Fullers Vintage Ale 2004

Formerly brewed at Fullers
Style: English Strong Ale
London, England

The Lure:
Sweet toffee malts adhere to the sturdy, woody and spicy hops. Strangely lager-ish aroma, reminiscent of a well-hopped bock, more than the usual Fuller’s Vintage domineering caramel malt sweetness.

The Festivities:
Fruity caramel struggles but succeeds to carry the green, leafy Goldings hoppiness. Earthy and wooden dryness accompanies the lasting hop bitterness, diverting from the veiled citrus and dried apricots. Maybe this is way fresher than the previous vintages of Fuller’s Vintage Ale I’ve had, but this one has the lager-y texture and presentation of a German bock, its cleanliness and rigor, and the way the wooden hops ride the supportive malt definitely point my confused tongue towards Deutschland. Maybe I’m dire need of a good bock. By far, the hoppiest of the vintages I’ve had, far from the scotch ale leanings of its predecessors.

Trascendence:
When a disguise proves to reveal something completely unexpected, the beauty of the surprise is somewhat dampened for a while, replaced by quizzical shock. Then it’s all good.

Second sampling : Sour peaches and yeast?!? Where’d the hops go? Don’t know if this is an example of how this beer will age, or if it was poorly stored, but was definitely not as pleasant as the first sampling a few months back.

Bottle. 48256. Nice dark amber colour with a good sizze creamy beige head. Aroma is fairly powerful, strangely familiar, with lots of malt and an undeniable "English" character about it, touch of hops. I want to say some crystal malt in there but I’m only guessing. Rich caramel maltiness and some chewy toffee notes are swept up in a very full alcohol presence that while noticeable is not unpleasant. Enough hoppy bitterness to balance the beer out nicely. Gorgeously smooth medium-full bodied palate. If the alcohol were a touch more restrained this would be an even better beer. Very nice. Am glad to have two more in the cellar.

I was expecting more. It had a strong flavor of rubbing alcohol which dominated the other flavors.

(No: 2811) Strong looking beer with a general strongly hopped aroma, the flavour is very thick tasting, malty with a lot of hops. Overall OK and quite complex.

No 78442:

Darker mahogany color almost brown with a thick and rocky head and nice lacing. Looks pretty good. Aroma is chock full of malts. Mostly roast and caramel come out of it. There is a tartness to it. Almost like citrus, but yet it is slightly different. A little dusty. Flavors are lots of the malts. Thick caramel with some roast flit about. There is some raisins amongst a field of bitterness that presents itself from the hops. Said hops are also slightly citrusy. The mouthfeel is oily as it coats the mouth heavily. Thick body with a warming presence in the belly. Finishes sweet and malty with undertones of hops and alcohol. Needs some aging, but it’s fair.

#67616. thanks goes to markus for allowing me to share this. at some point i’ll buy you a pint or something similar. aroma is vinegary that hides a lot. there is a lint trap smell here that grabbed me. poured dark brown with a red hue and a white head. taste raisin and yeasty with a fresh hop finish. i look forward to trying this agin in a few years,

(Bottle, No. 67616) Pours an amber body with a medium-sized off-white head. Aroma of lemon, orange, caramel, and bread. Malty base flavor with some toffee and raisins. Of coarse, this is a young bottle that could use some aging.