![](\"https:\/\/blogger.googleusercontent.com\/img\/b\/R29vZ2xl\/AVvXsEidA072QUdQF3hh7bRDVRbZMYM4UZMeNzbew6aiUetyurbCSgof9S_b11-MAmWi7YUIfeUqVbvX55Z1k6mxcbCv8LJK2zbUhGvvF94SNNRsikuskVWwhy0J63FIGjQaPDeAqI9kZ2wjLa65q3-VlxO_mfYHxYToOVacsWhz1_BmK2R87BgyEYW5bnN5L3g\/s600\/Thomas-Hardy-Ale.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/b><\/div>\nThomas Hardy\u2019s Ale<\/b> is back in the UK<\/b> and arriving on bars
\nand speciality beer shop shelves, near you, from this week. This quintessential Barley Wine<\/b> will be finally available on the UK <\/b>market again thanks to an agreement between Italian<\/b> distributor Interbrau
\nSpa<\/b>, and James Clay & Sons,<\/b> the new official distributor for the United
\nKingdom. <\/b>This is what the headlines were proclaiming the other week, but the
\nstory that precedes this announcement, and the 50 years<\/b> of history behind this
\nclassic beer, is even more fascinating.<\/p>\n
Before going back to where this all started, let\u2019s take a The year 1968, <\/b>saw the 40th anniversary<\/b> of Hardy\u2019s<\/b> death, \u201cIt was of the most beautiful colour that the Poetic licence, of course, but amongst the <\/span>Thomas Designated a \u201ccelebratory beer,\u201d<\/i><\/b> Thomas Hardy\u2019s Ale Hardy\u2019s Ale <\/b>was originally packaged in pint-sized bottles which At the beginning of the new century, Thomas Hardy\u2019s Ale<\/b> Next on the scene was specialist brewer and Italian<\/b> beer importer We are now approaching the latest chapter in the
\nlook at what was happening at the end of last year. It was back in December
\n2024<\/b>, that blogger and peripatetic master brewer, Ed Wray<\/a><\/u><\/b> described on his site,
\nhow he\u2019d been fortunate to participate in the brewing of the latest batch of
\nThomas Hardy\u2019s Ale.<\/b> Widely regarded as one of the greatest vintage beers ever
\ncreated, Thomas Hardy\u2019s Ale<\/b> was a legendary beer, with a pedigree going back to
\n1968. <\/b>For those not old enough to remember, Hardy\u2019s Ale<\/b> was originally brewed,
\nat the now, sadly closed Eldridge Pope<\/b> brewery, in Dorchester.<\/b> It was a special
\nand rather strong ale, brewed to celebrate one of Dorset\u2019s <\/b>most famous sons,
\nthe writer and poet Thomas Hardy. <\/b><\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\nand to commemorate the event, some prominent members of the Dorchester Society<\/b>
\nfounded a cultural association, the Thomas Hardy Society<\/b>, to promote the
\nauthor\u2019s works. It was clear from Hardy\u2019s <\/b>writing, that he appreciated a decent
\ndrop of ale, and in his novel The Trumpet Major,<\/b> he describes the local Dorset,
\nStrong Ale<\/b>, as follows:<\/p>\n
\neye of an artist in beer could desire; full in body, yet brisk as a volcano;
\npiquant, yet without a twang; luminous as an autumn sunset; free from
\nstreakiness of taste; but, finally, rather heady. The masses worshipped it, the
\nminor gentry loved it more than wine\u2026\u201d<\/span><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
\nHardy Society\u2019s<\/b> associates was a member of the Pope<\/b> family, who owned the
\ntown\u2019s Eldridge Pope <\/b>brewery. The group approached Eldridge Pope<\/b> and asked the
\nbrewery to produce a beer that matched Hardy\u2019s<\/b> description, above. The brewery
\nwent ahead, and came up with a sumptuous, and dangerously strong, barley-wine,
\nweighing in at an impressive 11.7% abv. <\/b>Amber in colour, sweet, syrupy, and
\nawash with English hops due to the generous dry hopping, this was a beer designed
\nwith aging in mind. Therefore, the first batch had a label on the bottle
\nstating, \u201cThis beer will improve if kept lying down at 13\u00b0C, and will last at
\nleast 25 years. DO NOT OPEN BEFORE JULY 1969.\u201d <\/b><\/i><\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\n<\/b>seemed destined to be a \u201cone-off\u201d<\/i><\/b> until suddenly, in 1974<\/b>, production resumed
\nagain. It was then brewed virtually every year until 1999 <\/b>when production ceased.
