J.W. Lees Harvest Ale (Lagavulin)

Another amazing barley wine. The color is a nice golden cider like brown no head though. The aroma is also great and fulfilling with some hints of earth hops and a sweet caramel malt. You can also really smell that whiskey. I was really pleased with the flavor it is sweet and the booze is well hidden for 11.5%. Also i like the smooth creamy caramel with that nice hop bitterness followed by that whiskey woodyness. I like how the flavor is very complex and it all explodes in your mouth.

Pours a transluscent orange with a minimal, late forming off-white head that disipates almost immediately. The nose is that of a sweet barley wine with vibrant, distinctive notes of peat, smoke, single-malt scotch and wood. The flavour only benefits from the aging in whiskey barrels in the finish, where smokey, peaty notes linger on the back of the tongue. Otherwise, this is just a very sweet, sugary barley wine that puts little emphasis on hop bitterness and carries flavours of toffee, brown sugar, plum, praline, and heavy tobacco. The palate is slick and syrupy with a semi-dry, alcoholic finish. The carbonation is gentle and perfectly matched, given the high viscosity of the brew.

Pours a super cloudy burnt amber orangish. I can smell it as I am typing, so nice. Lots of creamy sweet malt, caramel, toffee, light smoky peatiness, and a very light brown sugar. Very thick mouthfeel with a good dose of ripe fruits, caramel, smoky toffee peatiness, brown sugar, and a light piny floral hoppiness. The alcohol warms the finish very nicely, and it lingers with that light peaty smokiness.

06 Bottle. Cloudy orange amber color. Almost no head to speak of even when poured vigorously. Decent cream colored lacing. Smells of wood with sugar and notes of smoke. Has a faint smell of scotch wiskey hence the barrel. Mouth feel is soft and not overly sugary. Taste has notes of honey and those reminiscent of The Islay region. Interesting idea but the taste just doesn’t balance that well with this type of cask maturation.

275 ml. narrow neck bottle, "Brewed In 2004," sampled in a snifter. L: Cloudy tawny brown with a sudsy beige head that slowly settled into a thin bubbly lacing. Very light amount of splotchy lace. S: Rich aromas of peaty Scotch whiskey and tanned leather. Out at the edges is faint aromas of raisins, toffee and hop spiciness. The alcohol is estery with touches of smoky peat. F&T: Malty thick and syrupy feel with a heavy creamy smoothness, quite slick and sticky on the tongue. The whiskey casks confer a lot of plush and dense Scotch tastes, smoky peat, toasted grains, leather and that distinct whiskey soaked barrel woodiness. The needed sweetness comes from the malts, caramel, buttery toffee, honey and raisins. Towards the end are subtle pineapple and citrus flavors that add some sourness to the dry malty, coffee nutty, whiskey finish. In the aftertaste is lightly lingering tastes of peat and toasted oak. An excellent bold, "extreme" English barleywine that goes great with roasted lamb or a good cigar. A perfect capper for an cold windy evening.

Thanks to Santa for this one. Pours out a mahogany/brown color with no real head. Consistency of syrup. Aroma is of sweet malts, sweet fruit, slight oak and some alcohol. Taste is just a smack in the face sweet, sweet fruits, caramel syrup. Beer is just over the top sweet lacking any kind of balance, the whiskey was pushed so far in the background by the sweetness that it almost wasn’t there. Probably needs some time to age, but not really my thing.

Bottle. Brewed in 2004. Pours an amber color with an ivory head. Sweet, malty aroma with notes of smoked peat and caramel. Tons of fruit as well. What a fantastic aroma! Sweet and malty; tons of caramel. Notes of leather, whiskey, smoked peat, tobacco, cherries, raisins and plums. Very smoky aftertaste. Some vanilla. A bit too sweet and a somewhat astringent aftertaste but very good.

Pours a clear chestnut color. Aroma is intense sweetness, with only the faintest wisp of peat and whisky, not as intense as I had expected. Flavor is so sweet, finishing with a touch of alcohol warmth.