Dick’s Brewing Company Barleywine: Day 23 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, this barleywine from Centralia, WA is brewed to a strength of 9.9% abv and comes in a manageable 12 oz bottle. I love to try new Barleywines, so it was nice to see a new one pop up in my calendar as Christmas neared.
Aroma and Appearance: A bit dark for a barleywine, this pours a mahogany colour with a small layer of foam and was surprisingly bubbly for the style. The aroma was candy sugar, black currants, earth and syrupy molasses.
Flavour: Like the aroma, candy sugar and molasses show up again right away up front. The middle is balanced and full of prunes, black currants, and fruity blackberries while it finishes with an earthy bitterness.
Overall Impression: This was a very approachable barleywine (at an approachable price too) and it makes a good introduction to the Pacific Northwest style Barleywine if you have never had a Barleywine before.
Rating: Excellent at 8/10, a nice pop and pour Barleywine at a good price.
Food Pairing: Pecan pie or any sweet, sugary tart would work well here.
Here’s a little obvious, but still funny humour from singer Tony Wintrop who sung this song at the brewery a couple months ago.
West Coast Beer Geek 
At least in that photo it looked like a standard barleywine colour. Interesting. Sounds pretty tasty for sure.
I’m used to them being a bit lighter, then again it’s more West Coast barleywine than British. If I see this, I’ll grab one for you.