Gale's Prize Old Ale (1920s - 2006)
Bottle Conditioned. 275ml bottle. Corked.
Ingredients: Maris Otter and minute amounts of black malt and brewing sugar; Fuggles, Goldings and Challenger.
Matured for 12 months in wooden casks.
It is reddish in color with hops and apple fruit on the nose, spicy and malty in the mouth, and a dry, even tart fruity finish with hints of raisins and apple.
The slow work of the yeast in the bottle may increase the alcohol content to 12% or even more. After several years of aging Prize Old Ale gains a more complex palate with Calvados like character. It is said that Prize Old Ale is at its best after 20 years of maturing.
Bottled as Milestones Pale Ale to celebrate the opening of the Milestones Museum.
Ingredients: Maris Otter and minute amounts of black malt and brewing sugar; Fuggles, Goldings and Challenger.
Matured for 12 months in wooden casks.
It is reddish in color with hops and apple fruit on the nose, spicy and malty in the mouth, and a dry, even tart fruity finish with hints of raisins and apple.
The slow work of the yeast in the bottle may increase the alcohol content to 12% or even more. After several years of aging Prize Old Ale gains a more complex palate with Calvados like character. It is said that Prize Old Ale is at its best after 20 years of maturing.
Bottled as Milestones Pale Ale to celebrate the opening of the Milestones Museum.
3.4
683 reviews
Horndean, England
Community reviews
bottle from Systembolaget sweden (2004). no head. clowdy solid birgundy color. kriek and light lactic aroma. aged and light lactic taste. refreshing for such an old (13 years) old ale.
Bottle from 1997 tasted oktober 2017, cph; reddish brown with no head, just some bubbles like juice; aroma is very heavy, cherry, fruity, heavy and light at the same time; taste is sweet and oxidized, cherry, fruity, vinous, malty, hints of bitterness, spicy phenolic but not heavily, hints of sharp alcohol; texture is thin and silky with almost no carbonation and a light to medium body; this is like dry and drinkable port wine
Backlog rating, 1982 bottle. Murky brown, no head. Geuze-like aroma, wood. Wooden flavour, light nut and cheese. Medium body, mellow mouthfeel Cognac aftertaste. Amazing.
Bottle (1996, #6038); pours cloudy dark brown with no head; aroma of dark fruits with hints of caramel and wood; taste is sweet with dark fruits and caramel; dry finish with some wood notes, meh
den er eftergæret på flaske, hvilket måske gør at den har en friskhed over sig. Tør og bitter frugt i eftersmagen.
Bottle shared at Cotteridge convention 05/03/2016. Thanks to Steve I?ve known. A murky dark brown coloured pour with no nhead. Aroma is cheesey mould, cherry, apple, big oxidisation, age. Flavour is composed of soy sauace, sweet brown sugars and malt, raisin, oxidised, cardboard. Palate is fucked, no condition, papery. Absolutely fucked.Bottle shared at the Columbus tasting. 1980 22/05/2018. Many thanks to Paul for this one. A deep. Amber brown coloured pour. Aroma is meaty, brown malts, malt vinegar,, amber, orange rind,. Flavour is composed medium sweet anf tangy, tobacco, raisin chewy, tangy. Palate is medium sweet.
From old tasting notes. Translucent amber, brown color. Small beige head. Fruity, maple-like malt aroma. Soft tart earthy malt flavor has a warming, clingy mouthfeel. Very complex, with a winey character that is balanced by a big hoppy finish and a noticeable strong alcohol prescence. Outstanding!
Bottle 2005 vintage. This is a real disappointment. Smell of old musty figs sour patch kids. The pour is a deep copper with almost no head. The taste is tart with a hint of unripe apple. Low effervesce and light on the tongue. Very uninspiring given the aging that went into it.
275 ml bottle 2004 vintage poured a clear reddish brown with a lingering ring of tan foam. Aromas of caramel, toffee, tobacco, spuce and light dried fruit. Oalae was light bodied and smooth. Flavors of toffee, tobacco, caramel, dried fruit and light spice with a smooth lingering tobacco finish.
Bottle from 2000. Murky reddish pour with no head. Aroma has lots of cherry. Taste is stale and has fruity touch. Low carbonation
Picked this one up with 15 YEARS on it at Belmont Station, thought I’d give it a go. It appears to have lost a bunch of carbonation. It has a pretty great aroma though it is lightly tinged with a sourness. There are rich port-like notes and a lovely woodiness in the aroma. It has a heavy weight in the mouth and the sourness is a little more pronounced. Very smooth and with a long, mild finish. There is basiccally zero alcohol heat to it at this stage, just lots of lovely dried fruit flavors.
They’re not lying on the Calvados thing. Might pick up another next time I’m there.
Tasting at Alex’s (thx, for sharing it, Alex!). Vintage 2005. Pours a hazy opaque brown with no head. Aroma is cherries, chocolate, woody. Taste is same with no carbonation at all. Pleasant.
