OHanlons Thomas Hardys Ale (vintage 2003 and later)

Brewed by OHanlons
Style: Barley Wine
Whimple, England

Taken tragically young. Murky chestnut pour hissing insistently with beige at 11.7%. Not crying, but certainly snivelling faintly to itself. Aroma dribble-making chewy vine fruit steeped in brandy, vanilla, orange rind, fat humming yeastiness, fresh leather, creaking old tun, musty hops, Twiglet, marzipan, walnut. Opens with a soapy sweetness and a gnaw of citrus (hops+house yeast) I’ve never tasted in a barley wine this big. Fat but agile, with heady orange-accented fruitiness (rind), spiced teabag, fruit loaf, Marmite on wholemeal, a swill of clove, overripe plum and nectarine fruit, fallen apples left mouldering in the English summer rain for a few months, toffee, malt whiskeyish oak, a bit more citrus, the occasional splash of raw spirituous booze glowing all the way down. The fruit in this beer is what really smacks me in the face, and it’s plummy and pithy as much as it is shrivelled and curranty. Age would undoubtedly soften out the edges, but this is already a big, mellow, mildly hallucinatory sipper. Class A caramel softness and hop-derived tang in dangerous equilibrium. Wicked.

2005 Vintage into wine glass. Wonderful deep ruby red with an off-white head that stayed for the duration of the glass. Deep caramel, vinous, nutty, raisons, and though subdued, earthy hops blend together for an excellent aroma. Sweet caramel beginning with red wine hints, but the caramel stays throughout mixing with nuts and an earthy flavor, with a sweet and grassy finish. Lower carbonation, full bodied, heavy on the tongue, sticky. Though you can feel the alcohol, this one makes for an excellant sipper, worthy of keeping around for any special occasion.

Pours an amber brown with a very thin head. Aroma of sweet fruit, cherry. Alcohol is still strong. Nice sweetness, I like it.

Bottle. 2004, deep red pour with a small head that didnt last long. Smell of strong alcohole and malt, but also some sweet fruit mixed in. Tastes is quite harse of fruit and malt. Lots of alcohol. I want to try it when it is much older.

2006 bottle, I didn’t have the patience to store it for a decade. Very deep mahogany, no head. thick full bodied old ale or barley wine. very similar to finnish Sahti, but not as fresh. quite strong alcohol. Comparable to Finlandia Sahti -Strong.

Pours deep red with the slightest white head around the edge. The aroma does have a winy edge, but I also get toffee, cherry, and alcohol. Very fruity, and already showing some oxidation. Warm finish. Very full bodied. Sweet finish. Not much carbonation noticed. I suppose you have to try it young to appreciate it grown up.

2006 bottle. No head, deep mahogany color. Beautiful aroma reminiscent of full-bodied red wines, with a slight background of rubbing alcohol. The mouthfeel is reminiscent of port wine, with the flavor carrying stewed plums, sweet juicy malts and warming notes of alcohol. Fairly sweet, but not cloying. Surprisingly good for such a young bottle. I have several stowed away, so I’ll have to rerate in ...23 years?

2007 bottle, from Waitrose in Witney. Pours the honest color of well-worn leather. Decorated with a scattering of translucent bubbles. Rich mature fruitcake aroma walnuts, figs, brandy-soaked raisins, buttered pastry. An aroma that evokes libraries of ancient books, autumn sunshine filtered through orchard leaves, crackling oak fires, well-taken-care-of horse tack. Flavors are rich dried fruit and silky caramel, vanilla, buttery rum. Generous pleasing sweetness that gracefully bows out before overstaying its welcome, finishing with just a whisper of earthy hops. Very soft for being more than 11% and fairly young. Subtle and lovely.