Fuller's 1845 - Fuller Smith & Turner PLC

zander4dawin

Texas

3.58/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A rock solid creamy, toasty, somewhat sweet beer. It is amber in color and leaves behind a creamy, soapy head. A truly very crafted beer that can stand the test of time and a must try for all beer lovers. Definitely malt forward but some bitterness present to balance the beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2011 15:07:25 | More by zander4dawin

Nerudamann

Arizona

4/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass.

Look – strong dark amber color with about two or two-and-a-half fingers’ worth of frothy khaki-colored foam that dissipates somewhat slowly.

Smell – sweet and malty, with hints of caramel and maybe some brown sugar.

Taste – it tastes like it smell, but with a lot more bitter bite than I would have ever expected. I can’t really taste the hops, but their bitter qualities are definitely there. The hints of caramel and sugar that were in the aroma aren’t in the taste.

Mouthfeel – definitely more on the creamier side.

Overall – very interesting brew! Good-tasting and fun to think about.

Serving type: bottle

11-28-2011 02:26:03 | More by Nerudamann

crnipeter

Slovenia

3.58/5  rDev -12.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours clear, deep amber to dark reddish-brown with light tan head that is rather thin but hold very well and leaves some lacing.
The nose is malty-sweet with prominent honeyish character and caramel, plummy, raisiny esters while aging has introduced some sherry/port note to the aroma with mineral- earthy hop undertones.
Surprisingly dry on the palate, the beer is well hopped and not nearly as malty as suggested by the aroma. There is some raisin-like fruitiness but that's quickly overwhelmed by minerally hops with somewhat harsh bitterness that increases towards the finish with lingering woodsy aftertaste.
Medium bodied and somewhat airy seems lighter on the tongue than actually is.

In short: an Old Ale with aroma that significantly differs from the flavor which is too dry and overly hopped.

(Best before 04-05-2013, 500 ml into tulip.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2011 23:19:31 | More by crnipeter

4.4/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance - luminescent dark copper with a perfect foamy tan head.

Smell - Dark fruits, yeast, earthy hops, wood.

Taste - Flavours of toasted grain, buttered toast, dried figs, and oak with a moderately bitter, mineral and butterscotch finish. Extremely smooth and well-integrated.

Serving type: on-tap

11-18-2011 20:17:43 | More by

hooliganlife

Missouri

3.8/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

pours a deep murky copper with loads of creamy head. thick lacing on parts of the glass.

light caramel and sweet alcohol, a bit weak on the nose

lots of caramel with a bittering citrus hop. light sweetness with sweet malt. lots of citrus aftertaste lingering.

very full bodied, moderate carbonation.

good, not my favorite from fuller but pretty a solid ale.

Serving type: bottle

11-15-2011 01:03:08 | More by hooliganlife

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

3.55/5  rDev -13.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Poured in to Duvel tulip.

A - Medium translucent copper/amber colour with one finger of cream coloured head that quickly receded.

S - Toffee, dark fruit, caramel, raisins.

T - Toffee, Dark Caramel, raisins, a good hop bitterness and some floral notes. The finish is dry and bitter.

M - Medium body. Light carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2011 00:45:51 | More by TheSevenDuffs

heygeebee

Australia

3.43/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a good deep mahogany brown with a lovely head. Large bubbels in head, creamy coloured.

Aromas of toffee, caramel, toast.

Taste is a let-down hoppy and dry, not o my preferance of style.

Mouthfeel solid enough.

Overall just too hoppy and dry pour moi for an English Strong Ale. Bring on the malts!

Serving type: bottle

11-11-2011 10:46:11 | More by heygeebee

TownDunkel

Texas

4.47/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

I picked this up from my local liquor store... kinda like picking up a good book from a library (in the dusty weird section no ones been in years)

Appearance - A black beauty. A wonderful dark brown to almost black quality that makes it like the moody action hero this is only the good guy because the bad guys are worse.

Smell - A great hoppy, earthy smell. Not to say it smells like worm dirt but like wood after a heavy rain and it starts to dry out.

Taste - When trying this beer, take a sip and hold it in your mouth. A sweet carmel comes out and then mellows out to a nice mild bitterness with little aftertaste.

Mouthfeel - Liquid bread in its purest sense. Filling and smooth.

