“Historically, brandy was often referred to as “liquid currency” – alluding to it having more value as a commodity for trade than as a beverage. In the modern world, barrel-aged barley wine has become the new Liquid Currency. Despite no one asking for it, we’ve gone and brewed another barley wine and we’ll be damned if this isn’t our best one yet.
Boiled for 8 hours and aged 14 months in first fill American oak bourbon barrels, this is a big dumb beer of the highest order.”

Glassware: Teku.

Appearance: Gorgeous colour. Exactly how we want a Barleywine to present – rusted mahogany with a cola-like hue. Very little head formation and as expected, not a skerrick of lace as we go.

Aroma: Hot damn. The can alone is genius (it’s like an Aldi rip off of Jim Beam) but to also have the Bourbon lifting off the way it is, is incredible. It’s working in tandem with the base beer so beautifully too…uber rich caramel and toffee, dark fruits, spice etc. Then the magnificent oak and sweet/spicy Bourbon coming in over the top. Top shelf aroma.

Flavour: And might we add too…a top shelf flavour profile. Picking up where the aroma left off with truck loads of chewy, rich and sweet caramel, toffee, dark fruits, spice and residual sugars but the way the Bourbon/oak encapsulates it all is the masterstroke. Picking up really subtle fortified wine, molasses and even a pinch of nutmeg as it finishes big and boozy but also sweet and caramelised.

Mouthfeel: Dense and saturated. Medium-full bodied but not too muscly. Low-ish Co2 and the 13.6% ABV is well behaved for its size.

Overall: This brewery is one that deserves so much more attention than it gets. They are the epitome of indy OG’s (opened in 2003) and are humble operators. Kudos 3 Ravens this is a seriously impressive Barleywine.