AN ARCHIVAL TREASURE: CLIPPER CITY BARLEY WINE 2007
Clipper City Below Decks Dry Hopped Barley Wine Abv 10
In 2007 the brewery now trading as Heavy Seas was still calling itself Clipper City. The “brand” might not have been as strong as it is today, but of the beers the beers certainly were. Hugh Sisson, the captain of the vessel since its founding, has been behind the production of some of the best beers in the east for many years. One of our few objections is that he gives his beers names that are very long and not very descriptive of the beer. We’ve mis-ordered a Clipper City/Heavy Seas beer more than once in the last ten years. The upside is that even if it’s not what you expect, the brewery rarely brews something you’re not happy to get.
Clipper City/Heavy Seas has been a regular participant at the Brickskeller Tasting series (now held at RFD) since the founding of the brewery. We had a chance to taste this gem at the RFD Holiday tasting in 2007. It won a silver medal at the 2007 Maryland Brewer’s Association Governor’s Cup competition for good reason.
Tasting notes: Qualifies as a British style barley wine largely because of the hops which were far more spicy than citrusy. A big muscular roast is even more important than the hops. Still, few British brewers included this sort of hop wallop until much more recent times.
Food Pairings: It could indeed be used in place of wine – barleywines were created to replace Clarets. Clarets were lighter and more golden then than they are now, but then again, this barleywine is probably bigger than the barleywines of the 18th century. You’d need a dish with depth to match well. I’d love to try this beer or one like it with a venison cottage pie. Review #0081 20170309
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