Overall - This is a top choice beer. The flavors are different and complex with sweet and bitter. I wouldn't have this with dinner, but maybe as a meal replacement! I will definitely buy this one again after long days at work.

Serving type: bottle

11-10-2011 01:32:32 | More by TownDunkel

liamt07

Ontario (Canada)

4.18/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle from the LCBO, 500ml into a tulip. Best before June 13, 2013.

Pours mahogany, with a somewhat soapy offwhite head. Sticky lacing and good retention. Malt forward in the nose, some light caramels blend with some just as subtle fruity notes. A hint of spice and maybe some earth and breads. Taste has just the same, great maltiness with lots of caramelized fruits from the darker end of the spectrum, a touch of alcohol and some spice. Darker breadiness as well, with a note of grain in the finish. Body is medium with some definite thickness to it, and is fairly smooth in texture; low carbonation aids this mouthfeel substantially. Definitely drinkable and certainly a nice English strong ale.

Serving type: bottle

11-04-2011 03:14:36 | More by liamt07

joemcgrath27

Alberta (Canada)

4.03/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - deep ruby red, tall tan head dissipated to a one finger retention, leaving loads of lacing all around
S - rich molasses and burnt sugars, leafy, with a mix of musty and strong sweetness lingering
T - rich raisin fruitiness and dark sweet molasses malt dominate, mild leafy hops slowly permeate, with a yeasty and syrupy taste lingering on the finish
M - full body, creamy smoothness that gives way to an acidic fruitiness and mild bitter
O - at first the sweetness seemed a little excessive, but with a few sips the mix of hops bite and rich fruity yeast flavours filled this brew out, a complex brew that slowly warms from the belly out

Serving type: bottle

10-23-2011 03:27:57 | More by joemcgrath27

rangerred

Tennessee

4.65/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Poured out of a 500ml bottle into an english pint.

Pours a dark copper/ruby with a 2 finger off-white head. Excellent head retention and lacing.

Smells of caramel and dried fruit, possibly some wood.

Taste is much like the smell. Slightly stronger woodsy notes with a caramel and toffee. A slightly drying finish along with a soft bitterness.

Mouthfeel is medium to full but does not impede drinkability

Overall a wonderful beer and an excellent example of the style. The perfect choice for a cool fall evening.

Serving type: bottle

10-18-2011 00:18:38 | More by rangerred

WeedKing4

Ontario (Canada)

3.7/5  rDev -10%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Pours a dark, hazy amber red colour with a large amount of fluffy white head. Tastes of slight caramal, bready and toffee like malty flavours. The after taste leaves a little left to be desired. Its not bad overall, but I was expecting a bit more from this.

Serving type: bottle

10-07-2011 01:03:56 | More by WeedKing4

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.8/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

500ml bottle, conditioned therein for 100 days.

This beer pours a clear medium ruby copper hue, with two fingers of tight foamy, creamy pale beige head, which exhibits decent retention, eventually rendering a high cloud pattern of lace around the glass in its wake. It smells of sweet dark orchard fruit, warm caramel and toffee malt, some mild booze, and earthy, leafy hops. The taste is semi-sweet caramel malt, some faint raisin and bitter, tannic fruit, a mild metallic alcohol edge, and earthy, somewhat woodsy hops. The carbonation is present, but quite sedate, the body a solid medium weight, and delicately smooth. It finishes with a definite trend to the dry side - the Cadbury sweetness falls off, leaving a warm, boozy, leafy hoppiness to close up shop.

A decent enough strong English ale, the tactile and visuals really bang on, and quite lovely. The flavour sort of swings here and there too much though, dancing on the not always so subtle heat.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2011 22:45:55 | More by biboergosum

andrenaline

Ontario (Canada)

4.13/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - pours a hazy amber colour, two thumbs of head with solid retention and some nice sticky lacing.

S - Caramel and toffee with a touch of leafy hops and an earthy finish.

T - The leafy hop notes come through nicely, though is a bit sweeter than a traditional ESB. The conditioning makes the earthiness flavours shine through and the caramel and toffee notes linger.

M - Medium bodied, smooth and a touch of dryness on the finish.

O - This stuff is world class. A sweeter take on an ESB and the conditioning to make it rather unique. Do yourself a favour and get your hands on a bottle.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2011 17:26:54 | More by andrenaline

jtingue

New York

4.25/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle dated best before 08 mar 2012. Poured into a snifter.

