Alpine Beer Company Great
An "Alpine Style" Barleywine aged 12 months in select bourbon barrels. So... DRINK ALPINE ALE or GO TO BED!
3.9
216 reviews
Alpine, United States
Community reviews
(Bouteille): Un liquide qui parait mince dégage des fruits puissants de la caramélisation et un bourbon très enrobant. En bouche c’est effectivement mince, relativement moyennement sucré, boisé, épicé et très sec. Certaines de leur DIPA sont plus décadente que ça.
I’m not a huge fan of this style but this blew me away. Alpine good has a lot of flavor but it just has too much sweetness and the alcohol is not well hidden particularly well. This balances out the sweetness while maintaining the interesting flavors that are in good, namely the caramel, apricot, and butterscotch notes.
Type: 8-oz. draft
Glass: Clear snifter glass
From: Alpine Beer Company pub in Alpine, Calif.
Price: $7.00
Purchased: Dec. 30, 2015
Consumed: Dec. 30, 2015
Misc.: 2015 release
Poured an auburn, murky color with 2-to-3 fingers of khaki tan, foamy head when I got it. Burst of bubbles coming up from the bottom of the glass. Below average wet lacing on the sides. Below average retention. (Sight - 3.75)
Smelled toffee, caramel, dates, leathery tobacco, light Jack Daniels whiskey, light butterscotch, dark peach and light citra rind. (Smell - 4.00)
Taste was so much better than the nose, getting caramel, toffee, earthy rye, flat sweetened iced tea, some kind of woody barrel and light booziness. Alcohol was well hidden. (Taste - 4.75)
Medium body. Oily texture. Soft-to-flat carbonation. Long, smooth, warming finish. (Feel - 4.50)
This is an excellent representation of an American Barleywine. Not too boozy and not too hoppy. Loved it.
4.44 98 A
355 ML bottle
Clear, dark Amber color. No real head, just a light tan collar. Thick AVB legs.
Nose is bourbon, oak, caramel, melted brown sugar, warm maple syrup. Excellent nose that hides the ABV well.
Taste pretty much mirrors the nose. A tad bit more vanilla and maple syrup. Excellent balance to this. Little bit of the ABV.
Full bodied sipper. One of the best BA barleywine’s out there.
Bottle shared by Jack, thanks! Pours a hazy amber brown with a tan head that dissipates to the edges. Aroma is full of sweet grains and toffee with supporting notes of caramel and boozy bourbon. Flavor is full of toffee with a decent amount of bourbon and sweet grains and caramel underlying.
Bottle. Clear brown pour with a fleeting off white head. Sweet caramel aromas. Sweet with loads of caramels, dark fruits, oak, vanilla, and bourbon notes. Really good mouthfeel. Good body.
Bottle thanks to Derek! Pours a dark, clear, reddish amber with a tiny, off white head. Aroma has coco nut, bourbon, toasted malts, caramel, figs, dates, prunes, plums, brown sugar, fudge, wallnut, hazelnut and portwine or licor. Taste is really sweet with nice, dry bourbon and some alcohol to balance it out. Very sweet, lots of candy, full body, sticky, low carb.
Bottle - Pours brown. Lots of bourbon, malty, sweet, toffee, oak, and caramel in the nose. Taste is sweet, malty, caramel, toffee, oak. This beer is great!!!
Bottle shared at pre-CBC tasting at Fermentoren. Bronze pour with a tiny head. Nose is sweet, vanilla and some bourbon. Taste is smooth, vanilla fudge, caramel and lots of sweet malt. ABV is very well hidden. Maybe one the best Barley wines I’ve had.
Bottle shared @ fermentoren. Thanks Mike! Pours hazy deep copper/ruby red with a brown lacing. Aroma of dark sweet fruits, plums, caramel, vanilla, deep port notes, weak coconut, raisin and butterscotch. Taste of vanilla, caramel, figs, chocolate, molasses, caramel, some sweet barrel notes, toffee and weak sweet nuts. So good and well balanced.
