Tasting Notes: Abbeydale: Last Rites

Abbeydale: Last Rites (England: Barley Wine: 11% ABV)

Visual: Clear amber gold with bubbles around the rim of the glass.

Nose: Raspberries and syrup. Milkshake. Really fruity and sweet. Slightly sherbety, banana, toffee. Fluffy pavlova in style, with occasional creamy mocha around the fringes.

Body: Sweet, very malty and almost coffee like, but filled with passion fruit and pineapple. Sweet syrup, pears, fudge. Huge malt return for the backbone and a mint menthol styling.

Finish: Coffee and passion fruit, Kiwi, chocolate and light dustiness.

Conclusion:   This massively fruity beer doesn’t hide its abv, but at least tries to round it out.  It mixes up the large amount of fruit with traces of chocolate and mocha which come out if you hold it in your mouth for an extended period – a nice trick to slow down drinking of a heavily potent ale.

Good range and good flavour, very much in a dessert wine style, somewhat like the Samichlaus beer tried at roughly this time last year.

Its full bodied and very unsubtle, with a malt back that is closer to most IIPAs than to your expected barley wine style. It’s enjoyable, but does need to hide that alcohol a touch more.  Still in the better 50% of beers out there.

A good beer for post dinner, or with desserts for slow drinking at parties. Not the best crafted, a bit over alcohol fuelled, but still a beer with enough to make it worthwhile.