Serve in a snifter at 12-16 °C
What it tastes like
English brewers have made very strong ales for centuries, and the name barley wine stuck in the late 1800s once brewers started selling them as a match for port and sherry. Dark gold to deep amber, it tastes of malt first: bread crust, toffee, dark honey, raisin and plum. English hops add an earthy, slightly spicy bitterness, but they are there to balance, not to lead.
Fermentation with English ale yeast leaves fruity esters, and in an older bottle you get notes of sherry, leather and treacle as the beer slowly oxidises. That ageing is the point. A young British barley wine can taste hot and sweet; two or three years later it is often far more rounded.
Compared with the American take, it carries less bitterness and almost none of that citrus or pine. Drink it slowly, like a dessert wine, in a small glass that lets it warm a little in your hand.
Style profile
- Look
- Amber to deep copper or chestnut, clear to slightly hazy with age. A modest, creamy head that fades quickly.
- Aroma and flavour
- Bready malt, toffee, treacle and dried fruit such as raisin and plum. Earthy English hops in the background. Sherry and port notes develop with age.
- Mouthfeel
- Full, smooth and warming, with soft carbonation. A long, slightly sweet finish.
- Ingredients
- English pale malt such as Maris Otter, some crystal malt, sometimes brewing sugar. English hops like Fuggle and East Kent Goldings. A fruity English ale yeast.
In India
Strong, malty and made to be aged, a British barley wine is one of the few beers that can sit in an Indian cellar or cupboard, as long as that cupboard stays below about 18 °C. In most of the plains that means an air conditioned room or a wine fridge. It is a natural fit for the Christmas table in Goa, Kerala or Shillong, next to plum cake. Expect imported bottles or a rare brewpub batch rather than a regular local beer.
At the Indian table
Food pairings contributed by Anuradha Rao
- Kerala plum cakeRum soaked dried fruit and caramelised sugar mirror the raisin and toffee in the malt.
- Bandel cheeseThe smoke and salt of this Bengali cheese cut the sweetness and bring out the beer's nutty side.
- Mutton nihariA slow, rich, marrow heavy stew has the weight to match a full bodied strong ale.
- Kheer with dates and cardamomDate sweetness echoes the dark fruit, and cardamom lifts the earthy hops.
Brewed in India
We could not verify an Indian commercial version yet. Strong ales are rare here because excise is charged on alcohol and long ageing ties up tanks, so ask your brewpub about a winter one-off.
Want the long read? Barleywine