Howe Sound Brewing – 2012 Woolly Bugger Barley Wine

Rating

4 out of 5
Aroma
3.8 out of 5
Appearance
4 out of 5
Taste
4.2 out of 5
Palate

Total

4
4 out of 5

Overview

  • Brewery: Howe Sound Brewing Co.
  • Beer Style: Barley Wine
  • Pros:

    Nice hop tones for a Barley Wine

  • Cons:

    Be Prepared!

  • Conclusion:

    Big and intense but rather smooth Barley Wine

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Howe Sound Brewing – 2012 Woolly Bugger Barley Wine Review

The Howe Sound Brewing Woolly Bugger is a limited release Barley Wine that comes in a unique 341 ml single bottle. This extra strong ale shins a vibrant amber-red colour topped with three fingers of fluffy and thick head. Through this thick top layer comes a surprisingly mellow aroma of a bourbon whiskey, citrus, hops and a hint of oak. When tasting a barley wine one must be prepared. This is an easier drinking ale than its competitors though with a smooth and creamy texture. A light whiskey flavour shows its face here with chocolate and a hop bitterness that also helps to mellow the 11% ABV. The mellowing bitterness makes sense when you realize that the IBU is a massive 75. Of the Barley Wines hitting the shelves in 2012 this is one of the top few. The smaller bottle is a plus as well as a standard 650ml can be a little rough if you are not sharing.

Alcohol – 11%
IBU – 75
Size – 341ml
Price – $6.99 per bottle (Cold Beer and Wine)
howesound.com (not currently on website)

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About Author

Dustan Sept

Dustan Sept is the founder of Beer Me BC. His passion for craft beer drove the creation of beermebc.com in 2012. To learn more about the beermebc.com editorial team visit beermebc.com/the-beer-me-bc-team/.

Comments

  1. mikescraftbeer
    mikescraftbeer 8 February, 2013, 10:48

    For me it was a close race between this and Thor’s Hammer for best BC barleywine. So tasty! I was happy to find a 2011 bottle or two of Woolly Bugger too! Still haven’t opened it though.

    Reply this comment
  2. Howe Sound Brewing Co. – 2013 Woolly Bugger Barley Wine | Beer Me British Columbia 5 October, 2018, 11:01

    […] See the 2012 Howe Sound Woolly Bugger review […]

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