When he was with nearby Fort George Brewing, Obelisk cofounder David Coyne blended barrel-aged versions of both barleywine and imperial stout styles to create an unusually dark beer called Reclusa for the 19th anniversary of Seattle’s Bottleworks shop. At 13 percent ABV, Reclusa had notes of toasted nuts, vanilla, dark chocolate, and caramel.
More recently, Coyne has been thinking about intentionally brewing a hybrid without needing to blend components. This recipe offers a glimpse of his approach on ingredients and process.
“This is an untested recipe, but based on successful cousins of the style,” Coyne says. “This black barleywine will be full of toffee, dates, heavily toasted bread, tootsie rolls, and just a touch of light chocolate and roasted coffee flavor.”
All-Grain
Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters)
Brewhouse efficiency: 72%
OG: 1.129
FG: 1.046
IBUs: 35
ABV: 12.8%
