. Malt Beverage Aged in Rye Whisky Barrels. Brewed and Bottled by Steel Toe Brewing, St. Louis Park, MN. Zero vowels, consonants, or syllables of gobbledygook accompanying the legal label information.

Utter darkness, completely opaque, with a slight, slim head of cocoa-tinged foam.

Aroma: Whiskey hits first, and nothing but. They spell it "whisky", though, which probably means it's Canadian. Rich, large, and lovely. Vanilla, molasses, black cherry. Pepper and anise. These are all but associations, and just the tip, just the start, only what's popping out at me. A little char and roast roars up, too, lush malt is keeping up with the work of the barrel.

I get the name now, all of a sudden. "It's always darkest…" Damn, why did I not get that till now?

Taste: Thick, viscous, rich, and ridiculous. Huge whisky flavor, intense malt domination, not a whistle from hops, but the viscosity is terribly felt and the tastiness is monumental. All those flavors from aroma come back in spades on the tongue. We've got the char, the roast, the anise, the molasses, a whisper of espresso, and a big bite of chocolate. It's utterly indulgent, and abundantly rewarding. It's goddamned good, is what it is!

What else it is, is a hell of a nightcap. I wish they packaged this in little "nip" bottles, 6 ounces or so, so I can pop on off, and slowly consume as I slip into slumber. Once a night, for nights on end. That's the dream, anyway.

It's a great big, beautiful blend of flavors. The vanilla, anise, cocoa, whisky and molasses all popping out at different intervals, but all part of this wonderful stew.

I just noticed what else is missing from the label. Alcohol content is missing. I'm guessing it's 10-12%.

So huge, so vast, so long. But no "so, long", I'm not even halfway into the bottle. More fun to come. I'm going to slowly sip the night away, and lean back, reeling with the feeling, while Coltrane plays something deep, long and ponderous. Ah, that's the stuff.

Have you ever heard anyone say, "What's my favorite beer? The one in my glass right now." I think that was Michael Jackson. Sounds like him. This is my favorite beer right now. And maybe it will be even after I'm done drinking it. It's amazing. It's perfect. It rocks. Long may it wave.

Serving type: bottle

01-25-2013 06:13:17 | More by feloniousmonk

MasterSki

Illinois

4.3/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bottle from eawolff99. Served in a Russian River tulip.

A - Tan foam settles to a thin cap, thick collar, and spots of lace; impressive retention for a 13.7% beer. Body is near-black, which is unsurprising for a 'black' barleywine.

S - Massive rye whiskey and oak aroma, with a mix of roasted malts and caramel sweetness in the background. Vanilla presence increases substantially as the beer warms up, and the choice of rye imparts a nice mildly spicy character. A mix of stout and barleywine characteristics for sure, and while a tad boozy it's not offensive for the ABV.

T - The taste has a bit more subdued rye whiskey presence, with more of the base beer shining through. Starts off roasty and chocolate-heavy but transitions to sweeter barleywine flavors in the finish. The rye is certainly still there but integrates better, and the oak is dialed down a notch or two.

M - Smooth, full body, with sticky and chewy heft to it. Surprisingly creamy and low in oaky dryness considering how potent the aroma was. Well-hidden alcohol makes this a bit deceptive, and there isn't a ton of burn or warmth.

D - A very good beer of which I'd never heard, so kudos to eawolff99 for the recommendation on this one. Great complexity that clearly delivers all the flavor elements advertised from the description: Rye Whiskey Barrel-Aged Black Barleywine. Surprisingly mellow already, but should age quite well for a number of years. Deceptive stuff, which resulted in a lot of drunk folk; make sure you have a few friends on hand before opening this one.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2012 19:12:51 | More by MasterSki

maximum12

Minnesota

4.05/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Haven't sampled this since the day of the release when I popped bottle open to share with the homies in the Beer Bus. I liked it then; but the heat! Has it calmed? We shall see. 750 ML bottle split with my wife before a Breaking Bad episode.

Pour is dark December no stars black. Nose is rustic roast, vanilla, with a peck of vanilla from the whiskey.

Before the Dawn has a unique fingerprint. Wow. Tons of roast that's co-mingled with a Halloween bag full of toffee, which perhaps justifies the 'Black Barleywine' monicker. Touch of spice. Vanilla comes on like a divorced suburban housewife on the finish, along with a shot of bourbon & a bludgeon of alcholic wooziness. Creamy & sweet. Despite the booze, I'm at least three ounces ahead of my wife already. That can't be good. I have two flights of stairs to climb later.

Before is mellowing, like a glacier. I might be dead before the alcoholic canines fully disappear. Nonetheless, one more excellent beer out of Steel Toe, & I'm always looking forward to the next thing coming out of the tanks.

Serving type: bottle

11-18-2012 03:23:11 | More by maximum12

jmarsh123

Indiana

4.4/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Schlais for the bottle!

Pours dark brown almost black with a small beige head receding quickly. Legs down the glass. Good lacing and retention for the ABV.

