OHanlons Thomas Hardys Ale (vintage 2003 and later)

Brewed by OHanlons
Style: Barley Wine
Whimple, England

2007 vintage on December 31, 2007.
A beautiful beer with a nice color and a wonderful aroma of caramel and fruit. The flavour is fantastic, with a very pleasant sweetness and a strong, very good, bitterness. Taste is fruity, toffee, nougat, caramel and syrup and some leather-notes. The palate is wonderful. Very fullbodied, creamy, thick, almost oily... this one was my first barley wine ever and I was blown away with the first sip. Amazing. 9, 5, 9, 5, 19 - 4.7

2008 vintage on December 6, 2008.
Pours a copper color with a small white foamy head. Aroma of cherries, dried fruits, malt, caramel and toffee, a bit vinous too. Flavour is sweet and malty with a good bitterness... toffee, dried fruits, syrup, as I would describe it, some liquorice. Palate is very oily, creamy, thick, sticky. A very concentrated beer, which will improve with some age I think. I remember last years fresh version to be better though. 7, 3, 7, 4, 14=3,5.

2005 vintage at home on November 4, 2009.
Finally a real fair rating! Pours a redbrown color with no head, but it still looks nice. Aroma is vinous with dried fruits, raisins, toffee, port wine, burnt almonds, strawberries and alcohol. Flavour is very malty and sweet, there’s notes of burnt almonds, toffee, strawberries, dried fruits, sweet liquorice and port wine. Quite nice lingering bitterness in the finish with alcohol warmth. The carbonation is flat, but I like it (it’s a four year old bottle so...), the texture is smooth and the liquid feels rather thick. Fullbodied. Very, very nice!

No head.. minimal carbonation. Very nice color and body. Tons of flavor, nuttyness, lots of raisins, honey, caramel, oak and sugar cane. Very thick body, kind of like an aged wiskey. Slightly bitter finish with some alcohol.

11oz bottle from Bev Mo Carmel Mountain. Pours a hazed medium brown with pretty much no head. Nose was very sweet smelling with hints of caramel, honey, some oak and spice as well. very thick and syrupy mouth feel.

2007 vintage. Pours a deep murky brown. Absolutely no head at all. Aroma is spicy, with a bit of fruitiness, almost pearish. Flavor is a bit unexpected. Very bitter, no carbonation at all. More like drinking a thick cider than beer. Taste also seems a little salty, but has a nicer bitter finish. Overall, not particularly my style. Aroma was fantastic, but flavor/palate was a little too thick for my liking.

The Thomas Hardy has a dark, murky brown color to it, with not much head when poured. Had a slightly fruity aroma. Alcohol was also very prevalent here. The taste is a hard one to pin down. It had a powerful alcohol tinge, complemented by some fruit and sugars. It almost seemed a little overly complex for its own good. Overall, it’s a good beer, but it’s one I can respect more than love.

This ale poured a murky brown colour similar to sewage. The head was lacking and what there was, was soapy bubbles. To the nose there was scents of cider, ripe fruit, alcohol, cherries and brown sugar. First taste was smooth and warming. With flavours of over-ripe fruit, alcohol, wine and brown sugar. Finnish is warming and slightly bitter with apple sauce flavours lingering.

2006 vinatage. 25cl. Bottle 32955. It pours a hazy nut brown beer with a very small head. The nose is of walnuts, peaches and plums. Leafy, medicinal with hints of almonds, ripe apples, aniseed, caramel and elderberry. Some oats and oak in the aroma too. Full bodied with walnuts, licorice, aniseed, plums, butterscotch, peaches and tea. Medicinal. Very sweet with a lingering brown sugar character. Quite a lot of oats in the taste as well. Remarkable low carbonation. Very drinkable despite its high alcohol content. Nicely warming, slightly peppery with a sweet finish with hints of tea, butter, peaches, and aniseed accompanied by a reminiscent walnut touch.

Vintage 2004. P03337... Appears a dark, russett brown with crimson edges when held to the light. The mild, light tan head quickly fades out into a gentle fizz. No lacing is left around the glass. Smell is of light oxidation, nougat, caramel, vanilla, raisins, cherries, and notes of port wine. Taste is of rich raisins, oaky vanilla, caramel, tobacco, and cocoa remeniscent of tawny port. Mouthfeel is full bodied, sugary, chewy, sweet up front with a cocoa bite and tobacco swirling along the palate. Nice drinkability for 11.7% This is the perfect beer for cigar smoking. Complex and yummy treat.