At first, I was shocked when I looked up the ABV for this beer and found it to be a mere 6.5%. Mind you, that's pretty healthy for a beer in general, but I was expecting higher until I decoupled the concept of a Scotch ale and a Scottish ale. While I've gone on a bit too much about people conflating the two styles, I find it difficult to properly segregate their distinctive ABV in my head, but I will always remember the different tastes.
The molasses-sweet sip is unique and very nice. There doesn't appear to be any bitterness on the back end, and there isn't even a downturn of dryness. Still, this isn't a dessert beer or the like where the sweetness overwhelms the rest of the flavor and makes an evening drink a singular event without follow-up beverages. But, what does a swig taste like?
Tip-in is sweet molasses and grains with a moderate carbonation swell that is possibly enhanced by the fact that I burned the roof of my mouth on pizza yesterday. The middle is where the nuts come in with brown sugar, and the result is a sweet and smooth beverage with grains giving a little texture along the bottom. The finish is a bit dry, and the nuts eventually become a bitterness that was not in the sip, but it's not out of place.
Bottom Line: Pretty good.
3.25/5