Bottle thanks to Derek Gallanosa - shared at Fermentoren, Copenhagen. Pours reddish brown with a fizzy offwhite head. Aroma is pretty malty, lots of walnuts, light licorice, dark fruits, dried berries, some chocolate. Taste is dark fruits, vanilla, light licorice, caramel, walnuts, chocolate, light heat, plums, port wine, raisins. Very smooth!
Bottle, 2013. Pours cloudy reddish amber, slight tan lacing. Aroma is complex plummy toffee and maple with honey, bourbon, grains, slight toastiness. Crazy how much maple. Taste is thick and chewy maple and burnt toffee with undertones of port, sweet cherry, and orange peel. Mild roast. Quite sweet. Booze is impressively well hidden. Great complexity, super impressive.
Deep brown, no head. Lots of toffee and some dark fruit in the aroma. Really sweet, no carb, super smooth. Really incredible flavor. Carmel, toffee, vanilla.
Bottle thanks to cocoapuph. Pours cloudy chestnut, small tan head, some lacing. Aroma is bourbon, toffee, vanilla, oak, raisin, figs, dates, toasted caramel, coconut. Flavor is fully sweet, rich and decadent, notes of cherry as well. Light bitterness. Full body, creamy mouth. Pretty solid, reminds me of the HOTD from the wood beers.
(12oz bottle) clear amber/red, wispy tan bubbles. Nose of light pine and citrus, caramel, touch of bourbon, quite hoppy if swirled. Taste of graham cracker, saccharin, cream, caramel, light American hops, quite good. Medium thick body.
Bottle at tasting. Pours dark brown. Nose/taste of bourbon, oak, sticky caramel, toffee and dark fruit cake. Full body.
Bottle (12 oz). From cparles, thanks! Dark mahogany with a small bubbly ring of beige foam and no lacing. Aroma is quite boozy at first, but it then settle down a bit when it breathe a little... there’s bourbon, sweetness, dried fruits, raisins, toffee, chocolate and vanilla notes. Taste is very sweet with dried fruits, bourbon, boozy presence, toffee, raisins, light chocolate and vanilla notes. Full bodied. Low carbonation. Liquorous. Warming finish. Super complex. A very good sipper. Quite boozy.
Bottle at Tom’s, shared 3 ways. Deep mahogany pour with no head. Aroma is boozy, really rich toasty aromas, barley candy, raisins, rum, port wine. Taste is extremely sweet, rich caramel, brown sugar, boozy finish. Palate is full bodied but not as rich as I was expecting. Very nice sipper.
12oz 2013 Bottle split a few ways with friends.
A - Burnt oaky reddish brown, no head. Small wisp when the cap popped.
S - Smells freaking amazing! So much boozy bourbon with a touch of vanilla and banana.
T - Whoa. so sweet, decadent, thick mouthfeel lots going on. There’s a decent amount of cigar smoke but honestly not intense.
M - Thick, very sweet and oily. coats every aspect of the mouth
O - this is a great beer. sorry for the lazy rating but this beer is really incredible! I would buy a case of this. Really incredible!
Pour is extremely dark burgundy with a small amount of tight tan head. Nose has some light bourbon notes up front, chocolate maltiness with figs and raisin. Taste is bright and tight, bourbon is subtle but helps balance the malt sweetness. Figs and raisin play a strong role with chocolate and dark malt presence with berry notes, caramel, and brown sugar in back. Full bodied with soft carbonation and a very creamy inviting palate.
