J.W. Lees Harvest Ale

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

Serve in Snifter

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2010 Vintage 1/23/2012 similar to 2009 Vintage but flavor is alcohol, sweet dark fruit and hints of cardboard. Also $8.99 for a 275ml bottle from Julio’s Liquors, Westborough, Ma. 2009 Vintage 1/5/2012. Pours a one-finger cream head that fades quickly to a ring leaving traces of lace. Brown murky color. Light carbonation and medium-heavy bodied. Alcohol and dark fruit nose and flavor is alcohol and sweet dark fruit, paper like finish. Pricey, $8.99 for a 275ml bottle from Julio’s Liquors, Westborough, Ma. Rates a 4. 2005 Vintage 10/26/2010 Straight up pour and no head, no lace. Cloudy dark brown color. No carbonation and medium-heavy bodied. Dark fruit and alcohol nose. Flavor is sweet dark fruit and alcohol, slightly cloying with no carbonation. $13.99 for a 275ml bottle from Beverage Warehouse Winooski, VT. Rates a 4. 2008 Vintage 10/12/2010 Pours a one-finger cream that fades quickly to a ring leaving a little lace. Cloudy amber color. Very light carbonation and medium bodied. Dark fruit and alcohol nose. Flavor is sweet raisins and alcohol, almost cloying because there is not enough carbonation. $7.99 for a 275ml bottle from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma. This rates a 4. 2002 Vintage 9/22/2010 Pours with virtually no head and no lace. Cloudy brown color with some yeast left in bottle. Very light carbonation and heavy bodied. Sweet alcohol and dark fruit nose. Flavor is dark fruit and alcohol, almost cloying. $10.99 for a 275ml bottle from Beverage Warehouse Winooski, VT. This rates about 4. 2007 Vintage 3/21/2010 Pours a one-finger white that fades quickly to a ring leaving a little lace. Almost clear amber color with a ton of floaties. Light-medium carbonation and medium bodied. Alcohol and raisin nose. Flavor is dark fruit and alcohol. Cellared well. $11.60 for a 275ml bottle from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma. This rates about 4.5 2006 Vintage 3/17/2010 Pours without a head so no lace. Deep brown/amber color with a ton of floaties. No carbonation and medium bodied. Alcohol nose. Flavor is sweet alcohol, with some dark fruit; strong alcohol finish. Did not cellar well, good flavor but the carbonation is gone. $10.40 for a 275ml bottle from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma. This rates about 3.5. 1999 Vintage 12/31/2009. Pours a two finger cream head that fades slowly, leaving some lace. Deep brown color. Good carbonation and medium-heavy bodied. Dark fruit and alcohol nose. Flavor is dark fruit and alcohol with a strong alcohol finish. Cellared very well. $10.40 for a 275ml bottle from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma. This rates about 4.5 1998 Vintage 12/31/2008. After ten years this is as fresh as the day it was bottled. Pours a three finger brown head that fades quickly leaving no lace. Deep mahogany color. Light-medium carbonation and heavy bodied. Raisin/plum nose. Flavor is sweet raisin almost like a port. The high ABV comes through but does not overwhelm. Pricey at $6.99 for a 275ml bottle from Tully’s Beer and Wine Wells, ME. This rates about 4.5 2000 Vintage 3/31/2007. Pours a two finger light brown head that fades quickly to a thin layer leaving some lace. Almost clear mahogany color. Light carbonation and heavy bodied. Raisin/rummy nose. Flavor is sweet rum and raisins with alcohol overtones. Pricey - $5.99 for a 11.5oz bottle from John’s Grocery Iowa City, Ia. This rates about 4.5

draft and i hope this is the right one jw lees vintage harvest ale 2010,. poured out hazy orange to almost brown color minimal head and has the aroma of sweet malts and dark fruit rasins figs dates something on that order medium to full bodied flavored the way it smells sweet and dark fruits with nicely hidden alcolhol burn. malty syrupy sticky.

2002 bottle into a tulip A: Muddy brown body... one finger light head... little lacing.. quick recession ... lots of floating shit S: Caramel... dark fruits.. candied sugar.. honey.. floral notes T: Much of the same... decently complex... high malt content, notably dark fruits.. figs, raisins etc... caramel and candied sugar sweetness.. floral bitterness M: Medium-full bodied... thick and chewy.. the damn floating shit didn’t help here O: Not sure how well this one was cared for ... the flavor and smell was pretty solid, but the other factors were not impressive

2010 edition. Almost absent head. Cloudy dark amber/light brown colour. Aroma is malty with caramel, fruity (raisins, figs), vanilla and light alcohol notes. Flavor is malty too with candy, fruity (mango), dried fruits (chestnut, penauts) tones, ending in a prolongued gently roasty and toffee finish. Full bodied.

Vintage 2008. Hazy amber with an off-white head and lots of small floaties. Aroma is quite sweet malty, caramel, fruity, yeasty and alcohol. Flavor is very sweet and moderate bitter. Quite sweet finish with warming alcohol. Somewhat sticky. 141211

2006 bottle. I didn’t get much of this guy but all I can say it was dripping with sweet malts and honey. Caramel sugars abound. Great finish but just a little bit hot. I would absolutely drink this again

Purchased a bottle from Redlight Redlight’s vintage bottle list. My particular bottle was a 1999 vintage. The aroma was very malty and sweet. The appearance was dark brown with very little head. Taste was amazingly complex. The closest and simplest way to describe it was sweet caramel. Overall an amazing beer that I am glad I tried.

11/2011 SBF 1988: Sweet, smooth, cherry, sherry, port. Vanilla. smooth, honey; slight bite. Exceptional. 1988 vintage held up very nice; almost like a fine sherry. One of the most complex and intriguing beers I have ever tasted.

Denmark, Aug-Sept 2009. Vintage 2008. Dark amber with smallish head. Sweet malt aroma with lots of grapes, caramel and flowers notes. Taste is sweet malty, caramel, honey, ripe fruit, you can feel both the alcohol and the sweetness burning your throat. Again ,well crafted but a bit sweet for my likings.

98 Harvest ale, and I just couldn’t bring myself to give it anything less than a 4. It pours a unique shade of hazelnut with a light dusting of off white bubbles that delicately rim the glass. The aroma was a robust combination of sour cherries, dried fruits and caramel with the subtle aroma of spices. However, the flavor profile was completely different. Milk chocolate and toffee blend with roasted malts and coffee grounds. The mouth feel is round, smooth and delicately decadent and one that hides the 11.5% alcohol beautifully. For a 13 year old beer this bad boy held up. It was damn good.