Wee Heavy Champ Scotch Ale
Magic Hat Brewing Company

Pours a murky looking brown color with small one finger tan head to real lace.

Aroma is malty murky molasses notes, dark fruits, figs and dates more sugary then most Wee Heavy's kind of like the molasses notes.

Taste is little different, rich dark caramel maybe to roasted lightly burnt notes that added to the dry coco like powder are just dry and lightly burnt bitter. Weird expecting some sweet molasses hints but not getting it. the dryness in the finish is what is making it not as great as the nose to me.

Mouthfeel is medium fairly smooth carbonation.

Overall smells great tastes eh ok but just kind of a let down after that good nose.

 

12 ounce bottle poured into a tulip/snifter glass.

L---Opaque dark brown color. Nice off-white head. Very good lacing.

S---Malty. Caramel and dark/dried fruits (cherry/raisin). No hop presence.

T---Molasses. A bit of chocolate shows up. Cherry & raisin follow from the nose.

F---Not as heavy as ABV would suggest. Still a medium-full mouthfeel. Lightly carbonated.

O---A nice Scotch ale/wee heavy. I could drink a few of these, easily.

eyes...
wow, it really looks like a water spout in there, 1 full finger of well constructed head, with all that carbonation rolling around you can bet this head sticks around, how am I supposed to spot the legendary beast with cover like that? deep-red to brown hue with lacing like glue... damn skippy this is nice looking

nose...
musty molasses, hints of prune... not much else

taste etc...
medium bodied, not much flavor, kind of some molasses (not deep) mixed with malt, some better notes on the after taste in terms of depth, overall though... it is just pretty bland

verdict?
well hidden ABV... other than that this is no champ or worth the moniker of a legendary monster.

Magic Hat Brewing Co. "Wee Heavy Champ Scotch Ale"
12 fl. oz brown glass bottle
$4.99 @ Total Wine & More, Cherry Hill, NJ

Notes via stream of consciousness: It's poured a nice creamy head of tan atop a hazy chestnut and mahogany brown body. The aroma is malty, very darkly caramelish, slightly dark dried-fruit-like, a hint chocolatey, roasty and almost smokey, and a touch herbal. I'm pretty sure those are hops I smell giving it that herbal note although Scotch ale generally doesn't have any hop aroma. Maybe I'm wrong. On to the flavor... similar as expected. There is a definite licorice note to it, which I'd attribute to herbal hops and dark caramelish malt. The head has now dropped to a thin creamy cap and there's some decent lacing left behind. Lots of dark caramel in the flavor with a note that's almost like molasses but even darker, almost like burnt sugar. Some dull raisin. Some spice that might be the alcohol talking. A stiff bitterness backs it and helps to dry it in the finish, which I find a little herbal and spicy. It doesn't seem like 8.0% abv. Full-medium in body and smooth. Not bad, but not a great Scotch ale either.
3.75/3.75/3.75/4/3.75 = 3.78

 

 

 

 

I was on an excursion to Subs & Six Packs on Columbia Avenue recently when I spied this guy in the reefer & brought a bottle home more out of curiosity than anything else. The label is quite attention-getting.

From the bottle: "Humdinger Collection [-] A collection of distinctive ales, brewed for our friends with discriminating palates and a generous spirit."; "It takes a peculiar strength to wrestle the complexities of Wee Heavy Champ. Rich malt notes of caramel, chocolate and wheat ripple on the surface, while in the depths of its opaque body lies just a touch of hop bitterness."; "Time doesn't exist, watches exist".

I Pop!ped the cap, but because I was a) going with a large snifter for a glass and b) it was a fresh bottle, I performed a heavy-handed pour. A vigorous in-glass swirl raised just over a finger of foamy, fizzy, deep-tan/light-brown head with decent retention. Nose smelled strongly of chocolate & treacle as well as a bit of simple booziness. I also thought that I caught some butterscotch, but I have a blind spot for diacetyl, so either it was prevalent or I was mistaken. It was not unpleasant, though. Mouthfeel was medium-to-full, not quite creamy, but close. The taste was more caramel than butterscotch, and the chocolate and treacle were also prevalent flavors. This was sweeter than the one that I had previously from SN, but it was a nice change of pace as this is not a routine style in my rotation. Finish was sweet to semi-sweet, but sweet enough that one was satiating for this hophead, plus the ABV was getting to me.

 

 

(12 oz bottle, probably at least 6 months old or more, poured into a teku)

L: clear, dark burgundy until dregs go in, then it gets lightly hazy... pinky-width head builds on pour, then falls to thin, snotty collar

S: mild dark caramel with a more prominent, almost vinous dark-fruity esters... raisin, black cherry... no overt boozy notes... nice aromas, but weak overall intensity

T: small flash of cocoa up front, gives way immediately to a dense, dry, dark fruitiness and a subtle hint of the crusty burnt essence of dark caramel... the rich, dry fruit and caramel carries through finish, with the latter delicately surging on the back end... roasty, dark bread crust, herbal aftertaste with a surprisingly-bold, humming-lingering bitterness... lack of depth/character in the malt profile most glaring flaw

F: enough chub and tender slickness in the mouthfeel to give it some weight... marginal viscosity, and relatively light-bodied on the edges... slight warmth in its nicely-attenuated finish

O: surprised by the degree of intensity of the herbal essence and bitterness in the back end - provides a balance, counterpoint, and extra dimension of flavor not found in many of the domestic Scotch ales... would certainly get this again

 

 

 

A: [3.75] The bottle lists the ABV (8.0%). I can't find a date code. The beer is a brown color with red hues. It forms 1 1/2 fingers of khaki head with medium bubbles.

S: [3.25] Marshmallow, hints of booze,

T: [3.25] Again there is a little booze (surprising at 8.0%). Under that I get chocolate and hints of brown bread. Maybe something fruity like cherry.

M: [3.00] The carbonation is too high. It is prickly on the tongue and feels aggressive for the style.

O: [3.25] The scents and flavors are really muted in this beer. I kept sniffing and sampling and no words were coming to me based on what I was sensing. The aroma and flavor aren't bad, per se, they are just nondescript. The body is ok but the carbonation distorts that. I'd pass on this in the future.

 

Dark brown pour with thin tan head. Aroma is cooked sugar, molasses bread. Flavor follows similarly with some sweet dark fruit notes. Similar to other reviewers I noted a lack of the style-characteristic peatiness but otherwise very enjoyable. Smooth, sweet but not cloying. Happy I got 4 of them.