Appearance. Deep hazy red in color. Poured steadily to give a nice 3 fingers of tan head which dissipates, leaving a nice thick lacing down the side of the glass.

Smell. Strong dark fruit and berry smells, with a discernible oak and mustiness.

Taste. Starts out with a bitter fruit reminiscent of cherries and berries. This is followed by a dryness, and slight bitterness. The bitterness is then accompanied by the oak and mustiness picked up in the nose. Ripe fruits end the dryness with flavors of ripe cherry and fig. This slowly transitions to a quick bitter and dry finish.

Mouthfeel. Medium bodied but very creamy. Moderate to low amount of carbonation.

The perfect beer for a fall day.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2011 23:50:55 | More by jtingue

mrnobody

Ontario (Canada)

3.83/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

500 ml bottle poured into a Duvel tulip.

A: Pours a fairly clear reddish-brown with 3 fingers of thick beige head; excellent retention and sticky lacing.

S: Smells malty, metallic, fruity, spicy with a hint of maple smoke.

T: Tastes of sweet dark fruit upfront with a nice hoppy finish with a bit of coffee flavour to it.

M: Mouthfeel is medium-full, somewhat creamy. Carbonation is nice and fine and relatively subdued.

D: The drinkability is very good for the style but it is pretty malty.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2011 03:03:37 | More by mrnobody

evlu1441

Alberta (Canada)

3.98/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I'd never heard of this one before, but when I saw it, I knew I needed to give it a try. Fuller's never has let me down, and I doubt this will be an exception.

It pours a dark ruby/copper colour. It is mostly clear, but upon close inspection, there are tiny bits of sediment floating around. The head is foamy and toffee-coloured, leaving some nice lacing as it settles down to about a finger over the beer.

The aroma is dominated by some toffee notes and spice. It has a certain "Christmas" kind of smell to me.

The taste is dominated by deep toffee flavours. The malts are dark and rich. There is some slight fruityness too. It's rather complex overall, and slightly bitter.

Overall, this is a nice English ale, though perhaps not quite to my tastes

Serving type: bottle

09-28-2011 22:12:20 | More by evlu1441

spinrsx

Ontario (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

500ml Bottle

Appearance – Clear copper colour with a large size fizzy beige coloured head. There is an average amount of carbonation visible and there is a excellent amount of lacing. The head lasted for around 5 minutes before it was gone.

Smell - Malts, hops, caramel, toffee, hints of chocolate

Taste & Mouth - The beer has an average amount of carbonation and I can taste malts, caramel/toffee, and some hops. There is also some chocolate and dark fruit flavour - mostly raisins. There is also a bit of a licorice taste. It finishes with a malty slightly bitter aftertaste.

Overall – The taste has enough going on the keep the beer interesting. I'm not sure I would drink many of these in 1 sitting, but I would like to have a few on hand for throughout the week for sure. It's worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2011 18:39:04 | More by spinrsx

FanofHefe

Illinois

4.22/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle (attractive one, by the way) poured into a Duvel tulip; best by 5-Oct-11, so this one was getting close - had to give it a run. Deep brown, red-hued body, with a thick, two-finger tan head. Good retention and plenty of lacing.

A sweet caramel malt aroma that is accompanied by dark fruit. Some of the sweet aroma may be from the fruit notes, like raisin and date. Just a hint of spiciness in the background.

Very good flavor mix of the malt and slightly spicy hops. In fact, there is much more of hop flavor than I would have expected from the aroma. Still, enough dark fruit, fig, raisin, etc., to make for a very good blend.

Medium consistency in the mouthfeel with nearly no notice of the alcohol. An excellent brew, and even though this bottle was close to it's "best by" date, no noticeable degradation in flavor or aroma.

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 19:11:30 | More by FanofHefe

Kartoffeln

Ontario (Canada)

4.47/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a deep ruby-amber with a sizeable beige head of creamy foam. Good retention, gradually dissipating to a bubbly cap and leaving frothy lacing.

S: Toffee and slightly toasty malts with loads of fresh and candied dark fruits, especially black cherries and candied figs. Plenty of yeast aroma and some floral, spicy hops. Hints of butter, caramel, and icing sugar.

