Taliesin
12-11-2007, 10:47 AM
This past summer, my wife and I took the trip of our dreams to Scotland for 3 weeks! For me, the chance to talk to Scottish people and see where my family came from was only part of the lure. The other part was to taste some Scottish Ales. In this, I was both disappointed and pleased. I'll explain.
(Keep in mind that there are vast differences between the American concept of a Scotch Ale and an authentic Scotch Ale. I'll talk about this Real Ale culture in another post, but I wanted to make it known that I'm an American, used to large, robust beers. I definitely had to get used to what I tasted.)
The first ales I tried were ales that were commonly found...and there are none more commonly found than something like Caledonian's 80/- (80 Shilling.)
*** Caledonian's 80/- Ale ***
(Tried this first in the Logie Baird Bar in Edinburgh, and later in various places in the highlands.)
Aroma - This ale doesn't promise a whole lot in the nose. I could smell faint hop notes, and slight maltiness, but the lack of larger aromas made me wonder what it would deliver.
Mouthfeel - Every place I had this ale, I was unimpressed by the thin mouthfeel...slightly more in the mouth than water, but only just. I came to understand that a lot of the major brews in Scotland are like this. Tennent's Lager, some of the Belhaven Brews. I'm not pointing fingers, but explaining a difference between the Scottish Palate and the cultured American one. (I do not compare Tennent's to some of the mass-produced American lagers, which I do not like.) Anyway, the short of it is that this brew was watery everywhere I had it. It was also on Cask, I believe. Definitely a different experience, that.
Flavor - This was my first experience with a Scottish Ale brewed in Scotland for Scotland, and I must say that my first impressions were not my final impressions. When I first tried the 80/-, I found it flavorless, dull, tasting of little more than the water in it. However, the more I accustomed my palate to the subtleties of Scottish Ales, the more I found to appreciate it. This could have been due to what I was eating later in the trip, but I got sweet maltiness out of this beer, leaving a buttery taste and feel on my tongue. Little to no hop character, which is what you expect from a Scotch Ale.
Overall: Out of all the easily-found ales in Scotland, this one deserves its awards. I had it both kegged and casked, and I enjoyed the cask variety infinitely more, as I drove over the mountains from Stirling to Ft. William. It's definitely one of the reasons I want to go back to Scotland! (Plus, with people like the Scots there, who wouldn't love Scotland??)
I'll post more notes about Scottish Ales as I get them completed. :)
Anyone else feel free to post their notes on ales in Scotland...especially if you have comparison notes on the Caledonian 80/-.
Mar sin leibh!
(Keep in mind that there are vast differences between the American concept of a Scotch Ale and an authentic Scotch Ale. I'll talk about this Real Ale culture in another post, but I wanted to make it known that I'm an American, used to large, robust beers. I definitely had to get used to what I tasted.)
The first ales I tried were ales that were commonly found...and there are none more commonly found than something like Caledonian's 80/- (80 Shilling.)
*** Caledonian's 80/- Ale ***
(Tried this first in the Logie Baird Bar in Edinburgh, and later in various places in the highlands.)
Aroma - This ale doesn't promise a whole lot in the nose. I could smell faint hop notes, and slight maltiness, but the lack of larger aromas made me wonder what it would deliver.
Mouthfeel - Every place I had this ale, I was unimpressed by the thin mouthfeel...slightly more in the mouth than water, but only just. I came to understand that a lot of the major brews in Scotland are like this. Tennent's Lager, some of the Belhaven Brews. I'm not pointing fingers, but explaining a difference between the Scottish Palate and the cultured American one. (I do not compare Tennent's to some of the mass-produced American lagers, which I do not like.) Anyway, the short of it is that this brew was watery everywhere I had it. It was also on Cask, I believe. Definitely a different experience, that.
Flavor - This was my first experience with a Scottish Ale brewed in Scotland for Scotland, and I must say that my first impressions were not my final impressions. When I first tried the 80/-, I found it flavorless, dull, tasting of little more than the water in it. However, the more I accustomed my palate to the subtleties of Scottish Ales, the more I found to appreciate it. This could have been due to what I was eating later in the trip, but I got sweet maltiness out of this beer, leaving a buttery taste and feel on my tongue. Little to no hop character, which is what you expect from a Scotch Ale.
Overall: Out of all the easily-found ales in Scotland, this one deserves its awards. I had it both kegged and casked, and I enjoyed the cask variety infinitely more, as I drove over the mountains from Stirling to Ft. William. It's definitely one of the reasons I want to go back to Scotland! (Plus, with people like the Scots there, who wouldn't love Scotland??)
I'll post more notes about Scottish Ales as I get them completed. :)
Anyone else feel free to post their notes on ales in Scotland...especially if you have comparison notes on the Caledonian 80/-.
Mar sin leibh!