The Battle Of Bannockburn 1314
Black Wolf Brewery

500ml bottle. A commemorative brew for a near 700 year-old battle, where the Scots whupped some English ass, the import of which isn't beer-centric enough for me to waste even more time on Google, so here we go.

This beer pours a clear, medium golden yellow hue, with one chubby finger of finely foamy dirty white head, which leaves some decent tree canopy lace around the glass as it evenly subsides.

It smells of bready, fruity, and biscuity pale malt, a twinge of flat caramel, and grassy and leafy hops. The taste is softly biscuity, and bready malt, with a healthy graininess, some understated aged lemon fruitiness, and some nicely bitter hay bale-esque and wild grassy hoppiness.

The carbonation is fine and supportive in its way, the body a sturdy middleweight, and tacitly smooth. It finishes fairly off-dry, the malt shedding most of its crisp character, but is well saved by the lingering, and still sassy hops.

While this is proclaimed as a 'Blonde Beer' on the label, this actually has a whole lot more in common with a basic English Bitter than with the broadly overwrought, and generally underwhelming American Blond ale. Moderately biscuity in its malt profile, with a stout-hearted (Scottish - aye!) fruitiness, and well-balanced hops, read: present and proud. Recommended for all your nationalistic, jingo-tastic drinking needs.