Fullers Vintage Ale 2009

Brewed by Fullers
Style: English Strong Ale
London, England

Bottle ( 500ml ). Bottle #45009. Deep clear bright copper-amber with a huge foamy lasting light tan head. Simple aroma of cereal grain, pungent floral bitterness, moderate alcohol, a hint of green fruit - tastes the same, stronger alcohol, increased bitterness with grassiness thrown in; astringent, fairly lively, with a dry squeaky slightly boozy finish. A little lighter than past years, but tasty enough.

Brown bottle, 500 ml, in a box, number 054950, best before in 2012, purchased at the LCBO on November 13 2009, savoured on December 3 2009; eye: copper, clear, no effervescence, beige head that turns into a tiny ring, light lacing; nose: malt, orange, alcohol, fruity (light banana?); mouth: malt, grain, alcohol, tiny hint of hops, orange, light fruity (banana?), finale in alcohol with presence of caramel, not much carbonation, slightly bitter, lightly sweet, slightly liqueur-like texture; overall: somewhat disappointing FRANÇAIS Bouteille brune, 500 ml, dans une boîte, numéro 054950, meilleure avant fin 2012, achetée à la LCBO achetée le 13 novembre 2009, savourée le 3 décembre 2009; œil : cuivrée, claire, pas d’effervescence, mousse beige qui se transforme en un petit anneau, légère dentelle; nez : malt, orange, alcool, fruité (léger banane?); bouche : malt, grain, alcool, petite pointe de houblon, orange, fruité (léger banane?), finale en alcool avec présence de caramel, peu carbonatée, très légèrement amère, légèrement sucrée, texture légèrement liquoreuse; en résumé : un peu décevante

Bottle, LCBO, 036324 if anyone is counting. Looks as they all do - dark rich copper, foamy orange’ish white head - terrific. Aroma is somewhat muted - standard bready, alcohol, and fruity hop notes. Taste: fairly fruit hoppy up front, gives way to substantial malt and lingering bitterness and sweetness. Alcohol present in a warming way, not overpowering. Pretty drinkable, but also pretty simple right now. As always, let’s see how it does. I’ve had many of these, all from 2004 on and a couple before that and each one of them has improved significantly with age (while most being drinkable fresh). This is overly simple right now but should improve.

500mL bottle from the LCBO. Bottle #038629. Poured a more or less clear ruby amber with a medium khaki head. The aroma is really muted, Brit malts and minor hops, Fuggles perhaps. Bready but not enough to please someone like myself who tends to love that aroma. Flavour starts out with some okay malt character, Marris Otter? Can’t really tell. Chrystal and some minor toffee. Fruity esters, cherry, berry, grape, not a whole lot going on. Finish is quite dry, hoppy but without much hop flavour. Palate is too thin, bland almost. Other vintages just had so much more to them, there’s not heart to this one. What happened Fuller’s? By no means a bad beer but not at all close to the level of quality and enjoyment I would expect from this series of beers.

Impressively drinkable fresh! Often these vintages are a little rough around the edges fresh but this one is great! Wonderful caramel malts, pungent holdings, and some great subtle fruits. Super well balanced and incredibly smooth.

At room temp this is balanced and flavorful with fig, grape, and barely detectable alcohol. A touch rooty-spicy. Burlap and bit of lemon citrus, late green noble-hop bite. Surprisingly rounded & easy to drink, loving this. Not sure it would reveal a lot with aging but don’t underestimate. will re-visit rating in coming years as cellaring gains (or diminishes) the beer’s complexity.

Bottle (50 cl) from systembolaget. Clear amber with medium off-white head. Malty, slightly nutty with earthy and herbal hops. Medium bodied and smooth. Dry and well balanced. Still a bit boring compared to the Vintage Ales a few years ago.

Aroma of doe, yeast and prunes. Appearance is amber with white head. Flavor is sweet with hints of prunes and port wine. Overall not a very interesting beer.