Lucky Bucket Barley-wine

As with the Left Hand Ambidextrous Ale, this is a beer that perplexes me with it's anonymity. At the time I ordered and received the keg, there was no information to be found anywhere. No reviews online, nothing on their website. Eventually, I found it on untappd, so people are out there drinking it, but no one is writing about it. Are there no BeerAdvocates of RateBeerians in Omaha? Or does no one care, at all? It sat in the cooler for months, until Imperial March, and now it's back on, so I'm sitting down with a glass of it, and yet, all this time later, still no reviews! It is actually listed on RateBeer, with no ratings, and this information: COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
A whopping 10% ABV this darkly malted monster will be good for years to come, but you can enjoy now. A meeting of the malt minds Nebraska stopover : from the West coast where we hop it up, to the U.K where the style is born, Zac’s genius pins the beer, and whorls the styles, in a balanced display of layered malt, and robust rich grain sweetness balanced by hops and culminating in a very drinkable high octane beer.

Still, no rating, and they are not a stingy bunch. But then, they don't do a ton of ratings at a bars, and I believe this is a draft-only release. Nonetheless, I suppose I should be the first to write about it, shouldn't I? Away, we go!

Deep  crimson coloring, under a solid, off-white slab of froth. Looks great, so far. 

Aroma: sweetness and hops, rich malt, but nothing too huge or hot, and I'm getting glimpses of the flavors I find in the biggest and baddest barley-wines, but here they are fairly muffled. Red wine, cognac, dark fruit, wood, leather. 

Taste: thick malty flavor floods the mouth...to a point. This should be a common refrain in any deep analysis of this brew. Has this flavor...to a point. Delivers that feeling...to a point. It's no monster, no kin to Bigfoot, only a little brother of baby cousin, or something. "How about if we made a dainty li'l barley-wine", they seem to be saying.  Hops are here, alcohol is, and malt is definitely working it, but the pursuit of balance and drinkability hobbles this effort some. 

A surprisingly smooth barley-wine, and drinkable despite the 10%. Unfortunately, it's meekness makes it rather forgettable. Very clean, flagged with the classic flavors, but unremarkable. Not likely to impress anyone. 

But, hey, it's beer, and you can drink it!