December 30th, 2014
31 Beers of December – Day 29: Sebago Barleywine
@SebagoBrewing @ActiveBeerGeek
To celebrate the Holiday Season, we have teamed up with beer bloggers and craft beer enthusiasts around the country to host the fourth annual beer bloggers advent calendar. This is the season of sharing and we intend to share our love of beer with you.
During the 31 days of December, we will be sharing our favorite regional/winter seasonals/holiday beers with the help from our fellow beer bloggers. We hope that you tune in every day, to hear our stories and share our holiday cheer.
Sebago Single Batch Series Barleywine 2013
Blogger: Benjamin Moore
Website: http://www.activebeergeek.com/
Twitter / Facebook / Instagram: @ActiveBeerGeek / http://facebook.com/ActiveBeerGeek / http://instagram.com/ActiveBeerGeek
Beer: Sebago Barleywine 2013
Brewery: Sebago Brewing Company. Locations in Portland, Kennebunk, Gorham, and Scarborough
Website: http://sebagobrewing.com/
Twitter: @SebagoBrewing
Beer Details:
– Style: Barleywine
– ABV: 11%
Commercial Description:
Our highest rated single batch beer three years running, Barlywine is a magnificent twist on a traditional brewing process. Best enjoyed during a celebratory meal of roast turkey or pork, tart cranberry, blue cheeses and fig. Also makes a great after dinner treat.
Why I selected Sebago Barleywine:
Sebago Brewing Company is an ever evolving brewery. They started out as a brewpub in 1998 and have evolved into the powerhouse they are today. Sebago has always brewed very approachable beers that appealed to a broad audience. Just over a year ago they changed their branding to what was designed as something to never leave the brewpub to a something more simple and modern, all while keeping the broad spectrum approachability of their beer.
Since changing their branding they started to create a few new seasonal beers. The first new seasonal brew was a rye pale ale called Bonfire Rye, an uber hopped rye ale that packed lots of aroma and flavor with a great malt backbone. It was way different than most beers that Sebago has done in the past. It was also the start of a new image they’ve carefully cultivated.
The two other beers were Simmer Down summer session ale and Bump black ale. These beers were a much different approach to what Sebago Brewing Company has done in the past for their beers. A session ale that weighed in just under 5% ABV and still packed a bunch of flavor is something you could only find in their Saddleback Ale. The Simmer Down was a much different juicy flavor that was a perfect summertime beer. The Bump black ale was no different with it’s subtle chocolate and coffee flavors while still being clean and dry finish.
Enough talk about Sebago’s new seasonals! Let’s talk about the beer that I wrote this article about, The Barleywine! This is beer is aged for a year in bourbon barrels and then released to the public around Thanksgiving time every year. Every year the barleywine gets better and better. I kept a bottle of the 2013 around for a year and opened it for this article. It’s a beer that can definitely stand to age a few years very well. The new 2014 vs the 2013 aged was a splendid comparison. The aged version has sprouted some wonderful sweet and bourbon tasting notes. I would almost love to see a vertical tasting of a few sequentially years worth of this beer.
Sebago has not only wowed me with their barleywine lately. They’ve been on a roll with some delicious single batch beers. They’ve decided to brew a small series of pale ales with only one hop used. The first was these were the the Mosaic Pale Ale and currently they are pouring the Galaxy Pale Ale at brewpub locations only. These are a great way to dive into some awesome flavor characteristics of a single hop.
Sebago’s brewpub locations are a great balance of family atmosphere meets craft beer. You can bring the family to to any one of their locations and geek out about the beers they have on tap. Sebago Brewing Company is distributed in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Vermont, Connecticut, and Rhode Island.
About the Active Beer Geek:
Benjamin Moore is a craft beer blogger based in Southern Maine, his blog Active Beer Geek is dedicated to craft beer and fitness. Ben is a communications student at USM and VP of USM Enactus, Host of #BeerChat every Thursday night at 9pm EST on Twitter, a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, long distance running, kilt wearing member of the Novare Res Uprising.
About Sebago Brewing Co:
We poured our first, freshly brewed beer at the original Sebago Brewing Company brewpub in 1998. Craft beer in Maine was on the rise and we were three guys who wanted to build a great place to work and hang out. Four brewpubs and one brewery later, we are honored to be a local Maine favorite, known for our commitment to community, awesome staff, and creative craft beer and food. Wherever you’re enjoying Sebago beer, our goal is to make sure you are having the best experience possible. That is our commitment to you and our commitment to craft beer.
Visit the brewery online at http://sebagobrewing.com/