Portal:Beer/Selected article/16
Barley wine is a style of strong ale originating in England in the nineteenth century, but now brewed worldwide. The term was originally coined around 1900 by Bass to refer to their No. 1 Ale. It is the strongest member of the bitter family of styles, and is similar to the tripel styles of abbey beers and Trappist beers.
It typically reaches an alcohol strength of 8–12% abv and is brewed from specific gravities as high as 1.120. Their natural sweetness is usually balanced with a degree of hoppy bitterness. Most barley wines range in colour from ambers to deep reddish-browns.
It is called a barley wine because it can be as strong as wine; but since it is made from grain rather than fruit, it is in fact a beer. In the United States barley wines are required for this reason to be called "barley wine-style ales." This is taken by some to imply that they are not truly barley wines; in fact it only means that they, like any barley wines, are not truly wines. (Full article...)