So after a busy day of multiple business meetings (hey, I don't just write about beer you know) I got to pay a visit to Against The Grain for my final meeting of the day, a planning meeting for the LIBA Brewfest this summer. I was determined while I was there to enjoy a brew, and boy did I ever! I asked the server to bring me a glass of their new Whim beer - London Balling English style barleywine.
I'm not even going to beat around the bush about how good I thought this beer was. It attacks you, YES attacks you, with a delicious malty-sweet aroma and taste. I loved the flavor brought on by the caramel malts, and even at 12.5% ABV you don't taste the alcohol. Clocking in on the hop richter scale at 80 IBUs you would expect to catch more of that bitterness, but the fellas at Against The Grain did an amazing job of balancing this beer. The real kicker...they aged London Balling for almost 3 months in Angel's Envy bourbon barrels to provide a little extra kick, some aromatics and oak notes, and they tapped an excellent English Barleywine as a result of their efforts.
If you're familiar with how Against The Grain works then you know that this beer won't be around long. If you're not familiar with how they work - they brew a beer once, and once it's gone they replace it with something different; so if you are even remotely interested in this style then I suggest you get down there ASAP because it will not be around long.
I'm not even going to try and be funny this week...I'd appreciate it if you guys would follow Lville Beer on Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and yes, even Pinterest. Tell you friends, tell your family, tell a stranger...lets grow this beer community.
