Traquair House Ale
Traquair House Brewery

Very flavorful and unique, strong sweet maltiness with a slight astringent alcohol taste. Served bottled, a little thin compared to draft dark ales.

 

 

 

Copenhagen 30/10 2019. 33 cl bottle from Voldby Købmandsgaard (web-shop). Classic looking label with a old castle. Presented as a “Potent Liquor as brewed by the Laird”. Sounds inherently Scottish.

Pours clear deep brown with a red hue. Small off-white head. Settles as thin patch of foam unable to cover the surface of the beer.

Aroma is dark, sweet and boozy. Dark, fermented fruit, plums and prunes, light salty licorice, sugar. Hints of lightly smoky peat.

Light carbonation. Slightly thick, oily texture.

Flavor has a strong sweetness followed by a lighter saltiness and light bitterness. Aftertaste is sweet leading to a boozy finish.

Dark, strong and Scottish. As it should be.

RB transfer

 

I really like Scotch/Wee Heavy Ales, surprised I didn't give it a higher rating. Don't really remember it though.

 

Look: medium dark with a thin head that doesn’t last long

Smell: malty, caramel, earthy, sweet plum

Taste: A lot going on. Dark malty taste on the front and a pleasant, sweet taste that follows. Almost like you’re drinking a dark sugary bread. Lingering smokey aftertaste. I’d give the taste a 10/10.

Feel: Heavy, but not quite as syrupy that is common with this type of beer.

 

L:
-pours a very dark brown with ruby tinges and a medium,frothy,white head
-low carbonation visible
S:
-malty,caramel,honey,herbal,raisins,prunes,earthy,syrupy,cooked potatoes
T:
-spicy,bready,caramel,malty,rose hip,raspberries,
-low-to-medium bitterniss
-finishes dry
F:
-medium body
-medium carbonation
-alcohol noticeable
O:
A really good Scotch Ale with a lot of malty Depth.

 

 

 

Excl name/ABV this is blind tasted.
L- Deep chestnut brown, pours clear, with a 3mm mid-tan fine-bubble foam lid (fading as a I type, then essentially gone by 3mins).
S- It seems quite mild though I get a hint of either light ABV% 'zing' or the brightness of a stewed stone-fruit. Yep, mild for me.
T- Interesting that it's opener is more subtle than anticipated, it's into deep trad malts then a light part-balancing hoppy aspect. It's trad alright but with 7.2% as a foundation I'd expected it to build more upon that.
F- CO2 in the mouth seems good. This one is fridge cold, I'm concluding that is not best and that getting it closer towards room temp (10C?) might open it up further with added detail.
O- It's ok, nothing obviously wrong here, but nothing exciting or stand-out for mention, ie no reason to buy again. But there are plenty of similar UK ales that offer the same as this and many others still that build out a wider and more engaging profile. Examples: Abbot Reserve/6.5% or Fullers 1845/6.3%. Conclusion, quite disappointing.

I'd never heard of this brewery until last week. Here the reviews are almost all from the US, the last from the UK was 4 years ago, seems odd. Reading the lable now ... serve at room temp, ok hmm, I agree though. The script about liquor (re: beer) oldest inhabited house and lairds all seems a bit .... pitched at foreigners, ask the average Brit what 'laird' is, esp south of the border, expect lots of blank looks.
BB: May 33, stamped at neck. That is a heck of a long expiry for a mere 7.2% I wouldn't given it more than 'Bottled on'+2 years.

"Best before December 2033"; drank 10/15/24 @ the Yarchives.

Mostly opaque brown/purple appearance.

A rough pour yielded a nice khaki head; strong lacing remained.

Plum, candle wax, mild caramel & faint wood notes in the nose.

Thick, creamy mouthfeel.

Plum & candle wax flavors up front; mild caramel & faint wood notes on the finish.

A big, bold, tasty beer. I'd have another.

Poured a twelve ounce bottle, the body is brown with a small white head. Not much lacing.

Aroma is a pleasing caramel and oak.

Taste follows nose and adds a sweet malt backbone Notes of vanilla nicely pair with the oak. In the background is peat? This wee heavy is from Scotland after all.

Mouthfeel is good with low carbonation. Things dry up nicely at finish.

330 ml, pours a dark brown/black with ruby highlights, a thin tan head that moves to a rim of lace expeditiously. Smell of toffee, malts, nuts and oak. Taste is right in line. Slightly thin in feel, medium amount of carbonation. Wee heavy.