UPDATED: DEC 25, 2021 Flaska från SB. Kopparfärgad öl med ett lättare gulbeige skum. Doft och smak av, malt, karamell, kola, torkad frukt, frukt och alkoholsötma.

UPDATED: DEC 24, 2021 - Year 2011- This one must not have been cellared right when I bought it. It was full of particles in the bottom and floaties. However, it did taste ok. It did not have very much carbanation. The aroma was almost like wine. The taste was sweet with very complex flavor like caramel and fruitcake. Had a slight funky aftertaste. -Year 2015- A very good example of one that was cellared correctly. It had no particles and hardly any floaties. It tasted just like the 2011, only better. It had not funky aftertaste.

UPDATED: NOV 25, 2021 1986 Vintage
6th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Hazy brown beer, a few pale tan bubble not forming a head. Smooth palate, unsurprisingly low carbonation. Good rich caramel toffee. Mild spice. Rich fruits, ripe fruits and a touch of bruised fruits. Smooth finish. This has held together very well. Very nice. 3.8
1987 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear amber beer, no head. Smooth palate, pretty modest fine carbonation. Smooth creamy caramel malts, a little toffee. Light sherry and mild dried fruits. Smooth finish. Nicely sherry this one. 3.8
1988 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Hazy deep amber beer, a few cream colour bubbles. Smooth palate, modest fine carbonation. Light caramel malts. A bitterish cherry – marzipan makes this one stand out. Bitterish toffee towards the back end, along with some floral bitterness. Interesting vintage! 3.7
1989 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Almost clear amber beer, a few cream colour bubbles. Light dry malts, toffee malts with some burned sugar/brown sugar. Very mild spice and a whisper of molasses. Ripe fruits. Light finish. Tidy. 3.6
1990 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Hazy amber beer, a few cream colour bubbles. Light palate, fairly dry, very modest carbonation. Sweet toffee – caramel malts. Mild spice. Ripe fruits, especially orange and a touch of dried fruits. Dry finish. Tidy but one of the least exciting of the vertical. 3.6
1991 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear amber beer, a few pale tan bubbles. Light and fairly dry palate with reasonable fine carbonation. Modest caramel malts with a floral bitterness over the top. Some spicy bitterness and ripe fruits. Dry finish leaves a bitter linger. Notably bitter this one. Still! 3.6
1992 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear amber beer, a few pale tan bubbles. Smooth caramel malts contrast with floral bitteress and spicy bitterness. Dried fruits on spicy bitter finish. Has an edge this one! 3.6
1993 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear amber beer, a few cream colour bubbles. Light palate, semi dry, low carbonation, but there is some! Mild sherry and a touch of toffee. Ripe fruits and dried fruits. Some of the usual characteristics, but everything feels a bit lifeless on this one. 3.2
1994 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear darkish amber beer, reasonable showing of cream colour bubbles. Palate is smooth and fairly light and brings a reasonable amount of fine carbonation. Good toffee malts but a trace of woodiness about them. Some porty fruits and molasses. Mild bitterness. Light finish. Notably different to the others we tried tonight. 3.7
1998 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Almost clear deep amber beer, tidy cream colour head. Palate is smooth and mildly dry, reasonable fine carbonation. Light but rich tasting toffee – caramel malts, sweetish and mildly creamy. Spicy ripe fruits and a touch of dried fruits. Nice touch of sherry before the light finish. Complex and tasty. 3.9
1999 Vintage
11th February 2011. Opened with a pleasing ’fffffftt’! Hazy dark red beer. ghost of a tan head. Soft and slightly syrupy palate with gentle carbonation. Sweet sherry with an undertone of mildly spiced licorice. Trace of candied fruit. Turns a little bitter towards the end. A sweet treat!
2000 Vintage
22nd August 2008. 2000 Vintage. Hazy brown beer. Strong malt with a very distinct marmite flavour - but sweet. Sticky sweet finish. Sumptuous palate. A little salt in the aftertaste. 3.9
2001 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear amber beer, a few pale tan bubbles. Smooth palate, slightly viscous. Sweet caramel toffee malts, but not as sweet as some vintages. Molasses, spice and tangy dried fruits. Smooth finish. Notably molasses this one. 3.7
2002 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Hazy amber beer, a few cream colour bubbles. Palate is light and mildly dry and has modest fine carbonation. Sweet caramel – toffee malts. Tangy fruits and sweet ripe fruits. Mild spice. Lively! 3.7
2004 Vintage Unpasteurised
3rd March 2011. Courtesy of Harrisoni - Cheers Ian! Cloudy brown beer, little off white head. Prunes, dates. Delicious toffee, caramel dried fruits, brown sugar. Rich and rewarding. 4.2
2005 Vintage
18th January 2009. Hazy amber brown beer. No head and precious little carbonation. Soft silky sweet beer. Sweet toffee and caramel malt. Just a touch of porty fruit at the very finish which is semi dry. Sumptuous beer.
2006 Vintage
15th November 2014. Murky amber with a few pale tan bubbles. Palate is light with very modest carbonation. Sweet caramel malts, big sticky ripe fruits. Lesser dried fruits. Light finish. These beers age so well!
2007 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Hazy amber beer, tidy cream colour head. Mildly dry palate, decent fine carbonation. Slight thin toffee-caramel malts. Bitterish dried fruits and a light floral bitterness. Light finish. Spiky! 3.6
2008 Vintage ‘Special’.
13th November 2013. Tasting at Bruce’s Pad. Big thanks to Bruce for this J W Lees whale. Hazy deep amber beer with no real head. Toffee, maple syrup, nuts and light dried fruits. Touch of cinnamon and a whisper of mellow brandy. Light dry finish. Delicious. 4.0
2009 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Hazy amber beer, a few cream colour bubbles. Light palate with decent fine carbonation. Light caramel malts with a somewhat thin creamy sweetness. Spicy dried fruits. Light finish. Notably lighter than any other vintage tried this evening and very drinkable. 3.8
2010 Vintage
6th January 2018 Bottle at Partizan, thanks to Seth. Cloudy amber - brown beer, good cream colour head. Smooth caramel and malt cream. Tangy ripe fruits. Mild spice. More cream and caramel. Sumptuous.
2011 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Hazy amber colour beer, tidy cream colour head. Palate is light with decent fine carbonation. Light caramel – toffee malts. Unusual floral sweetness and even a little candy fruits in this one. Bright dried fruits. Light finish. Pleasantly bright and notably different from other vintages. 3.9
2012 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear amber beer, tidy cream colour head, Palate is smooth and light with decent fine carbonation. Light caramel malts, fairly sweet. Mild dried fruits. Some creamy caramel towards the finish. Laid back and lacking complexity but nice. 3.7
2013 Vintage
16th June 2016. The great Harvest Ale Vertical in 100 degree heat at Chez Scopey, Croydon. Clear amber beer, a few pale tan bubbles for a head. Spicy sweet caramel and good dried fruits. Some malt cream. Smooth spicy finish. Nice. May develop more. 3.8
2014 Vintage
13th June 2020 Hazy deep amber brown beer, tidy pale tan head. Nose of toffee caramel cream, prune and dried fruits and all that goodness comes through with aplomb on the taste buds. Some sherry and Madeira and brown sugar. Marmalade and ripe citric peel. Smooth finish brings a trace of ripe red wine and leaves a mildly bitter linger. Delicious. So very few barley wines manage to achieve this level of depth or complexity unless they are barrel aged or have some Craft Beer twist on them. Lovely. 4.3
2016 Vintage
22nd August 2019 Level 6 Bottleshare. Thanks to Cloin. Light haze on this gold beer, tiny pale cream colour head. Smooth palate, slightly soft, decent fine carbonation. Smooth sweet creamy malts. Some caramel. Rich ripe fruits. Smooth spicy finish. Very JW Lees Harvest!! Nice.
2017 Vintage
14th June 2020. An almost clear gold - amber beer, tidy cream colour head. Smooth palate, very slightly viscous, reasonable fine carbonation. Good caramel and cream malt base, a little sticky toffee. A light tingling spice. Ripe fruits in abundance with a touch of not quite-by-its-sell-by-date marmalade. Smooth finish brings a touch of ripe citrus liqueur. Very nice, but really not a comparison on the 2014, no big pruney date goodness. No sherry or Madeira. Nice barley wine but not tippy top notch. Don't believe another 3 years would see the loveliness that is the 2014.