\nEldridge Pope<\/b> blamed high production costs, for the beer\u2019s demise, but in the
\nmeantime, the bottles brewed at Dorchester<\/b> had developed a cult-like status
\nbecause of the complex nature that the vintages took on over time. It was
\nclaimed that at ten-plus years, Hardy\u2019s Ale<\/b> starts to resemble a fine Madeira<\/b>
\nor a port rather than a beer, with flavours such as apricot, fig, pipe tobacco,
\nmolasses, umami, and leather all sharing the stage. <\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\nsold for a whopping one pound, a substantial sum of money in 1968!<\/b> Packaged in
\nnumbered and vintage-dated bottles and given the predisposition of this Barley
\nWine<\/b> to age in the cellar for decades, the \u201cone off\u201d<\/i><\/b> brew of 1968,<\/b> became a
\nhighly sought-after collector\u2019s item.\u00a0 When
\nproduction began again in 1974,<\/b> the beer was packaged in much smaller
\n\u201cnip\u201d<\/b> bottles, making the product easier to handle, and much more appealing to
\ncollectors. Beer enthusiasts from all over the UK,<\/b> and indeed the world, began filling
\ntheir cellars of with bottles, from each vintage, and this tradition continued
\nright through to 1999<\/b> when the Eldridge Pope<\/b> discontinued production, again
\nblaming rising costs. As an aside, the brewery itself closed in 2003<\/b>,
\napparently due to \u201cserious financial difficulties.\u201d<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
\nbegan another chapter in its long and illustrious history, when American
\n<\/b>importer Phoenix Imports<\/b>, arranged for Devon<\/b> based
\nO\u2019Hanlon\u2019s <\/b>brewery to produce the beer. Unfortunately, history seemingly doomed
\nto repeat itself, and this third incarnation of Hardy\u2019s<\/b> was short-lived, with
\nproduction only lasting from 2003-2008.<\/b> The cause again was high production
\ncosts associated with the beer, which requires copious amount of malts and
\nhops, an ultra-long boil, and a lengthy maturation time. It was around this
\ntime that I lost touch with what was going on with Thomas Hardy\u2019s Ale<\/b>, although
\nsome years previously, I\u2019d purchased a bottle of the 1991 vintage. <\/b>This was the
\nyear our son Matthew<\/b> was born, and we decided to lay down the bottle for
\nkeeping and open it on his 21st<\/sup> birthday.<\/b> <\/i>Spoiler alert,
\nthe bottle didn\u2019t age well.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/a><\/div>\n
\nInterbrau,<\/a><\/b> who took ownership of the brand in 2012<\/b>.
\nIt was Interbrau<\/b> co-owner, Michele Vecchiato<\/b>, who was inspired to rescue
\nthis great beer, explaining, \u201cWe can\u2019t accept that one of the most important
\nbeers would be lost forever. We discovered Thomas Hardy\u2019s Ale in 2008, which
\nwas the time when O\u2019Hanlon\u2019s decided to stop the production.\u201d <\/i>Michele<\/b> had been
\nthinking about importing the beer, only to discover that it wouldn\u2019t be
\npossible. This was the spark that inspired him to brew Thomas Hardy\u2019s Ale <\/b>at
\nInterbrau.<\/b> A brewing team was assembled in England,<\/b> and three test batches
\nfollowed until the final result met Interbrau\u2019s <\/b>expectations, and bottles could
\nbe shipped off to industry insiders for a sneak peek. T<\/span>he first vintage of
\nThomas Hardy\u2019s Ale <\/b>from the new owners, was released in 2015<\/b>, and their
\ncommitment to such an important beer in British brewing history<\/b> has ensured
\nthat it will be enjoyed well into the 21st century<\/b>, and hopefully beyond.<\/p>\n
\nstory of <\/b><\/span>Thomas Hardy\u2019s Ale<\/a><\/b>, and over half a
\ncentury later from its first release, the reborn beer is now being produced at
\nthe Hepworth\u2019s Brewery<\/b>, in Sussex.<\/b> under the guidance of the iconic brewmaster
\nDerek Prentice. <\/b>This is where we catch up once more with Ed Wray. <\/a><\/u>Thomas Hardy\u2019s
\nAle <\/b>is finally available again on the UK<\/b> market, thanks to the collaboration
\nbetween the Interbrau <\/b>and long-established, beer wholesaler, James Clay and Sons. <\/a><\/u><\/b><\/p>\n