Off Kilter Scotch Ale
King’s Road Brewing Company

King’s Road Brewing Company "Off Kilter Scotch Ale"
$10/32 fl. oz. growler direct from the brewery on 03/22/18

Notes via stream of consciousness: It's poured a very dark brown, perhaps chestnut brown, but then seemingly darker, maybe dark mahogany. It's quite hazy when held to direct light, and has russet brown and orange highlights. The head is a short cap of creamy white that's already dwindled twice on me, firstly after my half pour into an Imperial pint glass, and secondly after I've topped it up. That's a bit understandable given that it's probably got, and should have, a moderate carbonation level to it, but at the same time it's got a lot of residual sugars to it - or it should have - which should help to maintain a head. There's also no lacing left behind where it's fallen, and now it's gone to just a thin collar. Hmmmm...? Maybe it's got something to do with the growler fill although I didn't see any issues with it and I watched the whole time. OK, moving forward... the aroma is limited but that's not too uncommon. There's some caramelish malt to it, and I don't expect any hops - and there are no off-fermentation notes. Maybe as it warms a bit it will open up. On to the flavor... mmmmmmmm, plenty of caramel here. Almost to a fault in fact. I'm getting some apple-like fruitiness but that's all beyond the medium caramel maltiness. Wait, I'll even give it a hint of nuttiness, some underlying chocolate in the background, and a drop or two of coffee / teensy bit of roastiness. But there's no suggestion of smokiness, not that that's required, but at least a little more of something is expected even if it's just a deeper caramelization of the wort in the kettle. It doesn't really have the depth of maltiness and almost burnt sugary edge you get from that. Hmmm. I'm not sure where I stand on this. It seems like it hasn't quite stepped into the "Scotch Ale" realm, although it's beyond just "Scottish ale" at least as far as the caramel aspect of the maltiness goes, and the strength - but at the same time that makes a little bit of sense as it's on the lower end at just 6.46% abv. But it has most of the DNA. Medium-bodied with a dextrinous side and a moderate, smooth carbonation. I'm enjoying it but I've certainly had much better examples. The apple-like yeasty fruitiness might be a bit too much for the style but it doesn't hurt on a hedonistic level. Overall it's a nice, pleasant, easy to drink, malty, sweet and strong ale.