From a 330ml bottle on 11/8/2018. Pours a deep golden/light amber with a smallish head. The nose is sweet and very malty, featuring toffee and brown sugar. The flavour is similarly malty - again some toffee and brown sugar, with some caramel and stewed fruit. It does have a relatively firm, slightly tart bitterness, giving it a quite herbal finish. The texture is slick and the carbonation softish. An enjoyable malty sipper.

Bottle. Lovely clear copper with an off white head that's soon a coat. Orange and lemon peel on top of intriguing toffee, cake, dried and stewed fruit aromas. Cheese? Pickled walnuts? Oxidation and maybe hints of vinegar in the toffee but the citrus is bright. The taste is more obviously harmonious but actually less interesting: medium sherry-like with caramel and biscuit, dried fruit. Citrus doesn't stick out so much but bitterness and a little booze tame the sweetness effectively The aim here is a solera method beer, starting with a .5yo stock ale and blending in fresh, then refilling - so a try of a fresh one seems a sensible place to start. And it's pretty good straight off.

Bottle 330ml (bottled on 05.10.2017). Clear dark-amber colour, delicate ecru colour head. Aroma is gentle with malty and fruits notes, nothing special. But in taste is better. Semisweet, malty, delicate oily with fruits hint behind and small booze. Smooth with small alcohol which burns a little bit in the throat and warms inside but it does not disturb, all goes in good way. Nice english barley wine for long tasting.