'tis the season!

...for drinking barleywine. But I'll soon be brewing up 10 gallons of it, 'cause I'm totally out!! By far, my favorite beer style is barleywine. Malty, hoppy or not so (American/English) , and an alcoholic wallop in the range of 8-10%+. Great on a cold night. My favorite commercial examples include Avery Hog Heaven and DuClaw Devil's Milk.

The Hog Heaven is an American barleywine with a delicious Columbus hop aroma.

Recently DuClaw released its barleywine in 1-litre wax-sealed swing-top bottles. I grabbed two, one for the vintage collection for aging and one to take to the inlaws' for my brother-in-law and I to enjoy.

Anyway, here's my English barleywine which I will (hopefully) brew on Saturday:

Old Excavator Barleywine

Batch Size (Gal): 10.00 Wort Size (Gal): 10.00
Total Grain (Lbs): 40.50
Anticipated OG: 1.106
Anticipated SRM: 19.9
Anticipated IBU: 54.0
Brewhouse Efficiency: 55 %
Wort Boil Time: 120 Minutes

25.00 lbs. Marris Otter
9.00 lbs. Generic DME - Light
3.50 lbs. Crystal 60L
1.50 lbs. Biscuit Malt
1.50 lbs. CaraVienne Malt

1.50 oz. Northern Brewer (Whole, 9.00% AA) 90 min.
1.50 oz. Northern Brewer (Whole, 9.00% AA) 30 min.
2.00 oz. Challenger (Pellet, 8.00% AA) 15 min.
2.00 oz. Challenger (Pellet, 8.00% AA) 5 min.
1.00 oz. Northern Brewer (Whole, 9.00% AA) 5 min.
1.00 oz. Fuggle (Pellet, 5.00% AA) Dry Hop
1.00 oz. E.K. Goldings (Pellet, 4.75% AA) Dry Hop

White Labs WLP001 yeast

If I get it brewed Saturday, it should be ready to drink in...maybe August, but probably closer to September or October, just in time for the cool weather. It's worth the wait.