| |
Vintage Fuller's and Cooper's
by Willard Clarke,
I'm a huge fan of the annual Vintage Ales from two great family names in brewing: Fuller's of London, England, and Cooper's of South Australia. Each year the respective Chiswick and Adelaide breweries produce a collector's item edition of
a strong, dark beer, designed for extended cellaring. Here's my assessment of the two current releases from the 2007 vintage.
Fullers, Vintage Ale 2007 (England) 
This year's edition of the marvellous Vintage Ale from Fuller's is made with Fuggles, Target and Super-Styrian hops and Maris Otter malt. 150,000 bottles were produced, and although it bears a 'best before' date of 2010, it will of course cellar for much, much longer. The colour is the usual deep, ruby/bronze, with a thick tan head. The nose has that gorgeous, pillowing depth of caramel, over-ripe apples, masses of spice and plenty of resinous hops. On the palate there's that edge-of-the-seat balancing act between the sweetness of the malt and fruity body of the beer, and the tang and chicory-like bite of the tannins. Creamy and mouth-filling, the layers of toffee, bitter green herbs and fruitcakey richness are endless. 8.5% ABV, 50cl, �2.19, brewery pubs, Sainsbury's, Waitrose.  |  |
Cooper's, Vintage Ale 2007 (Australia)
Antipodean cousin to Fuller's majestic Vintage Ale, Cooper's version carries a recommendation to drink within five years of release, but many aficionados will want to experiment by keeping it further. Only around 5,000 Slightly lighter than Fuller's 2007 at 7.5% ABV, it has a deep ruby colour and light-tan head that is creamy and dense. On the nose the beer is sharper, brighter and more estery, with a quality of pure resin and plenty of clove-like spice. On the palate it is considerably more crisp too, with red fruits and masses of hoppy, juicy, lemon and resin bitterness. The malt is sweet, but the whole picture of this beer is more agile, whilst being far less sumptuous than the Fuller's equivalent. I suspect this will gain that weight and breadth with a couple of years in the cellar. 7.5% ABV, 37.5cl, �1.89, , Tesco.  |  |
|
|
