Beer of the Weekend #155: Old Ruffian
Tonight I hung out with Mergotti. We were going to grill out, but instead ate at the Hawkeye Hideaway and enjoyed Anchor Humming Ale from the tap. It was good stuff — much better than the sample I tried while in San Francisco. We went back to his place, watched some Skinemax porn, and tried the second beer of the weekend: Old Ruffian, brewed by the Great Divide Brewing Company of Denver, Colorado.
My tasting notes are taken verbatim from my notebook.
Serving type: One 22-ounce (650 ml) bottle. The “Bottled on” date is Jan 07 2010.
Appearance: Straight pour into a pint glass. The color is a thick amber-honey. Three fingers of off-white, maybe tan, head developed and dissipated slowly. Very thick head.
Smell: Hoppy grapefruit citrus. There’s also a little bit of orange.
Taste: Major hoppiness. Really aggressive hoppy. Grapefruit citrus is most prominent, but, strangely, the aftertaste is very malty. Toffee malts and perhaps some caramel malts as well. It’s pretty complex for a hop bomb, but the hops really drown out any other flavors.
Drinkability: Tasty stuff, but way too hoppy for me.
Fun facts about Old Ruffian:
-Style: American Barleywine. Details from BA:
-Price: Who knows? Someone gave it to Mervgotti to try.
-Serving temperature: 50-55ºF.
-Alcohol content: 10.2 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: Recommendations from the brewer were printed right on the bottle, which is way cool. The suggestions were grilled pork tenderloin, Stilton Blue Cheese served with walnuts and dried figs, and caramel cheesecake.
-IBU: 90. Yeah. Hella hoppy.
The Quiet Man’s grade: B+.
My tasting notes are taken verbatim from my notebook.
Serving type: One 22-ounce (650 ml) bottle. The “Bottled on” date is Jan 07 2010.
Appearance: Straight pour into a pint glass. The color is a thick amber-honey. Three fingers of off-white, maybe tan, head developed and dissipated slowly. Very thick head.
Smell: Hoppy grapefruit citrus. There’s also a little bit of orange.
Taste: Major hoppiness. Really aggressive hoppy. Grapefruit citrus is most prominent, but, strangely, the aftertaste is very malty. Toffee malts and perhaps some caramel malts as well. It’s pretty complex for a hop bomb, but the hops really drown out any other flavors.
Drinkability: Tasty stuff, but way too hoppy for me.
Fun facts about Old Ruffian:
-Style: American Barleywine. Details from BA:
Despite its name, a Barleywine (or Barley Wine) is very much a beer, albeit a very strong and often intense beer! In fact, it's one of the strongest of the beer styles. Lively and fruity, sometimes sweet, sometimes bittersweet, but always alcoholic. A brew of this strength and complexity can be a challenge to the palate. Expect anything from an amber to dark brown colored beer, with aromas ranging from intense fruits to intense hops. Body is typically thick, alcohol will definitely be perceived, and flavors can range from dominant fruits to palate smacking, resiny hops.
English varieties are quite different from the American efforts, what sets them apart is usually the American versions are insanely hopped to make for a more bitter and hop flavored brew, typically using American high alpha oil hops. English versions tend to be more rounded and balanced between malt and hops, with a slightly lower alcohol content, though this is not always the case.
Most Barleywines can be cellared for years and typically age like wine.
-Price: Who knows? Someone gave it to Mervgotti to try.
-Serving temperature: 50-55ºF.
-Alcohol content: 10.2 percent ABV.
-Food pairings: Recommendations from the brewer were printed right on the bottle, which is way cool. The suggestions were grilled pork tenderloin, Stilton Blue Cheese served with walnuts and dried figs, and caramel cheesecake.
-IBU: 90. Yeah. Hella hoppy.
The Quiet Man’s grade: B+.
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