Church Brew Works Oak Aged Barley Wine

I stopped in to Church Brew Works during Pittsburgh Craft Beer Week to sign paperwork for our rehearsal dinner. While there, I ordered a glass of the Oak Aged Barley Wine. The beer pours a dark brown color with a thin filmy beige head. Bubbles collected on the side of the glass. The aroma consists of raisin, fig, malts, chocolate, caramel. The taste is dry with a dark chocolate base and plenty of raisin, fig, and dark fruits. Oak shines through and dries out the mouth with bourbon accents and a hint of cherry. The alcohol burn lingers and is quite warming. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. I’d say this was a rather delicious barleywine with great oak and bourbon flavors. I’ve had their regular barley wine before, and the oak aged version really stepped it up a notch with a nice smoothness, even though it does burn on the way down.