Harveys Elizabethan Ale

Brewed by Harveys
Style: Barley Wine
Lewes, England

Bottled, alc. 8.1%
Ruby red color, small off-white head. Typical Harveys barley wine -nose: plums and other dark fruits, malts, molasses and light licorice. Sweet, syrapy, with dates and plums, almost like Thomas Hardy’s ale but with less alcohol. Complex, excellent barley wine. This one must be potential for ageing.

(Bottled) Quite clear dark amber with a small, tanned head. Grainy-malty, sweetish and very rye-puddingy aroma with some fermented dark fruits. Sweet, dark-fruity flavor with grainy malt and some dry ashiness. Syrupy-sticky, quite full-bodied palate with low carbonation. A sweet, rye-puddingy, quite pleasant barley wine.

1996 bottle - Pours dark amber with no head and virtually no carbonation. It has an aroma of malt, dark fruit, and oak. The flavor is sweet malts and oak with a hint of bitterness in the finish. It’s pretty good, but thinner than I expected. I’m guessing it’s a little past its prime.

(bottle) Slightly hazy deep amber, essentially no head. Aroma of alcohol and dark fruits. Flavor is dark fruits, malt, slightly sweet, warm alcohol aftertaste.

1998 Vintage Bottle

Pours a deep, dark amber with a tiny, brief head and some nice lacing. Magnificent aroma of fancy molasses and port. The sheer thickness of this beer hits you right away - as it’s nearly 10 years old it’s not quite as carbonated anymore, but what a taste! Plums, figs, lots of dates, only a fruity tartness to bitter. Caramelicious aftertaste, warm and pleasant. In retrospect, the taste reminds me of a cough syrup I had as a child, but not in an unpleasant way. As was previously mentioned, nearly no carbonation but the body is so darn chewy I can’t help but love the mouthfeel. This is the oldest vintage beer I have ever tasted. Many thanks to hogtownharry for the trade!

I remember distinctly thinking when trying this beer that it tasted like a smoke-stained bar stool from some ancient dingy pub hidden away among the cobblestones of some miniscule British country village. And I do mean that in a good way. Sherry, plums, oak, cloying sweetness, no hops to speak of. Not one to revisit often, but endearing anyways.

Bottle from The Royal Oak. Deep amber with a thin tan head. Sweet malty nose. Very sweet malt and toffee flavour with some hop and dark fruit notes. Quite a decent syrupy palate. For a Brit ale, I was most impressed.

2002 vintage at the London Shindig, August 2007. Burnished light bronze colour. Lots of raisins in the aroma. Quite woody and somewhat vinous. Fat caramel malt and jammy fruit in the flavour. Showing signs of age with noticeable oxidation. Fairly sweet. Since other elements have rather faded with age, this leaves it feeling a little sticky. The mouthfeel is also a touch musty. Not bad, but better try a fresher version next time.