English Barleywine
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant

Beer Geek Stats
From:
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
 
United States
Style:
English Barleywine
ABV:
9.6%
Score:
Needs more ratings
Avg:
3.85 | pDev: 9.09%
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
9
Status:
Active
Rated:
May 18, 2014
Added:
Apr 12, 2008
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  1
Traditional brown, English-style Barleywine with intense, complex malt sweetness and a sherry-like quality. Full-bodied with balanced bitterness and a warm finish.
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Recent ratings and reviews.
 
Rated: 3.75 by Durandal_777 from Pennsylvania

May 18, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by cclark67789 from Pennsylvania

Apr 16, 2012
Photo of tobelerone
Reviewed by tobelerone from New Jersey

3.58/5  rDev -7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
On tap at the Media location.

App: Hazy copper color, good sized head and decent retention. Sparse lacing.

Smell: Fruitcake and accompanying spices, with syrupy sweetness and biting alcohol underneath.

Taste: Sweet and spicy, noticeable booziness, prunes and raisins. caramel/toffee-like malt flavor. Light hoppy floral note well integrated.

Mf: Medium full bodied with solid carbonation, but very smooth, excels in this department.

Overall: Not a bad barleywine if a bit too assertively sweet and boozy for my taste.
Jan 31, 2012
Photo of stakem
Reviewed by stakem from Pennsylvania

3.63/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
On tap at the Lancaster location on 4/9/11 served in a small goblet. This brew appears a hazed copper color with a bit of redness and orange around the edges. A creamy tan head holds strong across the top of the brew that fades to a thin lace. A swirl only releases a few bubbles from solution.

The smell of this brew is malty sweet and candied. The alcohol comes across with a fusel scent that tingles the nose. It is lightly spicy with yeast that is somewhat similar to Belgian phenols.

The taste is malty sweet like candy and caramel with a bit of orange flavors without getting bitter and rindy. The alcohol is bold with a solvent character mixed with some Belgian-like spiciness of yeast in the aftertaste.

This is a medium to full bodied brew with a fizzy amount of lively carbonation. Overall this is a high octane brew, the alcohol is not hidden. It boasts a bounty of candy flavoring instead of the typical smooth maltiness and it doesn't seem very English-like except for the fruity aspect of the hops.
Apr 15, 2011
Photo of MarvinSnyder
Reviewed by MarvinSnyder from West Virginia

3.95/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
6-1-10 - Poured into a Dogfish Head snifter glass - 1 pint cage-corked bottle

Appearance: Pours a hazy brown, with orange highlights. A nice, thin, bubbly, white head stays with this beer.

Smell: You can smell the rich malted barley character, dark fruit (especially plum), caramel, candied sugar, and vanilla. The smell is enhanced as it warms.

Taste: Taste follows along the aromatic notes with sweet malt, brown sugar, vanilla, and also dark fruit notes (some plum and cherry). You can taste the alcohol but it only adds to the other elements offered by this beer.

Mouthfeel: Silky and smooth on the palate. The finish has a fruity dryness, but almost too dry.

Drinkability: Although this is a sipper, it remains highly quaffable.

Comments: Another underrated beer from Iron Hill. A beer to relax with after a long day of work.
Jun 02, 2010
Photo of praufs01
Reviewed by praufs01 from Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev +19%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Appearance - Dark copper brown ale with a creamy off white head.

Aroma - Dark chocolate, plums, black cherries, and a wisp of alcohol.

Mouthfeel - Full bodied and creamy, with low carbonation. This ale is super smooth on the palate.

Taste - Black cherries, prunes, and chocolate flavors make way bourbon like sting of alcohol that gives the ale a warming finish that ends clean.

Overall - Absolutely fantastic!!! How lucky am I to have this brewpub just a little more than 2 miles from my house : )
Mar 12, 2009
Photo of DIM
Reviewed by DIM from Pennsylvania

3.48/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5
a: This was a very cloudy brownish amber color. It was served to me with a nice little one inch off-white head.

s: I really couldn't find much here even though Iron Hill is smoke free. Some faint alcohol and a whisper of dark fruit.

t: Thank goodness the taste far exceeded the smell. Sweet dark fruit flavors of plums and a bit of cherry dominate. There were some flowery hops as well. The sweetness on the finish was a bit cloying when combined with the heat from the alcohol.

m: This was very well carbonated and a great velvety texture.

d: This was a fair offering at least. Given how much I liked the RIS though, I was hoping for more.
Apr 25, 2008
Photo of Slatetank
Reviewed by Slatetank from Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
I had this on cask at the Lancaster Iron Hill location -served in a session glass.

A - A gently cascading copper w/ an almost caramel brown at the top and amber fade toward the bottom. A dense yet tight collar of about 1/2 inch that appears like vanilla creme. A thick coating of lace develops after the first sip and the settling is minimal w/ a fine smooth exterior.

S - Fruit and rum soaked cherries come to mind w/ a subtle chambord-like sweeet malty ester. The hops are there w/ delicate fruity and floral odors w/ a subtle vinous aroma as the alcohol is slightly noticeable in the nose.

M - Sweet touches of generous malt and smooth textures of yeast and very restrained hop bitterness that slightly accents the depth the malt carries.

T - A very fruity clean taste of malt w/ hints of stone fruit and citrus w/ woody and piney hops providing a sappy sweet shadow to the booze and berry malt flavors. Subtle citrus is there more on the orange side w/ sweetness staying out of cloying territory. The cask adds a soft touch and a resinous aspect to this strong ale. Very low on roasted malt yet there is some in the background w/ subtle toffee and less so of the caramel maintaining an salubrious presence. The sheer nuance of the blend is very pleasurable yet slightly warm as the glass is close to empty w/ the booziness becoming more noticeable. Almost a candy-like flavor w/ a tinge of bubblegum and dry toast in the last sips.

D - A very worthy B-wine IMO, nice on cask especially. There is nice touches of graham cracker, biscuit and caramel notes adding a little style to the bold strokes this ale produces @ 9% It is very drinkable for an English Barleywine, but more of a subtle American version that is not overly bitter, more malt than hops which is my cup o' tea. Very well made and a nice cask treatment. I will certainly look forward to a future taste of this fine barleywine.
Apr 22, 2008
Photo of kernalklink
Reviewed by kernalklink from Arizona

3.47/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Had this bottle of Iron Hill's English Barleywine on reserve. Poured a clear dark amber, with slight fizzy head over top a syrupy body. Aromas were of ripe fruits, sweet caramel and mildly citric hops. Taste was complex, but on the sweeter side- hints of apples, honey then a dominating pineapple flavor. Malts were thick with a small yeasty kick in the aftertaste. Hops are present, but only serve to dry out the finish which would otherwise be too sticky sweet. Decent body, good carbonation- the 9.6 abv was nearly invisible, so be careful and share this one if on reserve.
Mar 30, 2007
English Barleywine from Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Beer rating: 3.85 out of 5 with 9 ratings