Some have accused DDB of market manipulation with regards to the recent glut of barleywine fanfare.  I don’t know what this shitty tirefire of a wordpress site could stand to gain by promoting barleybangers at large, but, there’s still dipshits who believe in flat earth theories so who knows. Rule 34 everything.

So we all know that Superstition has been ticking away in their sunbleached Arizona hive, existing as the other counterpole to Schramm’s north of the wall.  The mead world is controlled and dictated essentially by the axis of these two apiary forces.  WHAT IS THIS DONT DRINK BEES DOT COM. So here we have an Umbrella Corp. project where a massive barleywine supersolider was racked for 6 months in a Superstition Meadery Endovelicus barrel.  Alright so we have American BW residual hops and its supposed to integrate with some fucking honey and raspberry? Let’s see.

Alright at the outset, the body is not some viscous monster.  It doesn’t have crazy syrup legs and the carb is spot on, so we know Kuhnhenn had nothing to do with this. It also isn’t dainty and swinging an epee on the balls of its feet either.  The nose is layered like corkboard, you gotta peel that shit back like a Grand’s biscuit.  I would use the term “dimensions” but all the purple toothed kids on mead subs would slurpily guffaw and grasp for their inhalers.

It’s hops above all else at the outset and a toasted american oak profile with residual bitterness like almond skin and crushed walnuts.  The fruit profile is a captivating supporting role and it never hits a jammy stride but the tannic structure reminds me of a cherry cordial or Strawberry Quik.  The taste hits a middle ground for both and it kinda reminds me of a fruited version of Gratitude, were such a thing to exist.  It isn’t heavy or tank class, but it is not exactly some poised delicate flower either.  The whole thing is a bizarre melding of flavor profiles between fruit and bitter, chocolate and leather, dry oaky Malbec and cocoa.  It’s like when you go to a buffet and don’t know what you want and your jello salad is running into your soft serve is running into your goldfish crackers, but you’re at Sizzler and $11.99 is $11.99 amirite.

I easily finished the bottle and then the bottle finished me.  So who saved who?  People who love barleywine will lament the hop forward aspects attendant to the dyed in the wool american aspects and people who love mead will, I don’t know probably complaint to their Manga pillow how it wasn’t sweet enough or didn’t have enough fruit or how clarinet reeds are too expensive these days. I don’t know what mead people are into, most of them are one step away from drinking the undiluted soda syrup concentrate straight from the box.

This is good and highly sought out and I see this being a polarizing beverage that I personally really enjoyed. Go push a yellowjacket up your urethra, there’s no time.