J.W. Lees Harvest Ale (Port)

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

Serve in Snifter

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2003 bottle. Poured a clear, translucent, coppery orange with a short-lived cap of whitish head. Aroma picked up lots of Port-wine and caramel sugars... some herbal and floral character as well... very sweet overall. Thick caramel and toffee at the flavor core with vinous notes, oak, and rather sharp alcohol surrounding... boozy finish with a solid Port influence at the finish. Syrupy on the palate with sharp alcohol and herbal bitterness at the edges... little bit harsh for me... left a bitter, boozy sensation long after the finish. OK overall, but could have used more subtlety and better integration of the barrel influence.

2010. Poured straight from the cask at RVA Beerfest courtesy of An from Mekong Restaurant. Pours a pale reddish brown with a few bubbles, but no head. This is not beer that tastes like port, but rather port that tastes like beer, but everything is quickly consumed by the oak in the best way. It’s like really good smoked meat. The oak sits on your tongue and lets you know that just a few sips is enough.

Bottle 275ml. [2007] Pours clear amber/reddish, with virtually no head. Aroma is of caramel, molasses, porto. Taste is of caramel, porto, maple, malt, sweeeeetness. Slightly woody. Full bodied, hides alchool. Well balanced, but alot on sugar. Extremely good, but not easily drinkable.

Bottle 275 ml [2007]. Apperance: Pours clear amber with almost no head (off-white). Aroma: Strong notes of porto, caramel, molasses, dark fruits. Taste: Porto, maple, caramel, malt, sweet. Warming alcohol. Overall: Good english barley wine. Maybe a little to much sugar, but really complex and nice to try.

translucent amber-gold. Nose of raisin, honey, toast and earth, bit thin and green. Flavor is heavy sugar, rich toffee, dark and earthy sugar, light woody end. Rich thin body, coats.

275mL thanks to BrainLayer. Pours a clear golden with wispy white head. Super rich honey nose. Taste is rich honey, almost mead like, with port heat and mild alcohol. Palate is rich honey and thick. Quite nice. Almost a mead. No cheesy hop and resinous hop nonsense unwanted for style. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Clear orange brown pour with a light tan head. Nutty aroma of toasted malt, some molasses. Intense sweet flavor with caramel and molasses. Nutty toasted malt. A bit syrupy. Bitter alcoholic finish.

Pours a dark, slightly hazy cola brown with a decent light tan head. Aroma has a strong overtone of miso plus a firm note of port and hints of malt and caramel. Malty, fruity flavor has an overtone of miso and an underpinning of wood - plus quite a bite from the alcohol and some woody bitterness. Texture is thick and smooth, not quite syrupy, a little lacking in fizz.

Bottle from Healthy Spirits, SF. It pours clear amber, with a decent white head. The nose is toasted malt, gingerbread, hot-cross buns, caramel, toffee, fig, currant - not much port! The taste is caramel, toffee, cinnamon bun, port, dark sticky blackcurrant, bramble, toast and alcohol warmth, with some bitterness in the finish. Full body, moderate carbonation and thick mouth-feel (but not cloying). Nice port flavour. Good balance.

On cask at Pizza Paradiso in Dupont Circle. Served in a snifter. Pours an insanely cloudy light turdish color. This seriously looked like dirty dishwater. It was really disgusting looking. After I got past that, it was decent, but not all that good. The nose had some nice port notes along with plenty of oak and a bit of oxidation. The flavor was more port and some sweetness with a bit too much oxidation, leading to a bit of cardboard. Medium body and close to flat. Sweetness and a bit of cardboard dryness. Really disgusting to look at, and an okay beer after that.

Bottle at a recent tasting... [2009 vintage] Poured deep amber/orange with a moderate head. Wonderful vinous port and wood tones. Caramel-like malts to balance the strong raisin, port-like characters. Slightly warming with some floralness and alcohol warmth.