Thomas Hardy's Ale (2003 - 2008)
(has 6 batches)
Hanlons Brewery in Exeter, Devon, England 🏴
Traditional Beer - Old Ale Regular Out of Production|
Score
7.92
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Scarce, subtle and complex, Thomas Hardy’s Ale is the beer enthusiast’s equivalent of rare cognac. Bottle-conditioned to mature in the bottle like fine wine, this old ale/barley wine will improve with age for at least 26 years (and we’re still counting!). Not for the faint of palate, especially when young and brash, maturity brings an elegance of flavors unmatched by any other beer—if you have the patience to cellar it for at least a decade.
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7.5/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 8
Bottled(250ml). -No. 33543, vintage 2007.
Pours a clear dark amber colour with medium sized beige head and alcoholic fruity nose. Sweet malty and very fruity taste with strong alcohol presence. Slight caramel and warming alcohol finish. Very complex and quite nice brew.
Pours a clear dark amber colour with medium sized beige head and alcoholic fruity nose. Sweet malty and very fruity taste with strong alcohol presence. Slight caramel and warming alcohol finish. Very complex and quite nice brew.
Tried
from Bottle
on 21 Dec 2007
at 03:36
7.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Re-rate 10/17: Bottle sample at a tasting at Dancing Camel. Thanks Vova. 2006 bottle. Dark brown. Cookies, caramel, fruits, nuts, chocolate, a bit of oxidation, rounded mouthfeel. Great. 8/3/8/4/16=3.9
Bottle sample at a tasting at Dancing Camel. Thanks Stas. 2007 bottle. Brown. Caramel, fruitiness, some cookies, sweet, rounded mouthfeel. 7/3/8/4/15=3.7
Bottle sample at a tasting at Dancing Camel. Thanks David Cohen. 2005 bottle. Aged in a fridge. Clear red-amber. Toffee, caramel, butterscotch, fruitiness, some alcohol, brown sugar, honey, rounded mouthfeel. A lot sweeter than the other two. 7/3/7/4/15=3.6
Re-rate 5/15: Bottle shared at a tasting at Naama’s place. 2006 bottle. Brown color. Great aroma with oxidation, chocolate, cookies, nuts, caramelm, some dark fruits, tobacco and a bit of soy sauce. Sweet flavor with chocolate, caramel, dark fruits, soy sauce note, nuts, and a drier finish. Rounded mouthfeel. Still very good. 7/3/8/4/15=3.7
Bottle. Vintage 2006 - bottle #48065. A rather clear ruby color with no head. A quite vinous aroma of malt, caramel, raisins, a bit of plums, notes of wood and some alcohol. Very sweet and malty flavor with brown sugar and some dark fruits. Finishes on a drier note with very subdued notes of hops and a slight alcohol burn. Medium to full body. Surprisingly for such a sweet ale, it grew on me more and more with every sip. A very good and quite complex beer (even at this young age). Let’s see how will this one do with some aging. 7/4/8/3/16=3.8
Bottle sample at a tasting at Dancing Camel. Thanks Stas. 2007 bottle. Brown. Caramel, fruitiness, some cookies, sweet, rounded mouthfeel. 7/3/8/4/15=3.7
Bottle sample at a tasting at Dancing Camel. Thanks David Cohen. 2005 bottle. Aged in a fridge. Clear red-amber. Toffee, caramel, butterscotch, fruitiness, some alcohol, brown sugar, honey, rounded mouthfeel. A lot sweeter than the other two. 7/3/7/4/15=3.6
Re-rate 5/15: Bottle shared at a tasting at Naama’s place. 2006 bottle. Brown color. Great aroma with oxidation, chocolate, cookies, nuts, caramelm, some dark fruits, tobacco and a bit of soy sauce. Sweet flavor with chocolate, caramel, dark fruits, soy sauce note, nuts, and a drier finish. Rounded mouthfeel. Still very good. 7/3/8/4/15=3.7
Bottle. Vintage 2006 - bottle #48065. A rather clear ruby color with no head. A quite vinous aroma of malt, caramel, raisins, a bit of plums, notes of wood and some alcohol. Very sweet and malty flavor with brown sugar and some dark fruits. Finishes on a drier note with very subdued notes of hops and a slight alcohol burn. Medium to full body. Surprisingly for such a sweet ale, it grew on me more and more with every sip. A very good and quite complex beer (even at this young age). Let’s see how will this one do with some aging. 7/4/8/3/16=3.8
Tried
from Bottle
on 14 Dec 2007
at 17:22
7.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
(25cl bottle, vintage 2005) Slightly hazy, copper colour with a small beige creamy layer. Sweet, dark malty, moderately roasted aroma with caramel, fruity accents (apricot, pear) and a touch of chocolate. Sweet flavour, full bodied and soft on carbon with an almost oily mouthfeel. Toast-malty taste, subtle fruity with caramel, liquorice and chocolate; sweet and slightly bitter, Sherry-like alcoholic finish. Complex and quaffable brew.
