As others have mentioned, there is no mention of "Special Reserve" on the label here, so I am assuming this is the correct beer. 12 oz bottle, thanks go out to Kevin for the chance to try this beer. Mid-amber pour with a nice clarity. Head is reserved, but appropriate. The nose is really rather strong with plenty of sherry liquor notes which get me rather excited.The aroma promises a richness. The taste don't really match the virility of the aroma. There is certainly a huge malty, sweet,...
Notes on beers in the style
Scottish Ale
Duke Of Winship
12 oz single. The label suggests that this beer is a cross between a Scotch Ale and a Porter. I'm not sure what that means, but in the final analysis the beer drinks largely like an American Porter to me. "American" in the manner that the hops are higher than the original English version, and the beer has a less creamy texture and finishes drier. No Scotch Ale character for me. Dark brown pour with a few reddish highlights. Head is good and leaves some decent lace. Nose has some malts but is...
The Red MacGregor
500 mL bottle courtesy of finewinemike as part of the 2010 Secret Santa. Delighted to get a beer with a sensible ABV for achange, and to be honest this is becoming a rarer and rarer treat. Shame. Beer pours a fantastic red/tawny port color with a modest head and some sticky lace. With a better head, the beer would be close to perfect in appearance, but out of the bottle a t leas it does not quite deliver. (On draught, I think it may look a bit better). I was expecting a typical, malty...
Santa’s Swallie
500 mL bottle from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA. Pour delivers a classic, English Pale Ale appearance with a slightly clouded, light amber hue with a spotty head that produces some nice retention and some sticky lace. All is well with the appearance. Nose offers some lovely malt notes that have depth, plus a pronounced, buttery, toasty aroma. Nice. Tastes reflect the nose and also bring a slight, light-rum character. NOT boozy, but it does have some raisin and bready notes. Short finish which is...
Bell’s Christmas Ale
11oz pour @ Taco Mac, East West Connector, Austell, GA, USA. Firstly, $6.25 for the pour! Was once discussed here (long since gone). Pour is an amber color with some nice clarity, good head and some nice lace. Looks tidy in the glass. Nose gives a few notes of toffee and caramel and the tastes reflect that. The beer has a few nutty elements and is obviously and definitely malt based, but as for being a Scotch Ale I just don't get it! If you are looking for some of those classic notes, then I...
Ommegang Cup O Kyndnes (Cup Of Kindness)
I always get excited by the prospect of another Ommegang special release and this is no exception. 750mL corked & caged bottle in the usual Ommegang presentation. Beer opens with a slightly disappointing lack of pop, but the pour is better than the lack of gas might suggest. Although the color is that slightly clouded, not particularly attractive mid-brown, Dubbel like affair, it is pretty much as I expected. The head and lace are much better, and the creamy residue that sticks to the side...
Robert The Bruce Scottish Ale
12 oz single. Had this a couple of times before, just getting around to reviewing it now. Color is a beautiful garnet pour with a real, red appearance and plenty of mahogany highlights. Body is great, BUT unfortunately the head is poor and consequently there is little retention or lace. That's a shame. Malt based is an understatement of course, but the beer also imparts a little hop bite in the finish and some alcohol presence. Finish has a touch more alcohol mixed in with the warm malts and...
St. Andrew’s Ale
500 mL bottle from Rollers, Coligny Plaza, Hilton Head, SC, USA. Nice mid-orange, slightly clouded pour with some haze. Head is not huge, rather fluffy, light and made from large bubbles. Carbonation is light. Very simple malts in the nose. The tastes are not as malty as the nose would suggest. It is very peaty, more so than I expected. Definitely some earth and soil notes present. Finishes with a little touch of alcohol, some bitter dry notes and more of the peat. The soil notes make the beer...
Brooklyn Winter Ale
12oz bottle as a single from Green's on Ponce, Atlanta, GA, USA. $1.50. Best before April 2008 notched on the label - it's now October 2008 but I doubt that it will matter much. I MUCH prefer this beer as the old recipe i.e. as a Winter Warmer, and although I DO like the Scottish Ale style, I don't think that this beer is a good as it was prior to the recipe change. Head is poor and does not last long. No lace. Nice, dark copper color but average clarity. Malty tastes are still big, and to be...
Steve Stewart’s Firth Of Forth Ale (100 Barrel Series #22)
22 oz bottle with the usual 100 Barrel Series label presentation. Poured this one into the 0.5 L Harpoon IPA, reverse flared Stange-like glass. Pretty standard, deep copper colored pour with a bit of a disappointing head and very little lace. Even some agitation fails to produce much life - carbonation seems a little low. Nice clarity in the body though. Nose seems pretty neutral. Maybe some caramel notes. Taste has a simple balance of malts and hops, but lacks a lot of depth. Might be totally...
Arran Dark
500 mL bottle. $4.99 Arbor Place Beverage, Douglasville, GA, USA. This one is a long way from home, imported by Shelton Bros., let's see how it stands up to the trip. Simple copper body, nice clarity and a simple, bone-white head. Some lace. Carbonation is medium. Very simple malts. Biscuit notes and some mild pepper. Slight spice, that almost seems like a corriander note. It's a malt based beer (obviously) but the malts are not large ones. Tempered. Light in the mouth that makes it drinkable,...