Bitter Baker's chocolate, a little toffee and spicy rye whisky in the aroma. Doesn't smell overly boozy despite the ABV and the chocolate character is bold and welcome.

Strong dark chocolate is the first thing that comes through on the flavor. Very much the most bold flavor. Bits of toffee and some more spicy whisky come through near the end. Finishes with a distinct rye kick and a little warming booze. Present, but well integrated whisky.

Medium mouthfeel. Good carbonation perhaps a touch higher than I'm used to on the style, but it works well with the whisky.

Very nice surprise and glad I traded for one. Can stand toe to toe with many BA American Barleywines around.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2012 22:08:36 | More by jmarsh123

Powderhornphil

Minnesota

4/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours black with a brown ring around the very edge. About a half finger head. When the head settles it looks like an oil slick.

Smells boozy and roasty.

Booze, rye whiskey are predominant. Light roast and chocolate in the background.

Medium mouthfeel. The high abv seems to lighten it.

Overall nice beer. Not as hot as I would have thought.

Serving type: bottle

09-15-2012 00:55:02 | More by Powderhornphil

thagr81us

South Carolina

4.43/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Shared by caSSino during BRoss242’s send-off party before he moves! Will miss you man! Served from bottle into a Mikkeller taster flute. Poured black with a half finger light tan head that subsided to a minimal amount quickly. Maintained decent lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, roasted malt, vanilla, dark chocolate, and dark fruit. The flavor was of sweet malt, caramel, vanilla, dark chocolate, roasted malt, caramel hop, and dark fruit. It had a heavy feel on the palate with medium carbonation. Overall this was a fairly great brew. This was definitely the highlight of the tasting this evening as I was really wowed and shocked at what I found upon first investigation. Everything was really well balanced and all the flavors and aromas were spot-on for the style and with all the right intensity. I could have easy pounded a full bottle of this with no problem, but sharing is caring unfortunately. An absolute must try without a doubt as this was one of my biggest surprises of the year so far.

Serving type: bottle

09-04-2012 11:30:35 | More by thagr81us

womencantsail

California

3.9/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

The pour is very dark brown in color with a khaki head. A light roastiness followed by tons of whiskey, vanilla, caramel, and dark fruits. A really nice barrel aroma to this. A light oxidation on the palate, but really great barrel flavors. Whiskey, vanilla, caramel, and dark fruits. There’s a rather strong roasted malt note, and some spiciness of wood and rye.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2012 17:53:55 | More by womencantsail

mothman

Saskatchewan (Canada)

4.23/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Short review: reminds me of BCS

Light tan head. Color is black.

Aroma: a lot like BCS 

Taste: more BCS flavors but a little bit of coffee and roast

Mouthfeel: warming and smooth. Medium carbonation. Full bodied. Ends with a bit of roast and heat.

Overall, a really great beer. Really surprised with this one. Really reminds me of BCS.

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2012 00:37:09 | More by mothman

tewaris

Minnesota

4.1/5  rDev -4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Looks black, duh.

Dark and chocolaty aroma with with a good presence of barleywine fruitiness. Tastes big and somewhat boozy with a finishing roast and you can tell that it started its life as a stout (if the rumors are true).

However, there's plenty of toffee sweetness and dates/figs notes that make it a barleywine alright. Much lower barrel presence than their first one (Lunker) but delicious nonetheless.

I am comparing it to a 2+ years old Nightstalker because that's what this is reminding me of. The mouthfeel could have been better. Overall it is very good and I might have rated it higher had there not been a pour of MOAS on the side to keep things in perspective.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2012 01:25:18 | More by tewaris

claaark13

Indiana

4.2/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Cork and caged 75cl bottle served at cellar temp into a Hill Farmstead tulip. Schlais is the man. This is a "Black Barleywine" aged in rye whiskey barrels.

A - Nearly black pour with a 1" creamy mocha head. Turns into some nice lacing. Looks more like a RIS. Seems to stick relaly well to the sides, but the legs don't remain too well. It looks fantastic, but I'd expect this out of a RIS, not a barleywine. Confusing?

S - Loads of caramel upfront. Dark malts, some spices. There is some barrel as well. Smells like a regular BA Barleywine.

T - Carmel, some vanilla throughout. Mild spices come through. Very smooth, vanilla finish. Some woodiness comes around as well as some mild booze. A little bit of roast starts to come through. The finish shows the slightest dry character mixed with creamy roast. Spiciness from the rye barrel is present. Minimal alcohol present considering the ABV%. Mild hops in the middle show as bitterness. I find a little coffee as well.

M - Somewhere between medium and thick. Feels pretty thick and creamy on the tongue.

O - It seems like the roast is what differentiates this from a regular American Barleywine. This is a great beer. Really tough to compare it to the Barleywine style. The spices from the rye barrel are a bit light, but the caramel/vanilla is nice. The roast gives it some RIS characteristics, but the Barleywine seems to still dominate. Don't age this, drink it now. I need another one. This is very interesting.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2012 23:58:21 | More by claaark13