There are plenty of beer styles that get their moment in the spotlight. IPAs have practically built an empire on their own, pastry stouts have turned dessert into a drinking experience, and fruited sours have convinced people that beer can taste like just about anything. But there’s another style that deserves a little more love, and it’s one that I’ve always had a particular fondness for: barleywine.

Enter #400 Barleywine from Boneshire Brew Works, a local Pennsylvania brewery that has put an 11% ABV heavyweight on the menu. This isn’t the kind of beer you casually knock back while mowing the lawn or watching the game. This is a beer that deserves some time, a comfortable chair, and perhaps a little reflection on why we got into craft beer in the first place.

And honestly, that’s part of the appeal.

#400 Barleywine by Boneshire Brew Works

The Beer: #400 Barleywine

Boneshire Brew Works, based in the Harrisburg area, has a place in Pennsylvania’s craft beer community, and #400 is an interesting entry for anyone who appreciates the bigger, malt-forward side of the beer spectrum.

Clocking in at 11% ABV, #400 is a substantial beer. Barleywines are known for their powerful malt character, rich flavors, and higher alcohol content, and this one certainly falls into the strong-beer category. The style can offer an assortment of flavors, from caramel, toffee, and dark fruit to molasses, toasted bread, and warming alcohol.

The important thing with a beer like this is balance. High alcohol can be impressive on paper, but a good barleywine needs more than a big number to make an impression. It needs depth, character, and enough complexity to make you want to take another sip.

And that’s what makes the style so fascinating. A barleywine isn’t simply a strong beer. At its best, it’s an experience that unfolds gradually, with the malt doing most of the talking.

Why I Love Barleywines

#400 Barleywine and Zelda and Theology — a great combination.(See Book Review: Zelda and Theology)

I’ll admit it: I have a soft spot for barleywines.

Craft beer is an enormous playground, and one of the best parts of being a beer enthusiast is getting to explore all the different styles, ingredients, brewing techniques, and flavor combinations that breweries bring to the table. But there is something about barleywine that keeps me coming back.

Maybe it’s the malt. Maybe it’s the complexity. Maybe it’s the fact that barleywines don’t always receive the same attention as the latest hazy IPA or the newest fruited sour. Whatever the reason, I think they’re among the most rewarding styles in the craft beer world.

A good barleywine has a certain heft to it. These are beers that can bring caramel, toffee, dark fruit, and warming alcohol together in a way that feels almost tailor-made for a cold evening. They can be sweet without being simple, boozy without being one-dimensional, and rich without needing to taste like a liquid chocolate cake.

And then there’s the patience involved.

Barleywines are often the kind of beers you want to slow down and appreciate. They’re not necessarily designed for speed drinking or for chasing whatever happens to be trending on social media this week. They’re beers that invite you to sit with them for a while.

I also appreciate the fact that barleywines can evolve with age. Depending on the beer, time can soften some of the sharper alcohol notes and allow flavors to meld together. Not every barleywine benefits equally from aging, of course, but the possibility adds another layer of interest to the style.

There’s something appealing about a beer that can be enjoyable now and potentially offer a different experience down the road.

For me, barleywines represent one of the things that makes craft beer so enjoyable: the opportunity to move beyond what’s popular and discover something with real character. They’re not always the easiest beers to find, and they’re certainly not everyone’s cup of tea—or pint of beer, as it were. But for those of us who appreciate a big, malt-forward brew, they can be tough to beat.

That’s why seeing a Pennsylvania brewery like Boneshire Brew Works put an 11% ABV barleywine out into the world is worth paying attention to.

Review

Boneshire Brew Works’ #400 and Kurt Vonnegut

The Final Pour

At 11% ABV, Boneshire Brew Works’ #400 Barleywine is a beer to approach with a little respect. It’s a reminder that the craft beer world extends well beyond the IPA arms race, and that there is still plenty of room for the traditional, malt-driven styles that helped make beer such an interesting beverage in the first place.

Barleywines might not generate the same buzz as the latest double dry-hopped release, but they offer something different: a chance to slow down, appreciate the ingredients, and enjoy a beer that doesn’t need to shout to get your attention.

And if you ask me, that’s reason enough to keep exploring the style.

Here’s to the barleywines, the big beers, and the breweries willing to give them a place on the tap list. Cheers!

Beer Details

• Beer: #400 Barleywine
• Brewery: Boneshire Brew Works
• Location: Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
• Style: Barleywine
• ABV: 11%
• Untappd rating: 4.66 (as of 10.25.25)

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