Tried
from Bottle
on 13 Dec 2007
at 18:26
7.6/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 10
Overall 7.5
2006 vintage poured out of its 8.5oz bottle as a slightly hazy brownish orange with thin tan head. The aroma is big with figs, dates, plums and raisins as well as a hint of olive brine. There’s a nice caramel candy note to go along with sweet chocolate and alcohol. Wow, tons of flavor that rides very deep into the after taste. At first there’s a shot of olive followed by classic dark fruitiness from figs, plums, sugar sweet cherries and raisins. Then a silky smooth and tasty caramel candy, toffee and hint of chocolate take over and seem to go on forever. A bit of olive re-joins the show into the finish and after taste. I’d love to try one of these with much more age.
Tried
from Bottle
on 12 Dec 2007
at 18:43
6.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 7
Pours dark reddish brown with no head. Maeira like with dried fruits and spices in the finnish. Chocolate notes as well. Unbalanced with the alcohol to present. Great cellaring potential.
Tried
on 29 Nov 2007
at 15:41
8.4/10
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Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8.5
2004 vintage sampled at my homebrew club meeting, 2 Nov., ’07. First time at this mysterious legend. A big smell even from my small sample. Raisins, plums, brown sugar and honey. Earthy smell at the end. Taste is a little sour at the start. High alcohol content gives it a sherry-type dryness. Still some notable hop taste, too. I’ll have a fuller report when I crack open my own 2003 and 2004 bottles at either my retirement or my son’s 21st birthday.
Tried
from Bottle
on 05 Nov 2007
at 10:00
8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 8
2004 bottle - In honor of my imminent departure for London and elsewhere in western Europe, I just had my bottle of Thomas Hardy’s Ale. It pours murky dark brown. There’s no head, but it definitely has legs. The aroma is a lovely malt and dark fruit with some mild alcohol. The flavor is sweet and strong with lots of malt, oak, and dark fruit. There’s just the slightest touch of carbonation in this almost syrupy beer. It’s certainly a good brew and will likely get better if aged a few more years so it’s not quite so overpowering.
Tried
from Bottle
on 26 Oct 2007
at 21:11
8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 10
Overall 8
25 cL bottle (2004 no 9292). Pours hazy amber with a copper colour and a minimal lacing head. Roasted fruity and malty sweet flavour, somewhat sweaty/herbal. Quite wellbalanced yet somewhat woody. Quite caramel sweet. Ends a slight bitter wrapped is mellow sweet malty flavour.
Tried
from Bottle
on 05 Oct 2007
at 01:21
8.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 9
Texture 8
Overall 9
I found myself a 2003 bottle of this stuff, so I am a lucky one as it seems that my version of this beer was slightly older than those of the other recent reviewers. Pours with no head, but with some lacing. Sediment remains stuck to the bottom of the bottle. Deep brownish red color. Looks almost like blood I would say. Rich molasses smell. Beer itself is sweet and syrupy. Has some taste of brandy. A little bit of butterscotch. Coffee and chocolate to some extent are present as well. Hard to take big sips because it is so thick and big. Alcohol is not existent in the taste. Probably the best barley wine I have ever had the honor of drinking. (Even though I bought it only for the name...)
Tried
from Bottle
on 29 Aug 2007
at 20:02
6.9/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 7.5
Vintage 2005. Sirupy, nearly no head, brown colour. Malty start, getting more and more dry towards the finish. Hints of roasted malt, raisins, wild berries and prunes.
Tried
on 31 Jul 2007
at 12:58