OHanlons Thomas Hardys Ale (vintage 2003 and later)

Brewed by OHanlons
Style: Barley Wine
Whimple, England

2008 vintage, 250 ml bottle. Pour is a orange-brown very syrupy looking, no head and no lacing. The aroma is full of cherries, rich malts and alcohol, a tiny bit sour at a first sniff. The mouthfeel is very full and very lasting. Taste is fruits a bit of apple and cherry with the alcohol that doesnt sting but gives a pleasant warm feeling.

Bottle split with Pat. Pours a dark, hazy reddish brown body with no head. Syrupy consistency. The Aroma is dark fruit - prune, raisin, and a sharp scent of alcohol. The taste actually hides the alcohol extremely well. It’s very smooth with some fruity notes of flavor.

Pours a brownish orange with a small head. Aroma is lots of dark fruit, brown sugar, raisins, and caramel. Flavor is rich malt, booze, dark fruit, with a bit of sour apple.

thanks to boamr, who gifted me a bottle of 2005 vintage, pour looked like a glass of coke, same color, big head that faded away to nothing pretty quickly. smells were strong of caramel and fig, a little spice and a little of either cherry or bourbon (guess is cherry since this isnt barrel aged)...flavor was sweet, alot of caramel, fig and chocolate bringing up the rear, very nicely balanced, nothing bitter or hot at the end...we drank an angels share earlier in the night, and to be honest, i would rather be drinking this.

rich brown, small head. sediment. sour aroma with a prickle. hops and a little caramel. f - sweet and sour. similar to chocolate covered cherries. soft up front and prickly hot and the end. rich bittersweet chocolate. some spice, cinnamon, pepper. lots of musty wood. syrupy. i dont really like chocolate covered cherries.

12 oz bottle courtesy of secret santa. Thanks Rudy. 2006 vintage. Pours a muddy orange-brown with only the smallest trace of a head, no lacing. The aroma is strong with dark fruits; raisins, dates, plums and spiced molasses(Very nice nose!). The flavor is not as appealing as the aroma, it is sweet with more dark fruits, spice and some burnt brown sugar. The taste is lacking the flavor complexities foreshadowed in the aroma. The palate is rich and malty with very light carbonation. The finish is medium in duration with lingering candied raisins. A very nice concoction, but not my fav barley wine.

On Cask @ The Rake London. A little hazy beige/coppar colored beer, with a small beige head. The aroma of porto, overripe fruits, coffee candy. The taste has malts, hints of porto, fruits. There is sweet and some bitter. It’s viscous thick. The aftertaste is bitter and some sweet, with some spices and notes of porto.
Earlier Rating: 3/30/2009 Total Score: 3.9
Bottle 2007, nr 22019. A hazy red/brown colored beer. It has almost no head. There are a lot of aroma’s, fruits, coffee candy, sweets and a little roasted malt. The taste is spicey, pepery with coffee candy. There are notes of alcohol and fruits like apricots. The aftertaste is warm spicey and some sweet bitter. Later on there are notes of port.

2006 bottle bought from a liquor store in early 2009. Aroma is molasses, oak, and smoke. Flavor is extremely sweet with a touch of bitterness, but not hop bitterness. Hardly any carbonation and absolutely no head. Alright, but didn’t blow me away.