Fuller’s Vintage Ale 2000

Formerly brewed at Fuller’s
Style: English Strong Ale
London, England

Serve in English pint, Snifter

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Bottle #38843. Poured a murky copper amber with ruby a thick creamy off white head. Very unique hop aroma, not heavy or overpowering, but slightly citrus, slightly floral and appealing. Syrupy with a fair amount of heat on the palate. Initial flavor is fruity, like apricots and orange with a brown sugar and maple finish. Hints of whiskey and brandy. Awesome flavor. Great beer, one of a kind.

Bottle 63618. Seems darker than the '99, a tawny caramel color, medium head that offers nice lacing. Aroma woody and butterscotchy, perhaps less complex than the '99 but still awesome. Very sweet; alcohol noticeable but well-integrated into the woody, creamy flavor. Smooth as silk. I need to get more bottles of this, the '99, hell every year, and keep 'em.

Well, I finally tried this and I really can’t believe that the ’99 is that superior to this. Maybe I’m just not sophisticated enough to believe that something, that much better than this beer, could exist. Tastes like liquid sponge cake lofting in a soup of cane sugar. Incredibly meaty with a nice hop finish and a very balanced flavor. I can only hope that I can someday find the ’99 and judge for myself.

This is a very good ale. Nice soft mouthfeel and very deserving of the high rating.

Smells like vanilla, citrus candy. Many different fruits present in the flavor compliment a woody, earth-like quality. Lsighly cloudy, dark golden color with a rich, lasting white head. Slight alcoholic nose, a tad too bitter in the finish, which may mellow with aging. This is a good beer. Very similar to some barley wines.

Bottle# 50241: Thick head that slowly fade to nothing. Aroma of gingerbread and alcohol. Palate is medium to full bodied and very smooth. The flavor is of biscuit, caramel, oak, cinnamon, and alcohol. The alcohol is present and noticiable but it blends with the other flavors so well that it would not be as good of a beer if it was hidden. As the beer warms a slight vanilla comes into the flavor. There is a hops presents that is just enough to keep the beer lively and the flavor balanced but not so much that it overpowers the exquisite malt profile. The aftertaste starts as vanilla and fades into a blending of all of the flavors experienced in the swallow. Absolutely a beautiful beer.

Wow. Nice red brown with long lasting tan head. Medium strong, malty nose. The Hops are nice and strong aand counterbalance the powerful toasty malt. Love that alcohol burn but it would be lovely to get this experience in a lower ABV beer. I'd drink a ton of it!

Aroma of wood and smoke. Appearance is cloudy brown, with a medium sized but thin head. Very sweet at room temperature. Flavors of tobacco, wood, and bread. Very heavy. Reminded me of a powerful Belgian ale.

This still has some carbonation and head. A more woody aroma than the 99, almost like 98. A pretty stringent bite, but certainly a wonderful beer. Second favorite after the 98.

UPDATED: FEB 28, 2009 Beer Rating #1000 (when you subtract all the sakes, ciders, meads, etc.) First off, I want to sincerely thank Robert, the man behind the “rare wine room” at Mr. G’s in Plano, Texas, for not only allowing me to try this rare beer, but also for providing it to me at no charge. What a gentleman. I greatly appreciate the opportunity to try something that is both scarce and delicious for the important milestone that is my 1000th review. My bottle pops with plenty of carbonation after 9 long years of slumber. The smallest amount of light escapes from a deep garnet colored body that glistens when the light hits it in a fashion similar to said gemstone. A large off-white head rapidly blossoms in the glass to revel a sizeable fluffy mass containing an abundance of yeasty bubble pockets. The lacing is incredibly beautiful; it could easily be mistaken for silky English lace. This crème colored blanket of a head coats the walls of the glass and gives no indication that it plans to depart any time soon. A gentle swirl rouses the slowly shirking, but never vanishing head back to its full height. This is particularly impressive for a beer so advanced in years. One could easily mistake it for a freshly beaten egg-based dessert. The nose of this fine ale has many complex layers. Fresh blackberries and blackberry jam dominate the first sniff followed by blackcurrants, frozen blueberries, rum cake, pralines, toffee, jelly based chocolate candies, gumdrops, vanilla yogurt, must, fleeting citrus hops, lactose, and a hint of nutty and papery oxidation. Cleary this ale has been properly taken care of over the years. The taste is equally impressive. Warm runny caramel appears in the forefront followed by brown sugar, brandy soaked bread pudding, freshly baked Turkish sweet breads, attic dust, Spanish cedar, faint tobacco leaves, river rocks, and some earthy humus. Although the mouthfeel is moderate, it is one that is incredibly smooth and shockingly quaffable at 8.5% alcohol by v