Heather Ale
Amherst Brewing

THIS is the beer that got me into craft beers. It is still my favorite even though retired. True, the heather flavor is mild but the floral aroma combined with the lush mouth feel make this one of my all-time favorites. I will never forget you my wild heather ale! Please, ABC if you are paying attention...Bring back the sweet rolling hills of heather of my heart.

Enjoyed on cask at Amherst Brewing Company. Glad to see the make a comeback. Poured into a standard pint glass.

A - Pours a slightly hazy copper hue with a creamy dense one finger head that leaves very nice side lacing and a good creamy blanket.

S - Aromas of honey and well...heather! Nice floral perfumey meadows of flowers dance across my nose. There is some very light malt sweetness.

T - Similar to the nose with light malt sweetness along with some faint honey. Some herbal floral perfume qualities from the heather. Slight bready finish on the end with more of the meadows.

M - Mouthfeel is average for a cask with a thinnish feel. Definitely too warm of a pour.

O - Overall I felt this was an alright gruit beer. I enjoy fruits and this is a solid representation from my alma mater glad to have tried this after having it discontinued my freshman year.

First Gruit to date, very interested. They replaced hops with the heather flower.

Look is a hazy deep yellow orange, not much head by the time it got to the table, non existant in a minute.

Citrusy sort of smell to it, some grains in the background.

Guava right off the bat, I mistakenly thought of pineapple-grapefruit at first but definately guava. The finish had a APA style clean crisp grain flavor to it.

Mouthfeel was a medium body, not to thin not to thick with minimal carbonation. Drinkability suffered a bit due to the guava and the low carbonation.

Had on tap at ABC. It came with as a golden dark ale with a really light head. Its smell had a faint odor that was sweet. Sure enough, once sipped the drink had a very light, sweet taste to it. With its medium carbonation, the Heather Ale was a sweet, subtle treat at ABC.

Sampled July 2005 at the brewpub.

This heather ale poured a hazy, orange-amber color with creamy, white foam that slowly settled. The smell was of heather with a slight tanginess, but it had a mild aroma overall. The taste was mildly floral heather with a mild maltiness to back it up and a slight citrus flavor in the finish. [The heather used was from Oregon, according to the bartender.] The mouthfeel was very smooth with medium-light body and modest carbonation. There was a citrusy maltiness in the aftertaste. This was a good, fairly light in body, heather ale. It seemed lighter than I remembered it.

yes folks, its back on tap at the brewpub. available (as i got it) in 1L swingtop blue growlers.

cloudy. peach color with slight ring of bubbles.. probably a result of hard and fast pour. speaking of peach, the aroma is overwhelming with the fuzzy fruit. vinous. floral heathery heather ale. first sip of this beer made me take notice.. deep and different flavor evoking a bry but fruity white wine. beer is not a word i would use to describe this since the hops seem to be an absent ingredient here. brought this to a tasting and it seemed to get one of the highest reactions. no wonder, this beer is a mind-blower to east coast freaks who are used to guzzling pale ales and porters. freshness adds infinitely to this beer, as there are no notes of sourness that aren't meant to be there. amazing.

only drawback is drinkability.. as high taste factor would limit the consumption.

This was the beer that got me initially into beer...but I never rated it. Now, I look back on it with nostalgia and wonder. But, since my tastes have evolved since then, it has changed my perspective on the brew. If you are new to drinking beers, I would HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this, however if you're a bit seasoned it may be a little too delicate for your liking.

This beer pours a pretty medium copper color with a small amount of carbonation and minimal head. A little lacing. Smells of very mild malts with floral accents. Taste follows the nose with a very delicate bit of malts and flowers. It is brewed with no hops and is quite nice if you aren't in the mood for a stronger beer. Mouthfeel is decent.

Again, this was the beer that opened the door for me to the world of beers, it was a good starting point because it wasn't very bitter and it tasted like how I wanted a beer to taste (before I had beer).

Purchased at the brewpub, and was presented in a cobalt blue glass 1/2 growler with a swing-top lid.

Poured into an imperial pint glass, a big-bubbled, fluffy whitish head of almost 1/2" over the copper brew. Light aroma of with the heather upfront, and some pale malts in the background. Flavor is an interesting and pleasing combination of light fruits and pale malts, combined into a smooth package. Hard to get used ot the complete absence of hops taste/aroma/mouthfeel, but we'll deal. Seems a bit on the sweet/syrupy side, which affects the drinkability a bit for me. Definitely worth a try for a change of pace.

Was not impressed with ABC's Heather Ale.It had no head or carbonation whatsoever.It was a cloudy brown in color.Looked alot like apple juice or an iced tea.Very poor low cabonated mouthfeel.Light bodied,but was very watery.From what I read there was no hops used in it only heather.Had a slight bitterness though.Very fruity aroma and taste.Needs more body and carbonation.If they can balance it out it would be a great and unique brew.