Piper Down Scottish Ale | Ballast Point Brewing Company




Brewed by:
Ballast Point Brewing Company
California, United States
ballastpoint.com
Style: Scottish Ale
Alcohol by volume (ABV): 5.80%
Availability: Rotating
Notes / Commercial Description:
No notes at this time.
Added by BeerAdvocate on 06-15-2003
HISTOGRAM
View: Beers | Place Reviews
Ratings: 408 | Reviews: 86
3.93/5 rDev +8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
A really good Scottish ale. Ba scored 82. I would bump it up another 9 points. Ballast point has yet to disappoint me. They clearly know how to brew good quality
165 characters
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
A really good Scottish ale. Ba scored 82. I would bump it up another 9 points. Ballast point has yet to disappoint me. They clearly know how to brew good quality
165 characters
3.62/5 rDev -0.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.75/5 rDev +3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.73/5 rDev +2.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.75
Great head
Not as good looking as young pan grier
Red in colour not that great dark brown
Hops are more prevalent than expected for the style but it doesn't taste bad
Could use more malt
188 characters
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.75
Great head
Not as good looking as young pan grier
Red in colour not that great dark brown
Hops are more prevalent than expected for the style but it doesn't taste bad
Could use more malt
188 characters
3.34/5 rDev -8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3.5
L: reddish brown colored beer with a finger and a half of off white head. some lacing as you drink
S: caramel
T: Sweet malts balanced by a slightly piney hop finish. decent balance here just nothing really jumping out
F: Lighter than I'd like
O: This is okay beer.
266 characters
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3.5
L: reddish brown colored beer with a finger and a half of off white head. some lacing as you drink
S: caramel
T: Sweet malts balanced by a slightly piney hop finish. decent balance here just nothing really jumping out
F: Lighter than I'd like
O: This is okay beer.
266 characters
3.75/5 rDev +3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.7/5 rDev +1.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75
3.95/5 rDev +8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Can't beleive the low reviews here on this ale. I like it a lot. Peppery up front with a crisp finish. This is probably the beer Killians Red always wanted to be. BP does well again.
182 characters
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Can't beleive the low reviews here on this ale. I like it a lot. Peppery up front with a crisp finish. This is probably the beer Killians Red always wanted to be. BP does well again.
182 characters
3.79/5 rDev +4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
A ruddy light brown brew. Deep rich malty sweet nose. Some caramel and light earthy hoppiness. Taste follows suit. Malty grains and caramel sweeteness. Tea leaf bitterness. Lighty tingling carbonation with a medium weight. Lighter and easy drinking. Good solid Scotch Ale.
272 characters
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
A ruddy light brown brew. Deep rich malty sweet nose. Some caramel and light earthy hoppiness. Taste follows suit. Malty grains and caramel sweeteness. Tea leaf bitterness. Lighty tingling carbonation with a medium weight. Lighter and easy drinking. Good solid Scotch Ale.
272 characters
3.63/5 rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
2.88/5 rDev -20.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
3.58/5 rDev -1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
One of the lightest scottish ales I've ever had. That's a good thing for me because I'm not generally a fan of scottish ales. Poured a deep crimson red. Hardly carbonated..almost flat..which led to a very very thin layer of foam. Smell and taste are malty caramels with a touch of hoppiness. Mouthfeel is light but wide-bodied. Overall not a bad beer but not the best from BP.
376 characters
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
One of the lightest scottish ales I've ever had. That's a good thing for me because I'm not generally a fan of scottish ales. Poured a deep crimson red. Hardly carbonated..almost flat..which led to a very very thin layer of foam. Smell and taste are malty caramels with a touch of hoppiness. Mouthfeel is light but wide-bodied. Overall not a bad beer but not the best from BP.
376 characters
3.75/5 rDev +3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.44/5 rDev -5.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.5/5 rDev -3.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.75/5 rDev +3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.63/5 rDev -0.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
4.28/5 rDev +17.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Not going to say any more than if you like beer then get this beer. Not the greatest beer ever but excellent just like almost every beer they make.
147 characters
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Not going to say any more than if you like beer then get this beer. Not the greatest beer ever but excellent just like almost every beer they make.
147 characters
3.76/5 rDev +3.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
4.48/5 rDev +23.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
3.2/5 rDev -12.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Poured from bottle into a pint glass
Appearance – The beer pours a deep mahogany brown color with a one finger head of tan colored foam. The head fades rather fast leaving a good deal of foamy lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell- The aroma of the brew is strong of a roasted malt and molasses smell. Along with these aromas comes some other smells of caramel and darker fruits with just a hint on a floral hop note.
Taste – The taste begins much drier then I would have anticipated from the nose, starting with just a hint of caramel sweetness mixed with a rather stronger roasted bready taste. As the taste advances the caramel upfront fades away with a light dark fruity flavor taking its place. At the same time some hop flavors of a grassy and floral hop taste mixed with a little bit of graininess come to the tongue and with a light earthy hop coming at the very end, one is left with a rather dry and roasty taste to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel- The body of the brew is on the thinner side with a carbonation level that is rather low. The low carbonation is nice for the style, but a thicker body would have accentuated the roasty flavors slightly better. Overall, it was an OK feel.
Overall – I have to say I am a bit disappointed with this Ballast Point brew. They normally do most all styles nice, but this was way too dry and flavorless for a Scottish ale in my opinion. Certainly not their best…
1,434 characters
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Poured from bottle into a pint glass
Appearance – The beer pours a deep mahogany brown color with a one finger head of tan colored foam. The head fades rather fast leaving a good deal of foamy lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell- The aroma of the brew is strong of a roasted malt and molasses smell. Along with these aromas comes some other smells of caramel and darker fruits with just a hint on a floral hop note.
Taste – The taste begins much drier then I would have anticipated from the nose, starting with just a hint of caramel sweetness mixed with a rather stronger roasted bready taste. As the taste advances the caramel upfront fades away with a light dark fruity flavor taking its place. At the same time some hop flavors of a grassy and floral hop taste mixed with a little bit of graininess come to the tongue and with a light earthy hop coming at the very end, one is left with a rather dry and roasty taste to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel- The body of the brew is on the thinner side with a carbonation level that is rather low. The low carbonation is nice for the style, but a thicker body would have accentuated the roasty flavors slightly better. Overall, it was an OK feel.
Overall – I have to say I am a bit disappointed with this Ballast Point brew. They normally do most all styles nice, but this was way too dry and flavorless for a Scottish ale in my opinion. Certainly not their best…
1,434 characters
3.82/5 rDev +4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Piper Down Scottish Ale from Ballast Point Brewing Company
Beer rating:
3.64 out of
5 with
408 ratings
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