T: Toffee, bready, and slightly biscuity malts with lush dark fruit, fresh cherries and dried figs, and earthy, somewhat spicy hops - pine-like with a hint of grapefruit bitterness. Rather like Christmas pudding altogether. Butteriness and yeast throughout, and some roasted malts and nuts towards the finish.

M: Full-bodied with low carbonation, crisp on the sip and then creamy smooth. The pine-and-grapefruit hop finish keeps the rich flavour profile from ever feeling cloying.

D: A fantastic strong ale that must be sipped on the warm side to fully appreciate; expect something halfway between a robust English pale ale and barleywine. Perfect for the grey autumn days.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2011 00:41:16 | More by Kartoffeln

projectflam86

Ohio

4.38/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

16.9oz bottle poured in a Fuller's Imperial pint glass.

A- Pours a slightly murky copper red/brown color with a thick off-white head that leaves good lacing.

S- I'm getting all toasted grains, caramel, and toffee in the nose. The aroma is incredibly malty and sweet.

T- Not exactly what I was expecting (in a good way)...very malty upfront with loads of biscuit, dark fruit, spice, brown sugar, caramel, and toffee flavor. This is what I would guess a lower ABV English Barleywine tastes like. Very nice surprise!

M- Medium bodied with medium/low carbonation. Creamy and smooth with barely any alcohol presence.

O- I can't believe I passed this by so many times. I won't make that mistake again!

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2011 21:15:54 | More by projectflam86

peensteen

Ontario (Canada)

4.05/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Deep ruby colour, good clarity, one finger of head, good lacing on the glass. Smell is deep sweet caramel, toffee, huge malt bill on this, faint alcohol with some dark fruits, some hoppy notes as well. Taste reveals big chewy malt, floral and very fruity, light toffee sweetness, long bitter and hoppy finish, some alcohol, incredible balance here. Lush and full body, great weight, light carbonation. Nice and flavourful, easy drinking and satisfying, will revisit this as often as possible.

Serving type: bottle

09-20-2011 19:06:00 | More by peensteen

pmarlowe

California

3.93/5  rDev -4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Best before 09/29/12. Tulip glass. 1845 also happens to be my favorite year.

Pours a dark copper color, about an inch of yellow-tinted white, compact head. Good retention and moderate lacing. Smell has a solid sweet caramel malt backbone, in addition to faint bright apple-like fruit . Taste is a very mild malty caramel, mild bitterness on the finish. Lightly carbed and great, smooth cask-like mouthfeel. Overall, this is a very tasty, lighter malt-forward ale. For those times you want something malty, but not the ABV of an English barleywine.

Serving type: bottle

09-19-2011 06:41:24 | More by pmarlowe

JMad

Texas

4.2/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I drank this from a mug...

The beer pours a dark orange/ amber color with a lofty foamy looking head that was off white and left a lot of lacing. I could smell some raisin and apricot, there is a surprising aroma of ketchup as well, it's not bad though. The dominant smell is sweet malt. Tastes slightly bitter on the back of the tongue with herbal hops, lots of sweet, slightly fruity malt flavors emerge, there are hints of plum and alcohol with a bitter finish. The beer is medium bodied and silky smooth with low carbonation and a pleasant dry finish. Excellent brew overall nothing bad to say about this one, try it if you haven't.

Serving type: bottle

09-17-2011 23:24:44 | More by JMad

jrenihan

Ontario (Canada)

4.03/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle dated best before June 21, 2013.

Beer is a dark ruby-red with a substantial off-white head. Sticky lacing left on the glass immediately. Head subsides slowly.

Smell is quite malty- bread, with some mellow dark fruit notes. Red grape is noticeable, maybe a bit of cherry.

The malt aspects of the beer are upfront in the taste as well. Caramel, bread, the same fruit flavours as were in the nose, also mellow. For all of that, it is not an overly sweet beer, and the finish is quite dry, with some mild hop bitterness. A bit of alcohol at the end as well.

Full bodied- although not incredibly strong, it still comes off as a very big beer. Moderate to high carbonation, but works fairly well.

Certainly a good beer. I will probably have to grab a few more of these. I am interested to see what it would be like with a bit of time.

Serving type: bottle

09-17-2011 17:14:42 | More by jrenihan