Blithering Idiot Barleywine
Review Date 7/3/2004
Try?
Re-buy?
I’m no stranger
to Weyerbacher beers. I used to enjoy them from time to time when I lived in
Rhode Island. Not that you could buy them in Little Rhody then (though now I
hear their beers are available there), but since my dad lived in
Philadelphia, I would visit the city of Brotherly Love now and again. And
when I did, I would be sure to get my Weyerbacher fix.
The Weyerbacher brewery is located in Easton, Pennsylvania. I have always remarked that Pennsylvania is home to a large number of quality brewers, though Victory tends to overshadow some of the other notables, like Stoudts. It seems both Victory and Stoudts overshadow Weyerbacher to a degree, the latter probably being the lesser known of the three. It shouldn’t be. This is a wonderful little brewery that is always surprising me with their exceptionally well-made brews.
I’ve tasted quite a few different Weyerbacher brews over the years, but one that has eluded me has been the Blithering Idiot Barleywine. I never expected to get a sample here in Georgia, but that’s exactly what happened when it was brought in as a guest beer by Five Seasons Brewing Company . This was to celebrate the change to Georgia’s archaic beer law that previously limited alcohol content in beer to 6% by volume.
Blithering idiot is aptly named, because as George Schaffer so succinctly put it, Drinking Blithering Idiot May Make You One. At least if you drink enough of it, anyway. At 11.1% alcohol by volume, this is certainly a potent brew, and it will catch up with you. I drank several glasses, and although I don’t think of myself as an idiot, I was probably doing a little blithering by the end of the night. If you’re out and about while drinking beers of this strength, I suggest you take a cab home, as we did, for safety’s sake. You’d really have to be a blithering idiot to drive after a few of these.
Barleywines are among the most potent styles of beer out there. They’re usually very malty, with lots of thick sweet and caramelly malt. Blithering Idiot is a smoother, maltier example, more in common with Anchor Old Foghorn than with hoppier examples like Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot or Rogue’s Old Crustacean .
Blithering Idiot Barleywine pours to a deep mahogany color with a
light and creamy head formation and a rich, sweet fruity nose. Wow. The
palate is huge here, thick and sweet chewy malt, caramel. The beer is very
full bodied and has an intense mouthfeel that’s luxurious and full bodied as
you loll it around in your mouth.
Notes of candied fruit, raisin, plum, mincemeat pie, spice cake all come to mind. In the finish, there’s a gentle touch of hops that tries to balance out the sweet malt, but it really can’t. The sweetness wins, hands down. The alcohol warms the mouth after sipping. This would be a great beer for cooler weather, though I could enjoy it any time of year.
An absolutely exceptional sipping beer, perfect as an after dinner brew.
The Weyerbacher brewery is located in Easton, Pennsylvania. I have always remarked that Pennsylvania is home to a large number of quality brewers, though Victory tends to overshadow some of the other notables, like Stoudts. It seems both Victory and Stoudts overshadow Weyerbacher to a degree, the latter probably being the lesser known of the three. It shouldn’t be. This is a wonderful little brewery that is always surprising me with their exceptionally well-made brews.
I’ve tasted quite a few different Weyerbacher brews over the years, but one that has eluded me has been the Blithering Idiot Barleywine. I never expected to get a sample here in Georgia, but that’s exactly what happened when it was brought in as a guest beer by Five Seasons Brewing Company . This was to celebrate the change to Georgia’s archaic beer law that previously limited alcohol content in beer to 6% by volume.
Blithering idiot is aptly named, because as George Schaffer so succinctly put it, Drinking Blithering Idiot May Make You One. At least if you drink enough of it, anyway. At 11.1% alcohol by volume, this is certainly a potent brew, and it will catch up with you. I drank several glasses, and although I don’t think of myself as an idiot, I was probably doing a little blithering by the end of the night. If you’re out and about while drinking beers of this strength, I suggest you take a cab home, as we did, for safety’s sake. You’d really have to be a blithering idiot to drive after a few of these.
Barleywines are among the most potent styles of beer out there. They’re usually very malty, with lots of thick sweet and caramelly malt. Blithering Idiot is a smoother, maltier example, more in common with Anchor Old Foghorn than with hoppier examples like Sierra Nevada’s Bigfoot or Rogue’s Old Crustacean .
Blithering Idiot Barleywine pours to a deep mahogany color with a
light and creamy head formation and a rich, sweet fruity nose. Wow. The
palate is huge here, thick and sweet chewy malt, caramel. The beer is very
full bodied and has an intense mouthfeel that’s luxurious and full bodied as
you loll it around in your mouth. Notes of candied fruit, raisin, plum, mincemeat pie, spice cake all come to mind. In the finish, there’s a gentle touch of hops that tries to balance out the sweet malt, but it really can’t. The sweetness wins, hands down. The alcohol warms the mouth after sipping. This would be a great beer for cooler weather, though I could enjoy it any time of year.
An absolutely exceptional sipping beer, perfect as an after dinner brew.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft
(G)=Growler
