90 Shilling Scotch Ale
Two Brothers Brewing Company + Tap House

 

 

Good news, I got a growler of the 90 shilling before the keg at the brewery was gone. It's a draught-only brew, so I got lucky.

This is a medium brown brew with some red tones if you hold it up to the light. It is only lightly carbonated, and the light tan head fades quickly.

The aroma is mostly malt, with faint breadiness/nuttiness.

The flavor is almost all rich malt, decidely sweet but not cloyingly so. A slight bitterness plays faintly in the background. Similarly, there's a very light diacetyl note that convinces you that yes, this is a scotch ale. A quick swig and swallow leaves a mild bitter aftertaste, just enough to keep that syrupy feel at bay.

The mouthfeel is heavy, as is typical for scotch ales, and again the hop bitterness, lacking any real hop flavor or aroma, balances the richness of the malts without making a nuisance of itself.

As for drinkablility, this ain't no session beer. I'm on my third pint, more as a handy reference for these notes than because it really seemed like a good idea to have another (that and with a growler, you gotta do something with it pretty quick).

I can't quite put my finger on where the ABV is, since the brothers are almost notorious for how well they can disguise the alcohol content in the maltiness in their brews, but my buzzometer puts it at about 7.5 %.

Overall, I tried this scotch ale not so much because I'm a great fan of the style, but because I'm a fan of the brothers and I had not yet tried this particular brew of theirs. As I make my way through pint No. 3, I am getting more impressed with what Jason did here, or maybe I'm just getting more easily impressed three pints in. I'd take the most points off for the low carbonation, but that might just be an end-of-the-keg thing.