Drake's Jolly Rodger (2012)
after years of scallywagging about and dallying with any style that caught its fancy, good ole JR is returning to it’s original form, an American Barleywine.
Originally crafted as a holiday brew that Drake’s brewers could get behind, Jolly had all the warming powers of malt and alcohol, minus the strange holiday beer ubiquitousness of overpowering pie spices, and finished with the open handed smack of bold Northwest American hops.
The 2012 Jolly Rodger is full-bodied with rich caramel malt undertones and mild biscuit malt character. Sufficient additions of West Coast hops balance the malt with pine needle aromatics and satisfying bitterness.
Originally crafted as a holiday brew that Drake’s brewers could get behind, Jolly had all the warming powers of malt and alcohol, minus the strange holiday beer ubiquitousness of overpowering pie spices, and finished with the open handed smack of bold Northwest American hops.
The 2012 Jolly Rodger is full-bodied with rich caramel malt undertones and mild biscuit malt character. Sufficient additions of West Coast hops balance the malt with pine needle aromatics and satisfying bitterness.
3.7
175 reviews
San Leandro, United States
Community reviews
Bottle 66cl / Botella 66cl.
Vintage 2012.
@ Cervezorama 2.0.
A: Hazy amber / Ambar turbio.
T/S: Malt, sweet, raisins, alcohol, slightly hoppy / Malta, dulce, uvas pasas, alcohol, ligeramente a lupulo.
Bomber bottle at Hasse. Dark amber with off white head. Aroma salty, minerals, marmalade, caramel, dried fruit and fruity hops. Taste is balanced, caramel, marmalade, low bitterness, fairly sweet with some warming alcohol.
Bottle @ 3N tasting. Deep reddish pour with a small head. Hot cereal, apples. Caramel. Peppers. Toffee. Taste is pretty chewy. Sweet caramel. Brown bread. Fruit leather. Full body, soft carb.
Thanks Habek for sharing! Not sure who got it for him. Amber-brown body with a medium sized white head. Sweet, heavy malty aroma, raisins, fresh, tomato juice (?), etc. Fresh seeming though slightly oxidized taste, dried apricots, nice. LIght hopiness, not much bitterness. Not too sweet too. Well balanced overall, not that thrilling but definitely a very nice beer.
from Mikkeller&Friends - hazy orange-brown beer with a long lasting yet chaotic foam left; a bit eartzhy and with strong notes of caramel and prunes, apples and vanilla; sweet and full-bodied, light grainy, solidly bitter; long aftertaste of caramel, walnuts, honey and plums, warming alcohol presence
22 oz bottle. Bottled 11/26/12. Bomber tasting at Timo A.
Cloudy amber colour with a small off-white head.
Sweetness, strong maltiness and warming alcohol in the aroma.
Sweet malt, hops, strong bitterness, strong caramel maltiness and warming alcohol in the flavour. Quite nice. Sweet but drinkable Barley Wine.
This was our first beer for beer club night. A lot of us were new to Barley wine.
Bottle. Pours light murky amber with a medium, staying, creamy, yellowish head. Aroma has sweet caramel, light vinious, raisins. Medium carbonation, fine dry and quite creamy mouthfeel. Flavour has good malty sweetness, caramel, vinious, raisins, fine hops, solid bitterness. Lovely.
Bottle, "2012", 9.6&. Hazy dark amber/orange with small off-white head. Aroma is malt, caramel, dark fruits, hop, pine and grapefruit. Flavour is malt, fruit, caramel, oak, dark fruits, sweet, hop, little grapefruit, little pine, little biscuit and bitter.
Bottle. Pours a dark, reddish copper. Semi clear and a small off white head. Aroma is malty sweet with lots of sweet, sugary strawberry jam, faded hops, overripe to rotten orange, mango, candied apples. Taste starts off sweet, but has lots of the hop bitterness as well. Sugar/syrup, caramel and just overall huge malt profile. Oily body and a medium carbonation.
Bottle. A jammy aroma spreads as pouring. Pours semi clear cobbler with one finger lasting beige and creamy head. Aroma is jam! Malts, bread, strawberry and some orange/pomerans, bit burn sugar/caramel and some fainted hops. Taste is really bitter at first sip. But then reveals red ripe apples candied apples, caramel, fruity jam, bitter hops. Sticky oily full body and really bitter hoppy finish with some spices.
