When is a craft beer not a craft beer? And, for that matter, what is the definition of a craft beer? For me, a lot of it is about how the beer is made. When a beer (or indeed any product) is mass produced, you’re always going to lose that hand crafted element. Of course that’s not to say that huge breweries aren’t producing excellent beers, even if that result isn’t what drinkers would define as a ‘craft beer’ (see: me swimming in a pool full of Erdinger Weissbier).
One brewery that manages to bridge the gap pretty well is Fullers. Huge and successful, but retaining the heritage, quality and innovation that is often associated with craft breweries.
Obviously this little spiel is leading somewhere and that is to my recent Sunday Session, which took place in…Wales! Yes, we drove six hours away from London to, well, drink beer in a nicer location. One of the beers in these pictures is not mine…(take a guess).
One brewery that manages to bridge the gap pretty well is Fullers. Huge and successful, but retaining the heritage, quality and innovation that is often associated with craft breweries.
Obviously this little spiel is leading somewhere and that is to my recent Sunday Session, which took place in…Wales! Yes, we drove six hours away from London to, well, drink beer in a nicer location. One of the beers in these pictures is not mine…(take a guess).
Fuller’s Frontier (4.5%)
If I could change anything about this label it would be ‘small batch’. I just….why? And, by the way, this isn’t a Fuller’s thing, this is an ALL BREWERS thing. Stop saying small batch.
But I digress.
It poured a beautifully clear amber gold, medium carbonation with a thin white head that cleared very quickly. The aroma was floral with hints of citrus and hops. Taste wise it was surprisingly sweet (I was anticipating a fairly standard lager) but followed through to a sharp and bitter finish which was particularly pleasant. I regretted buying only one of these, knowing that I had judged them prematurely for not being ‘craft’.
Once again Fuller’s have not disappointed. To the pub!
The Crafty Beeress 