Cape May Brewing Company, Sawyers Swap

With a baker’s dozen or so of different beers to choose from, Cape May Brewing Company has found a recipe that stands apart from the rest of the herd in color, taste, richness, and appeal. They have leapfrogged themselves over the juvenile brewing stage to within pole position of other major craft brewers. I’m impressed with what they bring to the table in terms of aroma, color, and malt to hop ratio to create this off-type, not quite as popular, barley wine beer. Awesome idea, courageous style choice, and perfectly executed. A well-rounded session beer, very strong, but well disguised by its multiple layers.

A complex, masterfully crafted beer with a ton of elements to pick out and try to separate. On a side note, I love the old school, 1800’s, Civil War soldier label for this bottle! Very classy with a simple, yet almost commanding look and absolutely appropriate for this style of beer. It reminds me of an old style beer from that time period, so the correlation between label and taste is precise.
Overall, I would give this an 83%. I loved the different aspects of their creation. Not hoppy, very malt forward, and notes of barley and caramel. I didn’t pick up on the toffee as much as other people have proclaimed, but it is certainly a very intense, barely style ale comprised of grains and molasses. Medium bodied, non-lingering finish, but a very delicious brown ale that is absolutely worth a try to expand your horizons and get away from the millions of IPA’s out there. The one thing I appreciate more than anything about this beer is the fact that they tried something different. Every craft brewery has an IPA, due to its popularity and demanding appeal, so it’s a breath of fresh air to try a beer that hasn’t jumped on the “IPA bandwagon” and went a different direction with a barley wine ale. Well done Cape May….and thank you for bringing back a vintage way of producing such a good variation of a typical ale!
ABV 9.6%
Personal Rating: 8.3/10

Style Rating: 9.6/10

Wanna try it now? Order it online at: 

http://www.whitehorsewine.com/proddetail.php?prod=000004210030

Troegs | Flying Mouflan

Troegs Flying Mouflan, poured into a pint glass from a 22oz bomber. This barleywine style ale is a dark ruby red with a frothy light amber head, the color is reminiscent of transmission fluid, yum!

The aroma is strong BOOZE and candied sugar, as you might expect from a 9.3% beer. Dark fruit and candy up front with little to no hops at all. The sticky sweetness from this beer is so strong it's almost sickening; completely typical of a barleywine. It's not for everybody, but those that love this style will not be disappointed.

The taste, like the nose, is strong sweet booze, dark fruit (raisins, plums, figs, etc.), darker sweet malts, and molasses. This beer is definitely a sipper, I dare anyone to chug this. The mouthfeel is heavy, syrupy, sticky, and lower in carbonation.

Cellaring this beer for a year or so might do wonders for the flavors to fully develop and mellow out, as the sweetness from the high ABV can be a bit much at times. That being said, the beer is still enjoyable if you take it easy and sip, or it will kick you in the ass. We give this one a 5/10, but for the style: 8.5/10. Not for the faint of heart (ie: Coors Light drinkers).