8.5 fl oz. bottle, 2004 vintage, serial No. P 58218, Green’s, Ponce de Leon, Atlanta, GA, USA. $5.95. Label says 11.7 % ABV.
It’s probably close to eight years ago that I last drink this, so my memories of the stuff earlier than 1998 are a little faded, but even if that is the case I was still bitterly disappointed by the bottle of the 2004 vintage that I recently drank.
Very unattractive pour on three levels. Firstly the color was that of stale, cold tea, secondly there was a suspicious looking murkiness to it and thirdly the lack of life in the pour was alarming. Don’t get me wrong, at 11. something% and with the style taken into consideration I was not expecting visual fireworks, but I just don’t recall this looking so drab in the past.
Anyway, getting on with the important stuff the nose was as expected, wonderful. A combination of alcohol soaked fruits and dark sherries and ports lifted my spirits. Alas, the taste failed to match that by some significant distance. It had an initial burst of what I was expecting – a reflection of the nose – but then there came this nasty lack of balance with a very strong soap taste that I can only assume was the hops asserting themselves. Very off-putting and completely overwhelmed the rest of the beer. Soap, soap, soap!
Mouthfeel was as expected with a sweet, cloying coating, but not unpleasant.
I dunno, maybe my rose tinted memories are playing tricks with me, maybe this is simply too young, or maybe O’Hanlon’s have really f’ed this up, whichever is true, for now at least, I will not be drinking any more TH vintages with less than 5 years under their belt.