Capital Vintage Ale

Brewed by Capital Brewery
Style: American Strong Ale
Middleton, Wisconsin USA

12 ounce bottle. Shaker glass. Orange-amber with a small head. Aroma - sweet malt and fruit. Taste was sticky sweet, citrus fruit, malt and caramel. Strong alcohol bite and some hop bitterness.

bottle from buckybeer: pours a murky dark honey colour with a small off white head. aroma is sweet malts and some fresh tropical fruit (star fruit) adn some floral hops that blend in. flavour is rich sweet caramel malts, some fresh fruit and a hop bitter finish that fades into sweet candy finish. nice balance to the sweet and fruit.

12oz bottle-An amber body with a very small white head and an aroma of hops, malt, citrus, and caramel. Taste of malt, alcohol, and caramel. The alcohol kicks in on the back end. Nice tasting beer.

Date: 03/28/2007
Mode: Bottle
Source: Trade

hazy amber, fine beige head, sweet candied fruit aroma with light alcohol, rich sweet fruity flavor, slight sticky character, eventually a bit of floral hops and earthy bitterness shows up to add balance

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 7/10; Overall: 12/20
Rating: 3.2/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: *4

I enjoyed this beer more than I should have, given that the adjectives I’m about to use aren’t normally positives in my book: it was not very complex, nor particularly distinctive, and fairly drinkable. And yet -- the aroma is a nice, crisp apricot and orange peel. The initial taste is moderately malty, not much more, but it has a great mouthfeel -- smooth and rounded, yet with just enough tartness to bring it alive on your tongue. I suspect what really makes it work for me is the alcohol -- it’s the source of the mouthfeel and the gently warming sensation that helps finish off each sip. I’m not going to rush out and buy this again, but it was very pleasant.

Bottle (12oz). Cloudy amber, smallish fizzy-foamy beige head. Strong aroma of fresh cereal grain, alcohol, apricot and dry, bitter, herbal/spicy hops. The taste is very bitter, but the fruity malt comes through strongly - apricot again - a little boozy and bitter in the finish. Syrupy mouthfeel, quite astringent and bitingly carbonated for all the lack of head - and warmingly alcoholic, a little bit of a sweet, syrupy (almost cough drop) aftertaste - but very nice. I agree with BBB- this IS an English Strong Ale.

12oz bottle I believe courtesy of Westsidethreat, thanks Skye. Pours a rich orange/yellow with a thin bright white head. The nose is fresh and somewhat hoppy. Tastes sweet fruitty and fairly alcoholic. I’ll agree with others that the finish is pretty rough. Not bad but kinda harsh on the palate.

Bottle and served in a pint glass: Pours a deep amber with a fading head than left okay lace upon the glass. The aroma has notes of rich caramel and toffee, rye bread, aromatic hop, apricot, pear, fig, hint of tobacco, and some phenolic activity. The taste is strikingly malty rich with a heavy-handed fruit character as well. There is some light bitterness and even a dash of spice upon the finish. The mouth feel is stickley and lush with a warming effect of the alcohol in the end. If this was bottled conditioned it could be one the age for sure, I still will likely keep a bottle or two in the cellar to see what happens. By the way, why in heck is this not classified has an English Strong Ale?