Thornbridge Alliance PX Reserve 2007

Brewed by Thornbridge
Style: Barley Wine
Bakewell, England

@Tampa Wkly Gathering-500ml bottle–Thanks Ibrew2or3-pours an off white head that laces and amber color. Aroma is herbal/spice hops, medium malt. Taste is herbal/spice hops, medium malt-peat. OK effervescence.

375 ml bottle. Misty brown with a lacy white head. Nose is musty oak, lemon and toffee. Lingering a bit some sherry peeks out. Smooth, medium light with a mild tingle. Taste is caramel, a touch of sour cherry and wood. Dry finish with sherry and tobacco. Well constructed brew lacking some depth of flavor.

Bottle courtesy of the magnificent madmitch76. Thank you sir. 375mL bottle pours clear copper with frothy off white head. This is a good looking beer. The aroma has boozy seemingly whiskey notes moving into mild oak and vanilla. I also get aromatic hints toward dark fruity esters deep in the background before the heat of the draw finally takes over. The taste has a fruit apricot note first then moves into booze resembling dry sherry or somehow whiskey and a sense of oak and vanilla. It ends a bit boozy and dry and could use several more years of age to mellow out a bit more.

Pours a red brown. Nose is some oxidation, sweet malts, wood, booze. Flavor is oak, sherry, vinousness, some spicy wood, cocoa, sweet fruity malt and alcohol.

bottle #621, courtesy of ibrew2or3. Pours a nice cloudy amber, white head. Aroma is malty, sherry barrel. Flavor, grainy, sweet, some yeast, sherry fruits/barrel, some lingering bitterness to be noted and warming abv towards the finish.

A Mes rate. Bottle from the Bottle Stop.
An inviting looking hazy amber brown with a thin but stable off white head. This is bloody excellent. Lots of vintage sherry and port notes. Big fruity malt and a little marzipan along with some faint leather and wood. Absolutely magnificent in the mouth. You can tell it has balls of steel but it’s all so polite and elegant. Stunning spicy notes, perfect barrelly chewiness. My god this is impressive. All this said, it still feels like it has more to give. I think I have another one of these tucked away somewhere. I hope I do because in years to come it’s going to be unbelievable. Mouthfeel is just perfect. My giddy aunt Thornbridge, you really should make more of this. A truly epic burnt wood, spice and burly malt finalé brings the house down with no trouble at all. Bravo Thornbridge! Encore!

Bottle. [thank you, madmitch76]
Pours an impresseive, clear, red-orange amber with a big, staying, creamy, slightly off-white head. Aroma has sweet toffee, caramel, oak, clear sherry notes, light vinious, some oranges and peach. Low to medium carbonation, lovely oily mouthfeel. Flavour is vinoius, but extremely well-balanced. Lots of oaky caramel, some of this peach notes, sweet, quite bitter as well. Clearly affected (positively) by the barrel. Just a hint of milky chocolate in there. Nice!

Bottle 375ml.
Light unclear medium orange amber color with a average, frothy, good lacing, mostly lasting, off-white head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, caramel, cask wood - sherry, resin, alcohol. Flavor is heavy sweet and moderate to heavy bitter with a long duration. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft, finish feel is moderate alcoholic. [20090724]