J.W. Lees Harvest Ale

Brewed by J.W. Lees
Style: Barley Wine
Middleton Junction, England

I did not like this beer. I guess I’m not a fan of barley wines because I hated this. Tastes like a beer-aged whiskey. Too strong.

Deep mahogany pour with a nice size light tan head, good duration and lacing. Aroma consists of nuts, agave, caramel, and floral notes. Palate is smooth, velvety, low carbonation and moderate warmth. Heavy cloying sweetness, lightly bitter, with flavors of raisin, strawberry, vanilla, pear, and caramel. Brewed to style as an english barley wine. Very vinous and port-like. Very nice.

2007 Bottle. Poured clear and dark copper with some viscosity to it. A short cap of white foam appeared. No lacing. The aroma was herbal, earthy hops over a ton of sticky sweet malts and some alcohol. The flavor was old hops, toffee, malts, iced tea and alcohol. Borderline full bodied mouthfeel and on the verge of cloying sweetness.

22nd August 2008. 2000 Vintage. Hazy brown beer. Strong malt with a very distinct marmite flavour - but sweet. Sticky sweet finish. Sumptuous palate. A little salt in the aftertaste.

Served from a 275 mL bottle that I picked up last time I was in Seattle. This is the 1999 vintage, 10 years old. The appearance is a rich deep copper with a small white head. The body is very clear and brilliant. The aromas are strong sherry at first and prune, toasted caramel, chocolate, and oak notes build a nice bouquet. The flavors follow the nose really well. The sherry or port flavors are excellent. A caramel chocolate combination builds with it with a touch of spiced oak. The mouth is really smooth with a nice creaminess. Excellent beer that could be aged even longer.

1999 vintage bottle... tasting sample on 11/5/09... dark red pour into a snifter... raisin, dark fruit aromas... big body full of more dark fruit and deep caramel malt flavors... some sherry notes... very port like... I need to pick up some bottles and have the full experience... a sample is not enough of this one.

275mL bottle, 1997 vintage, poured into a snifter. Pours an opaque dark brown with a small creamy off-white head that recedes slowly to a healthy collar and leaves some legs on the sides after each sip. The aroma is huge. It’s got the sweet caramel malts with tons of toffee and dark fruits as well. I get a bit of chocolate as well, especially as it warms and there is a pronounced sherry character in the nose overall. Boozy and powerful nose. The taste is much of the same and maybe bigger. The underlying caramel malt backbone is still dominant with lots of sweet booze-soaked fruits, raisins and plums especially. Molasses, caramel, chocolate, just tons of flavors on the palate. Tough to exaggerate how wonderful this taste is. The mouthfeel is medium to full-bodied and very smooth with a perfectly soft carbonation. The alcohol does start to burn a bit, but it’s not overly distracting. I’ve been sitting on this bottle for a while and was worried it might be headed downhill. As far as I can tell, this one has never been better. Complex, rich, smooth...exceptional beer.

1999 bottle from K&L Redwood City. Pours hazy chestnut brown with a small off-white head. Aroma is very nice, dominated by sweet caramel malt and toffee, along with spices, wood, fruity notes, and sherry. Flavor is very sweet, with caramel and toffee, quite a bit of sherry-like oxidation, port wine, wood, spice, and raisin. People may disagree, but I definitely think 10 years of age is a little too much for this one. A little too oxidized, but still very good. Palate is very smooth and creamy with medium-full body. Drinkability average.