Fullers Vintage Ale 2008

Brewed by Fullers
Style: English Strong Ale
London, England

The smell is musty, honey, fruits, toffee, sweet, and raisans. The look is clera, amber colored, and has a decent beige colored head. The taste is some slight bitterness, honey, spices, papery, little alcohol, and fruits.

Bottle 126899. Medium orange copper hued with a light khaki head that went thin fairly quickly. Spicy aroma with dried figs and some herbal notes. The nose is pleasant with that mix and hints of citrus hops. The taste has some strong sweetness up front, like chugging honey laced with a little bit of hops. The body is syrupy thick and certainly sticks to your mouth. There is also a little bit of roast and wood, but the sweetness is cloying. Maybe a few years will help to dry this one out.

Bottle No. 89041 from Waitrose. Amber gold, thin but lasting white head and gentle condition. Gentle sweet, almost tinny maltiness in the nose with some trace flowery hop, full and sweet initially in the mouth but qickly drying out and becoming chalky bitter with a trace of woodiness, short alcoholic finish with some lingering toffee notes. Not impressed this year.

500ml bottle poured a clear orange with a small lingering amber head. Aromas of toffee, candied apple, carmel, pepper and spice.Palate was medium to full bodied and smooth with a warming finish. Flavors of toffee, light carmel, candied fruit and light spice with a smooth warming lingering bittersweet finish.

amber in color, slight white head, effervescent. toffee malt notes, little bit of must, but pleasant. sticky sweet malt is a little mellowed by a couple months in the bottle and comes through nicely. Toffee and butterscotch dominate the middle with a bit of warming at the finish and a little pepperiness makes for a well put together beer.

Brown bottle, 500 ml, number 25573, best before end 2009, purchased at the LCBO on April 13 2009, savoured on April 21 2009; eye: copper with orangeish hue, clear, slight effervescence, tiny ring of tan head, light lacing; nose: lightly roasted malt, light dust, slight basement, light hops, slight fruity; mouth: slightly roasted malt, light dusty, hops more present than the nose suggested, layer of caramel, light fruity, light alcohol, slight pepper, finale in roasted malt with an interesting presence of hops, lightly bitter and sweet, below-average carbonation, medium body, liqueur-like; overall: quite likable FRANÇAIS Bouteille brune, 500 ml, numéro 25573, meilleure avant fin 2011, achetée à la LCBO le 13 avril 2009, savourée le 21 avril 2009; œil : cuivrée avec une teinte orangée, claire, très légère effervescence, petit anneau de mousse fauve, légère dentelle; nez : malt légèrement rôti, léger poussière, très léger cave, léger houblon, très léger fruité; bouche : malt légèrement rôti, léger poussière, houblon plus présent qu’au nez, filet de caramel, léger fruité, léger alcool, très léger poivre, finale en malt légèrement rôti avec une présence intéressante de houblon, légèrement amère et sucrée, carbonatation sous la moyenne, corps moyen, liquoreuse; en résumé : bien aimé

500 ml bottle number 135778 thanks to machfive55. Pours a deep amber color, very clear with a large foamy white head. The aroma of these Fullers beers is always unique; caramel toasted malts, light fruit, unique yeast, somewhat musty and nice. The flavor is rich, warm and good; caramel malts, toasted flavors, alcohol warmth, butterscotch, interesting hops and yeast. Fullers puts together an interesting package every time. I like them a lot.

I always love these vintage Fullers, but I always prefer them after 2, 3, even 4 years. This one is a bit new. It looks great ... clear dark copper, small head, great lacing. Nose is malty, fruity, mango or peach maybe, though even without Reinheitsgebot I’m pretty sure that there is no mango or peach in this. Mouthfeel is that of a big barleywine, which, of course, this is. Only place for improvement is the taste ... a little hot with alcohol, a little, well, unbalanced. But give it time and this could be one of their best vintages ever.