Howe Sound Brewing Co. – 2013 Woolly Bugger Barley Wine

Howe Sound Wooly Bugger Barley Wine 2013 Beer Review

Rating

4.2 out of 5
Appearance
4.5 out of 5
Flavour
4.1 out of 5
Mouthfeel

Total

4.3
4.3 out of 5

Overview

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

    Fantastically balanced Barley Wine

  • Cons:

    Very strong and intense beer

  • Conclusion:

    A fantastically smooth, massively flavoured beer.

Howe Sound Wooly Bugger Barley Wine 2013 Beer Review

Howe Sound Brewing Co. – 2013 Woolly Bugger Barley Wine Review

The Woolly Bugger is back for another round in 2013 in a new bottle style. This Barley Wine comes in a small, painted 375ml bottle just in time for the holidays (2012 was 341ml). The beer is a slightly clouded, deep copper colour that pours with 2 thick fingers of lacing, slow to settle head. The beer smells as a quality Barley Wine should. There are notes of toffee, chocolate and of course a slight booziness with its 10.5% alcohol rating (2012 was 11%). There is a defined sweetness that parallels the hop bitterness making for a tantalizing aroma. The Woolly Bugger’s flavour starts off with toffee, caramel and chocolate flavours before building into an oaky, well hopped center with lingering toffee sweetness. The finish is a strong hop bitterness with an alcohol tone along side. The toffee notes also linger until the final cord adding a touch of sweetness to the mix. The Woolly Bugger is a fantastic tasting Barley Wine and personally I believe that the 2013 is top of the heap and slightly better than the 2012 which was also very good! Even better yet though, cellaring this beer for a year or two will likely result in something astounding. Pick up a few bottles of this one and enjoy one each coming winter.

See the 2012 Howe Sound Woolly Bugger review

Alcohol – 10.5%
IBU – 75
Size – 341ml
Price – $7.20(Craft Retailer)
howesound.com (2012 is listed)

 

Howe Sound Wooly Bugger Barley Wine 2013 Beer ReviewHowe Sound Wooly Bugger Barley Wine 2013 Beer Review

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 24 December, 2013, 23:45

    Last years version was great. This years version is amazing. I look forward to opening a bottle in a few years once it has aged enough!

    Reply this comment

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