1982 vintage in 2014 at Kulminator. A bit oxidized but still holding up good.
275 ml bottle @ Tammela Vintage Tasting. 2005 vintage (vertical with 2011 vintage).
Pours dark orange color with a minimal head. Sweet malty and caramel-y aroma, nutty, bready, dried fruits. Flavor is caramel-y malts, bread, some spice notes, raisins, also some metallic notes on the 2005 vintage. 2011 vintage is slightly better.
4424
275 ml bottle @ Tammela Vintage Tasting. Vintage 2005. Pours a dark brown colour without a head. Quite heavy viscosity. Aroma of sweet plums and malts. Flavour of heavy sweet malts, dates, raisins, some elegant green apple notes and grass. Medium bodied. Really smooth and velvety.
1997 vintage Bottle courtesy of Ben, at As Is NYC (huge thanks man!) Porus a deep red wine body with a brownish tint, no head or lacing. Nose is strong brandy, cherry, plum and wet wood. Oxidation definitely present. Mouthfeel is flat with notes of dark fruit, brandy, plum, sweet black cherries and melted butterscotch. A real treat to try this.
Bottle share at Cotteridge II as Gales Prize Old Ale, 2005 edition. Many thanks to Steve. Murky dirty brown, no real head. Ugly beer. Aroma is tired musty malts, sweet oxidised sherry, varnish. Body is smooth, oily, no carbonation. Taste is tired old malts, some marmite, mint, oxidised sweetness. No. (1.7)
Bottle split at Cotts Convention II, thanks to BIK, 05/03/16. 2005 Vintage.
Murky brown with a moderate beige cap.
Nose is soy sauce, cocoa powder, dark fruit peel, light spice.
Taste comprises chocolate biscuit, soy, papery notes, oxidisation has crept in for sure, musty.
Medium bodied, moderate carbonation, semi drying close.
Hasn’t aged particularly gracefully considering it’s only 11 years old but still sippable.
Bottle. Cotteridge Beano v2. Murky brown. Didn’t get much from this other than a cardboard vinegary character. Nice tick, though.
Bottle at CWC II; murky dark red/brown pour, zero head, aroma has light wood and some vinous action, taste has earthy fruits, some oxidisation, great to try old beers.
Cotteridge Convention II. Bottle shared thanks to beersiveknown, cheers Steve. 2005 Vintage. Murky brown beer. Light aroma of wood and some soy sauce. Taste is soy sauce, rich dark malts and some raisins. Decent for its age.
Tried at Cotteridge 2, 2005 vintage. Deep amber colour with no real head. past its best, but had dark fruit and caramel, taste was ok but as i say not at its best.
bottle, vintage 2006. Deep golden colour, no head, not syrupy in consistency, but rather thin. Intensive vinous aroma, lots of port wine and sherry. Quite light-bodied for the strength. Very low malty sweetness, quite dry and slightly tart. Sherry and shy port wine flavours present, and a dusty dry finish. No carbonation. Delicious winter warmer, perhaps a tad on the dry side.
2002 bottle shared by Jack, thanks! Pours a deep amber red with a near white head that dissipates to the edges. Aroma has sweet caramel and dark fruits with a sweet grain backbone. Flavor has a good amount of oak with a bit of dark fruits and some earthy grains backing.
2002 vintage shared with Deyholla. Found on the shelf of a shop in the Minneapolis burbs. Reddish pour with a small white head. Nose shows signs of age. Salt and balsamic soaked wood. Forest fruits. Cardboard and stale caramel candies. Taste is a bit stale. Tart fruits, cardboard. Sweet cRamel. Medium body, soft carb. Not drinking well, unfortunately.
Bottle from 2003. It poured a hazy dark brown color with a tan head. The aroma was of dark fruits, spices and malts. The taste was of fruity sweetness and acidity with wine and some bitterness with a clean finish.
bottle shared at Todd’s. 1999 vintage. Old stuck in bottle cork. Sherry. Caramel. Lasting sweetness.
Bottle at the DC Local Gathering on 8/1/2015, shared by solidfunk. 2005 vintage. Dark amber brown. Aromas of caramel, toffee, light dark fruit. Tastes of vegetal notes, caramel, toffee. Light body with a dry finish.
2005 bottle pours a hazy deep red with some tight, off white head. Nose has apples and brandy, still some citrus, plum, raisin, toffee, musty, some wet wood. Flavor follows with a touch more roast than expected, green apple, raisin, tart cherry, light brandy. Finishes a bit boozy, but all in all, probably peaking.
2005 bottle from A.J.s. Fruity nose, fresh plums, raisins, green apple, soy, musty barrel. Reddish brown. Flat. Nicely fruity, lightly tart, salty, Worcestershire sauce, very nice cherry/berry flavors. Apple too. Interesting. flat, oily, silky. I like it, though it is a bit of a strange bird.