Tall Tale Strong Ale
John Harvard's Brewery & Ale House

Sampled on-tap at the Harvard Square brewpub.

This strong ale poured a clear, slightly hazy, coppery red color with off-white, creamy foam that settled but clung to the glass and coated it. The smell was malty and fruity with a light sweetness. The taste was lightly sweet and malty with light fruitiness and a touch of sugar, and finally some hoppiness in the finish. The mouthfeel was smooth and creamy with medium-full body and good carbonation. The flavors lingered nicely in the mouth. This was a very drinkable strong ale.

I had this on tap at lunch today. It poured a deep mahogany color, very clear with a decent cream colored head. The lace did settle quickly, but left a good lace on the side of the glass Malt if the form of a mild toffee aroma came across on the nose. It was backed by a slight pine character from the hops. More malt in the flavor this time delivered with a mild roasted character, slightly smoky. This had a pleasant hop bitterness along with alcohol warming. Slick mouth feel medium drinkability. I must say I was impressed with the taps here, all 3 beers I had were served at cellar temperature, meaning they were not ice cold, and really brought out the flavor.

Thanks to Geoff at the Harvard location for the skinny of this fine offering at the EBF....had to swing by last night when I discovered it was on tap.
Pours a deep copper color with a finger and a half of fluffy off-white head...the lace was awesome...never moved for the duration of the pint.
Not overpowering on the nostrils...a nice hint of hops w/ vanilla undertones.
Taste was a very well mixed blend of malt and hops...the waitress claimed this was 9% ABV, but I have my doubts. There was no hint of alcohol and can't really tell you what effect it had since I quickly followed it up w/ their Midwinter Imperial Stout.
The mouthfeel was sublime...perfect carbonation for its type. I could drink quite a number of these...may need to go back before its all gone.

Spun a few yarns with this one on 1/14/2005. 16-oz pour in a pint glass at the source, the epicenter of Harvard Square.

1/8-inch fluffy starting head with larger bubbles congregating in the middle and an almost mocha tint to the covering; very nice lacing throughout. Dark ruby to light claret in hue and quite clear, quiet. Complex, ruddy malt on nose; though it is otherwise hard to detect, even with deep pulls. Malt infusion at start for taste, and then followed shortly by an after-bite of hop bitterness. Quite green in its effect and almost a floral quality to the offering; an undercurrent of roasted character adds to the picture. Overall, a pleasant offering.