Bell's Batch 6000

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Shared 355 ml bottle at local tasting. Very dark brown colour, low tan head. Intense aroma of molasses and oak. Very sweet flavour, loads of molasses, alcohol and oak, some bitterness. Impressive, but not really my cup of tea.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 5

Aroma - I have to believe that this bottle may have been stored in less than ideal conditions, as the oxidation seemed to take it’s toll. Oozing wet cardboard, light fig notes, caramel and a herbal quality all kind of trumped by the over-done oxidation.

Appearance - solid caramel brown body, cloudy with a smaller 1/8" scant off-white head.

Taste - cardboard, caramel malts, light alcohol, spice, kinda medicinal actually. Sweetness is kept well in check but the oxidation, again, seems to leave it’s unwelcome mark.

Palate - medium bodied, slight thickness to it, rather creamy with a medium sweet finish

Overall - I think that this one was kept in an environment not suitable for aging. I highly doubt I’ll ever cross paths with this beer again, but if I do then a re-rate will be forthcoming. It wasn’t horrible, but it was far from stellar.

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

Bottle courtesy of the most kind and generous Slob. Wasn't sure what style this one was and upon opening initially thought, eh, smells like a dIPA, not sure I'm in the mood (oops, should read before opening). A few more whiffs persuaded me toward a barleywine, and I was much more interested. The bottle was in stellar condition, strong phsstt upon opening, great carbonation revelaed after the pour, remaining long afterwards, leaving a nice half finger head that thinned to a covering, yet all the way down coating the glass walls, nice wavy rings around the glass, off-white tannish color. The aroma was rich, maple-like at first (said, uh oh, too old?), but quickliy picking up pine and even some grapefruits with tobacco, cherries, and grapes behind it all, one of those strong American Barleywines stirring underneath it all. Flavor was malty assertive, all sorts of light and dark fruits there, caramel, oak or some wood and toasted notes, molasses,and whamo strong hops still in the finish. How old is this sucker I wonder, the hops must have been killer when fresh, as they've held up quite well, very firm, lots of zing on the tongue, even if the malt is more at a balanced level now? Mouthfeel is full bodied, starting slightly sticky, yet kept sharp and tingly with those hops. A very nice take on the style, couldn't imagine what a vertical of this one would be like. Bert, my friend, a great big thanks for this wonderful treat!

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 9

Mmmmm...deep chocolate color topped by a toasted-meringue head. Nose was that of well-prepared-and-aged holiday fruitcake. Smooth and creamy, mouthfeel was akin to full-bodied eggnog. Warming; finish is slightly_alcoholic, resulting in a strong desire for another.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

It's a bit funny, but I managed to sample this twice in the same weekend while in Atlanta. Deep brown with a splash of ruby. It's very hoppy, but it's hoppy more on the bittering end than on the aroma end. There's a bit of barley wine fruit going on and I keep picking up something that makes me think of smoke. It's not strong smoke so if it was intentional, it's subtle. The finish is a lingering bitterness from the hops. It should age nicely.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 8

A medium sized head appears atop this chestnut brown brew. Nose is throwing all kinds of things at me squaw bread, raisins and over ripe plums.Medium full body with a flavor that is reminiscent of Raison d Etre. Full malty front with a sweetness cutting through. Alcohol is evident in the finish.

Aroma: 9 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 10 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

Having had this three times in the span of a few months (samples courtesy of Joe and my bud Richard), you would think that I would have a fairly firm handle on what this beer is all about. Far from it, I'm happy to announce. Rather, with the beer's already excellent characteristics, it's been quite a treat to sample this normally hard-to-find beer over a period time, picking out new and interesting nuances as it ages. A beer worthy of cellaring, if ever there was one!

But certian things have remained consitent, though. Lively appearence, warming and slightly vinious mouthfeel, aggressive hopping to counteract the sizable malt-bill, and the overall nicely pleasant and fulfilling expierence that this beer provides.

Certianly a winner of a beer, that really could stand in quite well as Bell's "standard" Barleywine, IMO. Recommended.
//TB

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Dark brown color. Medium sized head. Aroma is malty, caramel and earthy. A touch floral as well. A medium to full bodied barley wine. Malts are caramel, chocolate and earthy. Big citrusy and grapefruity hops, not a lot of bitterness. A big bad barley wine, but not over the top. It has an amazing balance between the sweet malts and the citrusy hops. Only a slightly trace of the 10.5 % alcohol. VERY nice beer. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly bitter with a touch of alcohol bite.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

Opaque dark brown with red notes and a pale yellow-ish white head, batch 6000 greets you with a nice malty nose. The flavor is strong and malty up front with some bite and saltiness at the back end. different

Aroma: 10 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 10 | Overall: 10

very dark reddish-brown colour, little foam, strong aroma of plums and caramel with notes of licorice and alcohol, full-bodied, sweet and very oily, very bitter, the finish is very long and dry with alcohol and fruity notes and a deep floral hoppiness - a powerful and greatly balanced mixture