The Bruery Provisions Series: Old Richland

From The Bruery – Old Richland – Our spin on a barley wine and by “our spin” we mean incredibly hoppy. This American-style barley wine oozes with pine and citrus hop character, but the hop bitterness is nicely rounded with the malty backbone of this 9% abv ale.

The Bruery – The Bruery Provisions Series: Old Richland – 9% abv. Sampled at The Bruery Provisions in Orange, CA.

Appearance: Pours a vibrant amber with a dense creamy beige head.

Aroma: Grapefruit, intense sweet dark bready aromas, and pine resin.

Taste: Big bitter hops, burnt sugar, dry bready malt, with a dry bakers cocoa finish. Once the cocoa finish fades, your mouth is still coated with hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, coating, lively bubbles.

Overall: A dry, chocolaty hoppy barleywine! I really liked this approach. It would have been easy for the Bruery to make something in the same vein as Coton or White Oak, and just overload this sucker with sugar. That is not the case with this. I don’t think I’ve ever had a BW like this.  I enjoyed it immensely, and I will say I don’t think this should be aged. I would think once the hops fade, you will be left with a really dry bitter ale.