471 ESB
=== Updated Review 01/08 === On tap, Taco Mac, Marietta, GA, USA, $6.00 for the 16 oz serving. On draft this is the beer I am looking for - IF only it were about 4%! Simple malt backbone, plenty of flavor, a nice English based malt beer - if only if it were more sessionable! === Original Review 09/07 === Thanks go out to Vancer as part of CEO/Old Farts BIF. Been wanting to try this one for a long time after I originally fell in love with some of the 471 series on a visit to Lexington, KY a...
MacFoochie’s 7+ Scottish Ale
Green's on Ponce, Atlanta, GA, USA. 22oz bomber. Good dark brown pour with some serious red highlights. Small head that quickly pulls back to a spotty lace and watery top to the body. Lacing is present but a bit too light - no sticky component. A little light in the mouth I thought. Lacks the big malts and chewy body that I would like to experience. Some caramel notes and a touch of malt, but I felt that the whole beer was just a tad too light. Finish is mildy acidic but has a pleasing...
Dark Island
500 mL bottle, $3.99 Cheers, Carrollton, GA, USA. Very nice chocolate colored pour with a nice bubbly head that recedes to give a film on the surface. Very little lacing. Big caramel malts in the nose but there is a lack of sweetness in the aroma that one usually finds. The tastes reflect that in as much as the caramel notes are there, but it is a bit drier and more bitter than some of the style. Not fully malted up. A little thin in the mouth and lacks the sugar overtones that often accompany...
Louie’s Demise
Thanks go out to Travis (aka BigLove) for a chance to sample this MAH brew. Good clarity on the pour, but a really thin looking body. Weak head that quickly becomes nothing within seconds of pouring. Malty certainly, with a decent amber color but the body and subsequent mouthfeel are less than average. Apparently brewed with German Perle and Tettnang hops which give it a bit of a dry Pils aftertaste. Not bad, but a bit of an odd mix of styles and tastes. Like Travis said, certainly not a...
Lia Fail
Dark amber with an impressive, rocky and deep head and a little lacing. Some mild, yet persistent carbonation. Aroma is simple toasted malts, and the taste is a classic (if somewhat dry) British ESB. Caramel malts with a bigger than expected hop finish. Slight sftertaste of hard water and a definite dry feeling. A decent brew but for me it lacks the smoothness that it should display. In summary, a good brew but frankly it has the potential to be even better. Fell slightly short for me.
Poor Richard’s Ale
I am basing the selection of style on this document; http://www.beertown.org/homebrewing/pdf/Poor_Richards.pdf although that is open to very wide interpretations I feel. Malty concoction with the emphasis on the sweet dark side of things rather than bitterness or hop character. Very drinkable with the dark sugars present in the nose. Decent looker, with some head, but fades fast. Interesting concept, but ultimately a pretty average beer.
Black Douglas Ale
Good looking red/brown pour that extends the color into the head to give a light mocha tinge to the froth. Good lacing apparent, leaving a thin layer of foam on the surface, but not spotty as I like to usually associate with a thin layer. Everything about the aroma and taste is malt based. It's not remotely sweet, but the malts serve to smooth out the beer to such an extent it becomes a little on the bland side. Don't get me wrong, I like it, but it is a very laid back beer that will not suit...
Mac Queen’s Nessie
Quite how this is a "red" ale, or indeed a Wee Heavy, is really not at all apparent, but here goes anyway. Pours a dark yellow, and for all intents and purposes, apart from the depth of color, this beer looks like a macro lager. Little or no head and no lacing. Some fruit and alcohol in the aroma. Quite oily in the mouth, and the alcohol taste combined with the slick feel make this beer seem much more than the 7.3% would suggest. Tastes are largely alcohol and a whisky (or other spirit) type...
Blackfriar
Very nice looker, with a deep, dense reddish brown body, good fluffy head and some sticky lacing. Aroma and initial taste promise much malt, and you do get some, but not to the extent that I was expecting. Then another surprise - a really hoppy, fairly short, but very, very bitter kick in the finish. I didn't really enjoy that little unexpected moment, and I thought that it served to cause the beer to be slightly unbalanced. Mouthfeel is good, with a little slick, oily feeling, but that...
Scottish Heritage Ale
This beer is apparently brewed each year, for the MCI Heritage Golf Classic PGA Tour event, that is held on Hilton Head Island in April. It is usually tapped about one week before the event, and then lasts as long as it does afterwards. I drank two pints on the Saturday afternoon of the 2005 tournament on 04/16/05. Looks and tastes much like a good quality Porter. Black appearance with ruby highlights and a lot of sweet malt flavors all over the place. Nice tan head with sticky lacing...
Belhaven Scottish Ale
Much darker than the majority of the nitro tap "bitters" that I have experienced, and a little better than those others too. The first thing that hit me was a smokiness in the aroma. This is one of the few nitro-taps that I feel maintained some of the dark bitterness that the original brew should have, and still managed to combine it with the inherent smooth, silkiness of the nitro presentation. Unlike many others, it still felt as though it had some authenticity to a non-nitro alternative....