Fuller’s has launched the latest annual iteration of its Vintage Ale (8.5% ABV) in bottles. The bottle-conditioned ale is available in Fuller’s Brewery Shop and from Waitrose & Partners.
This year’s Vintage Ale is a celebration of Fuller’s long-lasting friendships with the hop growers, merchants and maltsters of the UK. It has been brewed using exclusively home-grown ingredients.
The beer’s passionfruit, grapefruit and mango notes might be synonymous with the new world hops of America and Australia, but the beer’s tropical flavours in fact come from the British Olicana hop variety.
Alongside Olicana, Ernest hops, from Kent, have been added to the brew — a variety that brings apricot, citrus and spicy notes. There are also herby, pine and earthy flavours to discover, from the classic combination of Target, Goldings, Challenger and Northdown hops.
As all Fuller’s malting barley is sourced exclusively in the UK, the malts are also in-keeping with the British theme. Vintage Ale 2018 sees the return of Maris Otter malt, a key feature in many Vintage Ale recipes of years gone by. Crystal malt, meanwhile, lends the beer its rich biscuit sweetness.
‘Exciting time of year’
With the first Vintage Ale being released in 1997, this is the 22nd in the series. All can be purchased from Fuller’s online shop.
Georgina Young, Fuller’s head brewer, said: “Brewing Vintage Ale is always an exciting time of year. We’re really proud of this year’s beer — it’s a true celebration of the close relationships we have with our colleagues in the wider brewing industry.
“Once we’d chosen the theme of ‘best of British’ for this year’s beer, my team and I set out to find new ingredients that we’ve not used before — such as Olicana — but we were keen to use some familiar favourites like Maris Otter.
“The result is a really fantastic beer which I look forward to drinking for years to come. My advice is to get two bottles of Vintage Ale 2018 — one to enjoy now and one to drink in a few years.”
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