Old Blaggard
Summit Brewing Company

Old BlaggardOld Blaggard
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From:
Summit Brewing Company
 
Minnesota, United States
Style:
English Barleywine
ABV:
10.1%
Score:
90
Avg:
4.06 | pDev: 7.88%
Reviews:
38
Ratings:
107
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Feb 19, 2022
Added:
Sep 06, 2015
Wants:
  3
Gots:
  19
Old Blaggard Barleywine — fully mature and ready to enjoy fresh — is inspired by the great strong ales of the famous English brewing town of Burton-On-Trent. Cellared for six months, this ale reunites you with the complex British barley and hop varieties that first warmed you back in 2015. Aromas of toffee, figs, stone fruit and orange marmalade lead to a full mouthfeel and vinous finish. With huge complexity and warmth — and lamentably small quantities — be careful, Laddies and Lasses.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by bros:

  None found.

Photo of mnredsoxfan69
Reviewed by mnredsoxfan69 from Minnesota

4.18/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
L: Light amber with a two finger rocky head. Minor lacing on the glass.

S: Smells of caramel, with no hop fragrance at all.

T: Tastes af caramel and toffee. Sweet.

F: Smooth, no alcohol burn. Not at all viscous.

O: More than one at a sitting not recommended. High alcohol buried by the malt sweetness, but an enjoyable drink nonetheless. Available in 4-packs from McDonald's liquors in Minneapolis at a e adorable price. Summit brewed a good one here.
Feb 19, 2022
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4 by MonkeyPilates from Minnesota

Feb 16, 2022
Photo of gatornation
Reviewed by gatornation from Arizona

3.94/5  rDev -3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a semi hazed copper color with a tan head, Smell is toffee,dark fruit caramel and citrus hops. Taste follows nose loads of toffee.Caramel and dark fruits. A xweey fruity mouth feel with some bitterness.
Jan 06, 2022
Photo of chum_husk
Reviewed by chum_husk from Minnesota

3.25/5  rDev -20%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
12oz bottle with some age on it

This was overly hoppy when I had it fresh, but after some years it has mellowed significantly into a very boozy sipper featuring toffee and lots of dried dark fruit flavor

Good, but I preferred it fresh
Jul 31, 2021
Photo of Jim_Benz
Reviewed by Jim_Benz from Minnesota

4.47/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
I generally age barley wines for at least a year because most of them, to my taste, are just too damn sweet. Until I finally tried this one - perfect fresh, in a snifter. Now I don't know if the two 4-packs that I bought will even last a couple months. So, no tasting notes right now, I'm trying to hold on to the last couple bottles. Unless I can find some more.
Mar 06, 2021
 
Rated: 4.15 by callmewalsh from Minnesota

Jul 12, 2019
Photo of deleted_user_1239096
Reviewed by deleted_user_1239096

3.86/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Definitely can taste the higher ABV, poured into a tulip glass from a tap at Boulder Tap House in Mankato.

Orangish-gold color, sweet up front, finishes with a bitter bite. Definitely a sipper.
Jun 29, 2019
Photo of MonDak_Joe1953
Reviewed by MonDak_Joe1953 from Minnesota

4.12/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
12oz bottle. 2019 vintage, with dating code of '90581521'.
Completely cloudy, auburn colored body. Partial finger of egg shell white head, which recedes and leaves an island and a ring. No lacing left behind.
Aroma is faint, with a little toffee and orange.
Taste is full and abrupt, with toffee and orange jam leading the way. Other fruits mix in, fig for sure. Good supportive hop bite. Trails off as a slightly sweet toffee and fruit resin.
Fuller mouth feel, and a real bite on the tongue. Good carbonation.
Not much of an aroma but the flavors are full, expressive, and well blended. I like the hop bite at the end.
Apr 11, 2019
 
Rated: 3.77 by ian_graf from Minnesota

Mar 28, 2019
Photo of MrFitgers
Rated by MrFitgers from South Dakota

3.76/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
I wish I had the willpower to leave it alone for a couple of years...I’m sure time would be a kind friend!
Mar 17, 2019
Photo of Jeffo
Reviewed by Jeffo from Netherlands

3.5/5  rDev -13.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Got this one from rutger a while back

From a bottle into a snifter
Union Series

APPEARANCE: Pours a one finger, medium looking, slightly foamy, off-white head with good retention. Head slowly fades to a full wisp cap. Cloudy, hazy cinnamon brownish-red in color with no carbonation. A splotchy wisp and ring remain until the end leaving touches of lacing down the glass.

SMELL: Toffee, caramel, melon aromas and some piney hop character. Plenty of crystal malt here.

TASTE: Toffee and caramel sweetness with some melon flavors up front. A dose of alcohol at the swallow, moving into a bold and lingering finish of toffee and caramel sweetness, honeydew melon, some piney bitterness and some alcohol lingering on the palate.

PALATE: Medium body and a touch higher carbonation. A bit foamy on the palate, goes down fine with a bit of a burn and finishes sticky. Some heat lingers.

OVERALL: This is okay. It’s bold and flavorful for sure, but it’s also a bit foamier than hoped. An enjoyable brew with some nice stuff going on but not something I’d have to rush back to. Thanks again for the brews, rutger!
Oct 24, 2018
 
Rated: 4.01 by einman from Minnesota

Jan 28, 2018
 
Rated: 4.25 by tvenne from Minnesota

May 07, 2017
Photo of Czequershuus
Reviewed by Czequershuus from Minnesota

4.96/5  rDev +22.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 5
2015 bottle. This beer pours a deep amber with a smallish head. The aroma features figs, brown sugar, dried cherries, craisin, chocolate covered pomegranate, and musty hops. The flavor is enormously complex - it starts with dry chocolate and bright dried red fruits - dried cherries and cranberry - then morphs to more brown sugar, and bitter pine, and fig, and prune, walnut, roast meat, allspice, and a touch of alcohol bite. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with lots of powerful carbonation. Overall this is a sensationally good beer - holy crap, why did I not by more of this.
Apr 22, 2017
 
Rated: 3.75 by RochefortChris from North Carolina

Feb 26, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by jds16 from Ohio

Jan 16, 2017
 
Rated: 3.75 by oline73 from Maryland

Dec 26, 2016
 
Rated: 4.07 by alcohline_trip from Pennsylvania

Dec 10, 2016
Photo of Ozzylizard
Reviewed by Ozzylizard from Pennsylvania

4.29/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Received from @Josholson666 for NBS BIF #4.
Undated bottle, other than “2015” at 42 degrees into a hand washed and dried JK snifter
Aroma – malt and figs
Head small (Maximum 1.3 cm, aggressive pour), tan, creamy, diminishing to a three mm ring and a rocky partial layer
Lacing
Body – copper, hazy, effervescent
Flavor – as in the nose, malt and fig, moderately sweet, a little caramel; no hops, no diacetyl. Alcohol is noted in the mild stomach burn but in neither the nose nor flavor.
Palate – medium to full, creamy, soft carbonation

A very pleasant brew. I’m not picking up the English hops, but otherwise this is a pretty good example of the style.

Appearance 4, Aroma 4.25, Flavor 4.25, Palate 4.25, Overall 4.5.
Nov 06, 2016
 
Rated: 4 by Houser from Pennsylvania

Sep 14, 2016
Old Blaggard from Summit Brewing Company
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 107 ratings