An American Strong Beer

There are several styles of beer that beg to be enjoyed here at the end of winter. The cold months of the New Year is the time to seek out those strong brews. And nothing is better, and few are stronger, than barleywine. The style was, for a long time, the strongest type of beer available.
Make no mistake; this is definitely a beer, but a beer of, if not wine strength, alcohol content higher than most other styles, like old or strong ale. Barleywine remains an accessible, if complex and powerful, style.
Barleywine is an English creation, but, of course, like most styles, American brewers have co-opted and created a seemingly new style that in some ways bears little resemblance to its forefathers. If English Barleywine is a decade’s old style, then the American interpretation is only about 40 years, with Anchor’s Old Foghorn being the first commercial brewed example in this country, created in 1975.
It’s used to be that, back in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, very few barleywines were available. Not only due to the alcohol restrictions in most of the southeastern states, but also due to the extremely limited options available from the few widely-distributed craft breweries.
I can recall getting a stray bottle of Sierra Nevada Bigfoot or Anchor Old Foghorn, and being excited and grateful. I once shared a bottle of this rare Rogue Old Crustacean that a friend from out of town had procured, and it was overwhelming.
After I began trading beers, a random bottle of Avery’s Hog Heaven showed up, a very rare and very potent Dogfish Head Olde School made its way to me, and then there was the astonishing bottle of Stone Old Guardian that I have taste memory of to this day.
So, what are you getting with an American barleywine? If, the grandfather of this style is old ale, those moderately sweet, stronger, well-aged ales (think Fuller’s Vintage Ale or North Coast Old Stock), then the father would be English barleywine – offering more of a hop profile and more strength, it’s the inclusion of English hops that make the barleywine distinct from old ale (Thomas Hardy’s Ale or Brooklyn Monster Ale).
This gives us our boy, American barleywine, an outrageously hopped, highly alcoholic, yet still malt-based ale. Where examples from the northeast and Midwest tend to show a balance of big hops and sweet malt, it’s the west coast versions that burst with hops, malts hanging on for dear life. In fact, as these bitter barleywines gained more hops and a lighter color, they likely became the beers we know today as grandson double or Imperial IPA!
And it was this week, a draft beer that prompted this column. Stone Old Guardian was again the focus of my ale driven lust, but a dry-hopped version with Pekko hops was the twist that made my week. All the elements of the American barleywine were there, but add to the mix, orange and lemon rind, and at 11 percent ABV, my late winter slumber was an enjoyable old sleep. Enjoy the brews … Cheers.
Gene’s Haufbrau has at more than 200 beers in bottles or on tap. While they don’t have every beer the Beer Snob writes about, they probably have most. Gene’s is located at 817 Savannah Hwy. 225-GENE. E-mail the Beer Snob at publisher@westof.net.