Gales Conquest Ale Masterbrew

Formerly brewed at Gales
Style: Barley Wine
Horndean, England

Bottle. 2000 vintage. Poured a medium and cloudy orange color. Lots of floaters. Aromas of toffee, some dark fruits and caramel. So far, so good. Oxidized and past it prime. Couldn’t get past the off tastes and had to pour this one. Thin and flat body.

Thanks to hopdog. 2000 Bottle. Pours a hazy watery orange with tons of clumpy floaties and no head. Aroma of dark fruits, sweet malts, No carbonation, kind of a sweet maltiness and some dark fruits. Not so hot!

Bottle, July 2006. This beer was never sold in the UK, which was why I ended up picking up a few bottles in Asheville NC. Murky copper colour. There’s a little dried fruit but the beer is highly oxidised, woody and a bit cardboardy on the nose. Its also sweet and a bit sticky. Not undrinkable but the combination doesn’t work too well. tastes a lot older than it is. A second bottle, sampled in September was vinegary and completely gone, so I’ve ignored that for rating purposes.

275 ml bottle. The cork completely disintegrated upon trying to open this beer, leaving powdery remains in and on the bottle. Ugly muddy orange brown beer, completely still. Heavily oxidized with strong port/sherry notes all over it. Some brown sugar and sweet malt, with a kiss of toast and light plumminess. Flavour is quite thin, sweet but heavily oxidized with fairly strong acetic notes as well. Truthfully, this might have made a passable flanders red ale. Body is thin, peppery alcohol on the finish. Warming brings some fruity grapiness out. Still, it ain’t good.

Has an attractive coppery amber with light off white head. The nose is dominated by yeasty fruitiness and alcoholic fumes. The initial taste is yeasty fruits like apricots and peaches, a pronounced sherry-like vinous quality, and big fuming alcohol. The palate is syrupy and cloyingly sweet upfront, then breaks down into an alcoholic astringent ending. Just OK.

2001 vintage corked Bottle via my Secret Santa - Well I’ve never been a fan of English Style Barleywines except 1 and well this one didn’t join the good list.. Pours dark amber and hazy with absolutely no head at all. Aromas of raisins, prunes, honey, caramel, peach, and a bit of brandy. Flavor is pretty much straight up what the aroma was. Hardly any carbonation. Tastes quite flat and maybe a tad oxidized..

Last batch released: Golden-ruby in body with a very, very thin head, for in all practiceable purposes.. nonexistant. An aged mead type aroma, honey with some light citrus fruits. Body isn’t so meady, though similar qualities abound. Slightly sour ending. A VERY unique beer.

Vintage 2001. A hazy amber beer with a fast disapearing beige head. The aroma is sweet alcoholic with strong notes of peaches, while the flavor is oxydiced malt with strong fruit notes - the strongest being peaches and citrus.