Bottle.
Pours caramel amber.
Smells like jam, caramel, pineapple, old hops sweetness.
Gives you a straight hook of bitternes at first sip, almost knocking you over, but smoothes into a jammy sweetness. Lots and lots of malts and slightly fruity.
duft: en smule sød, en del karamel. og en okay mængde humle.
smag: malt sød karamel. citrus. lidt krydret lidt alkohol varm i eftersmagen
Fruity and malty, caramel, tree/oak. Pretty tasty. Very sticky for the style. Heavy in the malt finish. Good stuff.
Bottle from Mikkeller Web Shop. Clear orange with a lasting off-white head. Aroma is sweet, malty, caramel, dried fruit and moderate hoppy - citrus. Flavor is quite sweet and rather bitter. Dry and rather bitter finish with warming alcohol. 090115
Copper reddish barleywine. Lot of caramel, ripe yellow fruits, honey, end is more chocolaty and bitter. Long burnt bitterness.
Bottle at Craig’s...off strawberry new quick on the nose...choc toffee...bit cheesy...ace
Bottle at Craig’s. Pours hazy amber with a thin white head. Aromas of lactic acid, tobacco, cardboard, toffee. Taste is sweet. Finishes sweet.
Bottle. Amber with white head. Aroma of biscuit, caramel, sherry, dried fruit. Taste of caramel, sherry fruits. Sweet and a little tangy.
Clear reddy golden, neat flattened filmy head. Nose of burnt sugar and raisins. Nutty caramel throughout, chewy biscuit and a light spicy hop. Neat tinny, light bitter and terse sweetness. Fading alcohol but nice and smooth throughout, clear coppery malted linger.
Bottle, Mikkeller Bottleshop, ScoIre tasting
Bottle at Craig’s. Pours orange brown, nose is crystal malt, berries, caramel, taste is sweet toffee, caramel, dry.
bottle at home .. copper .. small light tan head ... soft sweet toffee caramle malt nose ... dry fruits .. soft sweet malts ... sweet toffee..
Bottle. Bitter and malty aroma. Tastes like a malty imperial IPA with some raisin. This is really a bitter barley wine. Nice note of caramel as well. Good one.
Botella de 65 cl en cimmeria en el momento el 29-10-2014. color rojizo cerezo oscuro con espuma también bastante oscura. Aromas y sabores maltosos con toques de caramelo tostado. Cuerpo medio a intenso de 9.6 vol que se nota en todo momento. Paso por boca denso. Bastante buena, para repetir sin duda.
Very malty beer hoppy finish Nice brew. One of the better barley wines not too sweet
-- rated with beerbasher/winphone
Bottle. Amber color. Malty, plastic, grassy notes and dried red fruit in the aroma. Malty sweet flavor with roast and confit fruit. Red berries, grassy notes. Alcoholic, complex, multi-layered beer.
22 oz bottle @ home. Clear dark amber brown color with a red hue. Off white rocky head, sticky, good lacing. Aroma’s: sweet, toffee (sticky toffee cake), dried fruits. Also hops noticeable retronasal, some root (sarsparilla?). Flavor is rather bitter with a moderate sweet backbone. Alcohol feel is rather strong, warming. Medium to full bodied. Long finish, rather bitter, earthy. Still good after two years.
22fl oz bottle @Cimmeria, Oviedo. 08-10-2014.
BBD: not found.
In short: sweet thick ale.
Pours hazy copper with nice creamy off white head. Moderate to short head retention, some lacing. Malty, caramel, ripe fruit, liquor aromas. Medium body, soft carbonation, viscous texture. Thick mouthfeel, sweet, liquor, alcohol well hidden. smooth and balanced. Enjoyable. A robust barley wine, but not top of his class.
Bottle at tasting.
Just had a quick sip before I left, so only wrote down a score.
"A very nice hop forward barlwywine that seems to change it stripes as it opens. Starts out with an aroma more akin to a IIPA than a BW. First sip gives you hints of honey and biscuit malt in addition to the hops. As it opens, it develops more malty sweetness in the aroma, and a distinct (and delicious) malt character very similar to my favorites from great Divide, Hibernation and Old Ruffian. Dangerously drinkable at 9.6%!"