12 oz Bottle: Pour is murky golden brown/amber with a very modest fine bubbled white head into this snifter. Retention is modest , with very light spotting presence. This one is boozy initial, moving to caramel, toffee, and biscuit presence. Earthy oak, brown sugar and vanilla. The flavor profile is burnt sugars, toffee, caramel malt presence, moving to booze and sticky buns. Dark fruits, dark malts, heavy booze, vanilla and earthen oak, with a long deep finish here. Nice
Bottle: Thanks, Kevin. Deep, dark brown - oily, thick, lazy.. even a straight-down pour produces no head. Aroma is HUGE; a thick, caramel river with more notes of molasses, wood, vanilla, cocoa dust, dates, prunes, buttery toffee, & faint coconut. Lovely barrel integration on the nose, this one should be a doozy... WOW. The first sip knocks me off my socks. Thick caramel, sticky sweet toffee, butterscotch, melted brown sugar, molasses & maple syrup, vanilla, oak, with just the smoothest bourbon inclusion you could imagine... Tastes like a crème brûlée dessert drizzled with a warm, toffee-bourbon infused maple syrup. Thick, huge body, with a mouth coating finish that lingers until the following morning. This truly blew me away, what a phenomenal beer. No doubt, this is the finest barley wine I’ve tasted to date.
2013 bottle thanks to Pailhead for sharing. Pours cloudy reddish-brown with a small head that fades to a thin ring. Mouthwatering aroma of sweet caramel, rich vanilla cake, butterscotch, and cookie dough. Taste is almost as good. Sweet syrupy butterscotch, toffee, and vanilla. Oak, brown sugar, and a hint of booze in the finish. This beer is appropriately named. The ratings for this are lower than I expected to see. Everyone was pretty blown away at the sharing.
A- Pours a deep mahogany hue with little to no head.
S- Very sweet, lots of brown sugar, fig, nice bourbon aroma.
T- Extremely sweet all the way through, as in the nose there is a ton of brown sugar, dark fruits, smokiness, that leads to a slight hop bitterness / alcohol bite. The barrel characteristics are fairly subdued but it works out good for this beer.
M- Thick with medium carbonation.
D- This was a decadent desert beer. I split the 12 oz and loved it but dont think I could drink much more than that.
Courtesy of StephanSD
Bottle: The aroma consists of caramel, butter toffee, brown sugar, brown sugar, light vanilla, and light bourbon. It pours a transparent brownish-orange with a small beige head that quickly fades to a thin ring. The flavor starts with caramel, toffee, fruit, and brown sugar. The finish has vanilla, coconut, light bourbon, and a touch of oak. Overall, I’m just about ready to call this beer if the year for 2014.
Bottle. The pour is. Dark amber, my brother in law said it looks like a carmel apple. The aroma is sweet bourbon. The taste is nice, big and boozy. Reminds me a lot if bourbon barrel 4D. Very solid beer.
2013 bottle, tasted 01/31/2014. Pours dark brown, hazy white head on the surface, very thin ring of lacing. Aroma is rich toffee, soft chocolate cookie dough, mild fruity overtones with expansive vanilla, round caramel, soft bourbon. Taste is caramel toffee, sharp fruity maltiness with booze, bourbon, vanilla, caramel. Medium heavy body, drinks easy despite the booze. Awesome, really tasty.
Bottle thanks to Chow. Pours a cloudy brown with small beige head that diminishes quickly. The aroma is strong toffee, candy sugar, and booze. Medium mouthfeel with strong toffee, candy sugar, caramel, light booze with nice sweet finish. Very impressive, really enjoyed this one.
Bottle @ The HUGE Tasting. Acquired by trade. The pour’s deep brown with a small tight tan head. The nose is cocoa, toffee, chocolate. Some accents of hot wood, red berry skin. The taste is hugely sweet. Loads of caramel and taffy. German chocolate cake. Hot finish. Full body, quite oily. Overall, great stuff. It could actually deal with cooling down a bit.
Longtime want, finally landed! 2013.
Aroma is oaky, nutty cheese(?!) in addition to the standard barleywinr flavors. Crider found hints of baked bread too, hmm. Taste layers all of this atop the delicious caramel base. Perfect amount of barrel. Dunno what else to say: this is just well-made with the barrel in check.
Quite good, but I won't be trading for this again.