Saint Brewis

A St. Louis Craft Beer Blog

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Charleville Brewing Company – Barleywine (2016)

Brewery Charleville Brewing Company
Location St. Louis/Ste. Genevieve, MO
Style American Barleywine
 ABV 10.5%
 IBUs n/a

 

Best Quote During Tasting

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Justin:

Aroma
After going through the lineup (2013, 2014 and 2015) this one was much different. The aroma is much more subdued in every way and has some new things going on that were in no way expected. For starters, it's doesn't scream caramel and there's almost no alcohol on the nose. The other thing it has going on is some strong cherry notes. That was wildly unexpected and wholly welcome. Other than that, there's a bit of hop earthiness.
Appearance
The beer is a medium copper with a thick, dense, tightly bubbled cap of foam that is cream in color. The beer sat for a few minutes and at no point did the head ever let the top of the beer peek through.
Flavor
The beer has easily the least caramel of all four that we've tried. The overall flavor isn't even very sweet, it's actually pretty nicely balanced. The hops are spicy, earthy, and almost bold which was a big surprise. There is some nice toasted character from the malt that lives from the moment the beer hits your tongue 'til the moment you swallow. Plum is gone from the flavor while cherry is very present and exciting.
Mouthfeel
The beer is light on your tongue with a medium carbonation and medium body. It's by no means a thin beer but it doesn't carry a tongue coating heft that the other years did.
Overall Impression
After trying all the other years' versions before this one, it was a BIG change of pace. Cherry? Where the heave-ho did that come from? No other years had cherry that perceptible. The alcohol was so subdued I would never have guessed it was over 10.0%. While it's a solid example of a barleywine and it definitely was fun to drink, if given the choice, I'd buy a few, drink one and save the rest until next year. The 1 year old version wins the epic vertical battle.

 

Justin Phelps

Justin Phelps

Co-Founder at Saint Brewis
Justin Phelps is a Certified Cicerone® who was born and raised in St. Louis. His passion for beer goes beyond just drinking it as he is also an award-winning home brewer. While he may be a marketing professional by day, he's a blogger, brewery hopper, and beer enthusiast by night.

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