Next Thursday the Cambridge Brewing Company is putting on a Barleywine Festival. Ten of brewmaster Will Meyers’ barleywines will be available, two on cask. The brews are different vintages and expressions of the Arquebus and Blunderbuss barleywines. They will also have a tapas menu paired to the beers including such intriguing delights as coffee rubbed lamb lollipops and pomegranate marinated quail.

So that’s the festival part of it, but what about the barleywine part? Why is something called wine being made at a brewing company? As you’ve already guessed, barleywine is actually a beer, hence the barley part. And it’s a strong beer, you can bet your sweet patootie. In fact, the wine part of the name comes from the fact that it can be as strong as wine, the abv generally landing somewhere between 8 and 13%. You can also cellar it like wine. Needless to say this is a sipping beer. Taste-wise, the range is pretty wide. While often fruity and sweet, they can also be bittersweet and hoppy. The American style barleywine is more apt to be on the hoppy side; English styles are often more balanced between malt and hops.

If these strong, intense beers sound interesting, go to the CBC on Thursday, January 28; they know what they’re doing over there. The event starts at 5pm and goes until close, but these fests always fill up fast and they’re not taking reservations, so beware. For more information on the history of barleywines, check out BeerAdvocate.

Photo courtesy tswicegood on Flickr using Creative Commons License.

Filed in Food and tagged barleywine, beer, cambrige brewing company, drinking in boston

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