Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary – Black Barleywine
Part three of Sierra Nevada’s Anniversary Ales is a black barleywine, a new style in the world of craft beer. This year has revealed a share of black IPAs, for example Southern Tier’s Iniquity IPA, but this is the first black barleywine I’ve seen. I love a good barleywine, and a good stout, so I figured I couldn’t go wrong with this ale–I was not disappointed.
The cork popped very loudly and accordingly the beer poured with a giant head. This pours dark, dark, dark, black with a hint of red when held in the light. The aroma is something intriguing and unique. You can detect chocolate and coffee notes as in a typical stout, but it competes heavily with a giant hop aroma. The taste is just as baffling–but quite satisfying, with a strong alcohol kick in the finish. It’s tough to say whether this is more of a stout or barleywine, as both sides are equally represented. You could say that this is a super-hopped stout–hop-heads and imperial stout fanatics will love this beer. I know I did.