UPDATED: NOV 5, 2021 An undersized bottle that came at an uncheap price from the newly discovered local beer shop. Good thing I have developed an appreciation for barley wines. Lifting into a snifter from a small Ft. Worth brewery I see a murky amber-brown body with no determinable head. The scent is very ripe fruit and white bread. But the taste, oh, it is interesting. Barley wines seem to go this way with me, push me away, pull me back. Ripe red plums, caramel, grain, raisins, brown sugar and meadow. The alcohol is not discernible although I do get a slight warming. A good representation of the style.

UPDATED: NOV 5, 2021 Amber colour, creamy head. Aroma: malt, caramel, yeast, sweet orange, some banana, toffee, brown sugar, some vanilla, some bourbon. Taste:malt, caramel, hay, bread, yeast, molars, liquorice, some wood. Wow! Hint of citrus. Full body. Some alcohol and bourbon.

UPDATED: NOV 2, 2021 How: Bottle. Where: Systembolaget. Appearance: Hazy amber colour with an off-white head. Aroma: Dried fruit, malt, caramel, alcohol, raisin. Body: Medium body, low carbonation. Flavour: Dried fruit, caramel, malt, raisin, alcohol.

UPDATED: OCT 29, 2021 It pours a caramel brown that is quite cloud with a tan head. Head retention is very good. It has toffee aromas with some dried cherries in support. It has some orange notes with some vinous qualities to it. It has bread and toffee flavors with orange and cherry like pipe tobacco notes. There are some low vinous qualities to it with some floral notes. It has a full and somewhat chewy body. There is smooth alcohol warming in the finish. Overall, a well done barleywine with plenty of flavor and it packs a punch.

UPDATED: OCT 27, 2021 Small can from Johns. Pours a mostly clear orange hue with a medium white head. A big malty sweet nose, pungent burnt sugar and fruit. Very rich, almost like a hot liquor element, pungent fruit, overripe flavors, sugary, brown sugar, some dusty earthy tomes, light oxidation. Very good.
Earlier Rating: 12/21/2008 Total Score: 3.9
2002 vintage, bought at College Liquors in Grand Junction. Pours out a sherry like body, a bright amber color with a almost non existent head. The aroma is very strong, lots of super sweet notes, caramel, sugars, maybe some oak barrel and brown sugar. The taste is pretty sweet also, light bitterness, lots of alcohol warmth, but not burning, a smooth booze like mouthfeel. Not bad, but I have never been an enthusiastic fan of the sugary sweet barley wines, but nice though. 1999 thanks to Luke. Sweet. Molasses.

UPDATED: OCT 23, 2021 [33cl bottle from the Beer52 online store.] AN opaque malt brown coloured pour with absolutely no head; sugary aroma; full bodied with a sugary taste and a malty body; and a dry yet syrupy finish with a strong malt base and a touch of spice. A pleasant sipping beer.

UPDATED: OCT 22, 2021 0,275 l bottle from Systembolaget Linköping. Nice brew, not the best Barley Wine but very tasty.