OHanlons Thomas Hardys Ale (vintage 2003 and later)

Brewed by OHanlons
Style: Barley Wine
Exeter, England

Heresy perhaps, but I had a hard time finishing bottle #Q06609 (2007). And boy was I excited on New Years eve when I took the bottle out of the fridge and let it sdtand at room temperature for an hour to bring it to the desired serving temperature. Poured completely headless with a beautiful opaque plum appearance and an aroma like a good rum soaked fruitcake. First few sips were astonishing like a rich cider mixed with red wine. But viscousness is not my thing. The alcohol burst was very pleasant, but it became a task to drink after the first few sips. Sorry, just my opinion, but I’m glad I left some on the shelves of the LCBO. Should I have aged it for a decade? All in all, I found the experience to be very disappointing and the instructions on the bottle to be vaguely pretentious.

Bottle shared by Marcus. 2004 (#P78341). Aroma very like Loterbol Bruin, with perhaps a tinge of grape or raisin. Color is nicely brown with very little head. Near medium body with mild, mild carbonation. The flavor is vinous and mild darkish fruits. Very smooth finish - something like sherry. Delicious.

Vintage 2006 bottle # 27596. Poured at sunset on a rare coooold night in Florida. Pours completely void of any carbonation, no head. Brownish red with chunks of sediment floating on the bottom. Caramel malt, alcohol, and mild hop aroma. Very powerful. Taste is thick and sweet, sherry like, but not cloying. Very malty but nicely balanced by a nice blast of english hops. Finishes very clean. Very nice winter warmer, I plan to put some down to see how they age. Vintage 2005. Pours the color of dirty brown water with no head. Big caramel malt, toffee aroma. Thick and sweet like a good sherry. Finishes a little hoppy and sweet. I see a much more pronounced toffee aroma and sherry like taste in the 05.

Vinatage 2007. A very unique beer to say the least, I was completely blown away by the flavour...it is sweet and rich, with the alcohol presence subtle but keeping the sweetness in check. Some carbonation would make this near perfect, but mighty fine as it is.

250 ml bottle. 2007 vintage bottle # 10005. pours brownish/red/copper with no head and very little carbonation. very complex aromas. red apples, wood, multiple malts, leather all make up the nose. flavours are huge and are a very complex mix of the aromas. a truely terrific ale that i loved. im glad i have 2 more sleeping downstairs. ill wake them up in a few years.

Vintage 2004 No 08511. This beer is mahogany with a red hue and practically no head. The aroma has nice, dark fruits, and I think of raisins, that have been soaked in port wine. The mouthfeel is oily and the flavour is strong, vinous, fantastic with notes of ripe, dark fruits, sweetness, alcohol, and it’s rather like port wine. The finish has a nice, dry bitterness, that develops throughout the long finish. What a wonderful beer!! I have some in my cellar for maturing, and this first one we shared to celebrate out first grandchild (or rather my husbands), but I feel he is mine too!!

2006 bottle #P25233. The pour is an elegant dark brown, with hints of red undertones as it reflects light. The head is very slight. The nose is complex with touches of dried dark cherries, caramel, sweet malts and other dark fruits, to name a few. The flavor is also complex, hinting at dark fruit, fig, toffee and to much more to be described. A very nice beer, that will only become richer with time. I have a few in the cellar and can’t wait to get some good age on them and try this one again.

2006 bottle, Christmas Day. I love the way these suckers pour - hazy murky brown, very little head, it just looks so damn intimidating yet intriguing. Great aroma of alcohol, tobacco, toffee, caramel, and an almost port like character. Taste is lots of alcohol up front, not as hot as a 2007 (which I have had recently) so maybe just a bit has faded in one year. Lots of sticky delicious malt after that with more tobacco and wood and a long dry alcohol finish. Lots of dark fruit as well. Certainly a sipper - this does not always blow me away, sometimes I can find them too harsh or vinous, but this one was just right.