De Molen Bommen & Granaten

Now it’s time to review one of my favorite styles: barleywines.  I actually had a couple of these over the summer when I went back home, particularly ones that I had bought at home but didn’t get to in time before I moved out here.  With barleywines, this usually isn’t an issue; most barleywines won’t change much even with a whole year on them.  Many people like to keep them around for years (me included).

I had only had this particular beer for a few months, but the bottle was actually about two years old when I had it in July (it was bottled in August 2011).  The beer is Bommen & Granaten by De Molen from the Netherlands.

I’ll keep this short, as I’ve never had this fresh; I can’t say how it has changed.  It doesn’t taste like a beer that has fallen apart with age though.  The aroma is appetizing but one dimensional.  It smells like caramel-covered raisins, a pretty good sign the beer is starting to pleasantly oxidate.  The flavor is definitely better, though I would not say outstanding.  Alcohol flavors are mild when compared to the actual strength of the beer, which is around 15.2%.  In addition to the caramel and raisins I smelled I also get notes of honey, cherries and a strange note of leather.  If this sounds sweet, that’s because it is.  The one fruit fly in my house managed to smell the beer and I spent the next hour swatting him away from my glass (he was persistent, but unsuccessful).   It’s predictably thick for such a strong and sweet beer, though I expected that.

I think that was my shortest review ever.  It’s not an amazing or particularly unique beer, but Bommen & Granaten is a solid representation of an English barleywine.  I am curious what it tasted like when it was younger.