OHanlons Thomas Hardys Ale (vintage 2003 and later)

Brewed by OHanlons
Style: Barley Wine
Whimple, England

Bottle, Rainhall Drinks, Barnoldswick. 2008 edition. How on earth did I let this wee gem slip through the net ? What a cracker. Poured a deep mahogany colour, with a fading tan head. Superb aroma. Caramel malts, a plethora of fruits, booze, vanilla, leather, cherry, molasses, something new revealed itself with every sniff. Rich, creamy mouthfeel. Slightly sweet, but never cloying. Flavour was malt heavy, with dark sweet fruit, brown sugar and toffee all blending seamlessly. The abv was supremely well masked. Fnished sweet, but perfectly poised. Got to have more !!

07 vintage bottle q22371: poured dead flat and murky orange brown. aroma of malt and high alcohol/sherry/whisky palate dominated by high alcohol on roof of mouth which dissapates quickly. as glass warmed, began to taste strong spicy orange marmalade flavours

Bottle my #1800 rating: Poured a reddish-orange brown with no head. Aroma is wine, fruit, and malt. Taste has that aged wine to it, but there is soft caramel malts that keep the alcohol at bay. Maybe a strong youngen, but as it was a 2007 its mellow bottle aged effect was tasty.

Bottle from Cracked Kettle. Amber body with no head whatsoever. Nice malty and toffee nose. Strong syrupy taste with toffee and malts going through. Heavy on the alcohol flavour.

It’s hard to believe this brew is made by hte same people that make ohanlans. no disrespect, but this ale is far superior to what i have tasted previously from them. this is truly a barley wine, and not just an ale styled after it. no carbonation, no head - it’s like a mead, but dark, fruity, sweet, and oaky. the nose resembles botrytis in a way - pushing the idea of the overripe apricots and heavy molasses, both on the nose as well as the palate. I can see a slight allusion to cognac, as faint aromas from my snifter are of candied apples melted down by smores. this is a rockin body of brew. the finish sustains for quite a while, and resembles that of a vintage port. So, in summary - take a port, an icewine, an xo cognac/armagnac, and your grandmother’s molasses; smash them together, and you’ll have an idea of what this embodies. 2007; rock steady.

250ml bottle from the LCBO Pours a reddish brown with NO head or lacing at all no carbonation The aroma is Dark fruit and toffee and strong malts The taste is rich and strong a touch of alcohol shows through its slightly syrupy very nice rich fruity

2007 vintage from Willow Bend Liquors (Tampa, FL). Pours a hazy dark caramal amber color with no head. Aroma is intoxicating -- luscious ripe dark fruit, caramel, honey, toffee, deep malt, raisins, sugar plums, figs, brown sugar, and many other aromas as well. A complex nose for sure. Flavor is much of the same -- complex notes of ripe dark fruits, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, figs, raisins. Generally syrupy mouthfeel with a sweet, malty and slightly alcohol finish. Alcohol seems to be well hidden.

2008 vintage, tasted so early to compare with later on. Pours a deep red with a thin lingering beige head. Aroma is enormous right out of the bottle. Dark fruit, brown sugar, alcohol in the nose. The body is syrupy thick and smooth as can be. Sugary sweet flavor, but also a little hoppy bitterness. Raisins, and pleanty of zip from the alcohol. A very keen malt backbone. The most prominent feature of the flavor at this point is its power; it is really strong. I can’t wait to taste this in a few years, or even later than that, but I guess I will have to. Very good even at this point. 2005 vintage. Pours a dark, unclear brownish with a little light coming through. Nose is more muted, with heavy dark fruit and port coming through. Some sour notes, but not in a spoiled kind of way. Flavor is totally transformed from the fresh 2008. Chocolate, figs, and a darker malt backbone than before, The alcohol has dropped into the background, but is still quite warm going down. Thick, creamy palate, perfectly smooth with mild carbonation. Very interesting beer, unlike anything I have ever had, but it still has a lot of transforming to do. This time around, A-8, A-4, F-9, P-5, O-18: 4.4.