xnoxhatex (1305), Grand Rapids/Chicago, Michigan, USA Oct 28, 2007 12 oz bottle at Quenchers, Chicago. Dark ruby color with beige head. Aroma is very doughy malt. Flacor is caramel, brown sugar, alc, very nice. Medium body and creamy. Very nice overall. biggmike (480), Hattiesburg, Mississippi, USA Oct 25, 2007 Poured an attractive dark ruby color that was very inviting. Had a good head that lasted a while. Aroma was very malty and sweet. Flavor was of malt, caramel, peat and brown sugar. Nicely balanced with a bit of a bitter hop finish. Lacing was really good and the mouthfeel was pleasant. Hid the 8.3% abv very well. Good stuff. PilsnerPeter (2585), Flushing, New York, USA Oct 25, 2007 Bottle: Pours a reddish brown. Has some visible floaties, and is topped by a creamy tan head. The aroma is creamy chocolate, dark caramel, toasted bread, along with a slight alcohol touch. When it’s first opened and sipped it has an almost minty character upfront, maybe from the hops. As it breathes it evens out to a nice roasted earthiness from the malt profile. It’s not too sweet at all. There’s some chocolate, peat along with a consistent bitterness (almost piney earthiness) throughout the flavor scale. The finish continues the earthy undertones displaying a hint of smoke and tobacco in the late palate. Nice and earthy, which is what I look for in Scotch Ales. It’s also pretty dry overall, which I enjoyed. A pretty good Scotch Ale. jvmiller (532), Bel Air, Maryland, USA Oct 21, 2007 Too sweet for me. It has a bittery-raisin finish that reminds me of Belgians. Alcohol is hidden, but I really didn’t find this one enjoyable. travita (1851), Frisco, Texas, USA Oct 19, 2007 Deep red color with a tan head. Scottish malts, maple, and caramel in the aroma. Strong alcoholic taste with a sweet malt and caramel in the finish.
GG (1612), NorCal, California, USA Oct 15, 2007 Received this beer in a trade from someone, but it’s been awhile (and 20 trades later) so I forgot who sent it to me. While Founders seems to have a huge repetoire of beers, I’ve only had a smattering of them, and they seem garner either a really good or average reviews. Since I’ve always really had a soft spot for Scotch ales, I was pretty excited to finally pop the top on this one.
So the beer pours out a dark brown color, mostly opaque but it started to clear on the end, with red highlights on the edges. A huge 4 finger thick khaki head erputed from my glass. It had some serious staying power and the head kept true thru the entire beer. Aroma was semi-sweet, malty, caramel, subtle run and smoke notes run along side a peaty note. Flavor is more sweetness, caramel covered raisins with a slightly over-carbonated finish. Would have received a bit higher scores from me if it was a little smoother. Still, a very nice beer. emacgee (1859), Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA Oct 7, 2007 Updated: Dec 10, 2007Thanks dra19! Finally got a bottle of this to re-rate since I’ve only had it at a festival. Pours a nice dark burgundy brown. Little to no tan head. The aroma is malty, sweet, raisins, nice aroma. The flavor is sweet, alcohol, malty, caramel, raisins, rich, nice flavor profile. Warm dry palate and nice sweet finish. mcox90 (618), Wilton, USA Oct 7, 2007 12 oz bottle courtesy of Acknud. Pours a reddish caramel color with offwhite head. Nose is a little smoky with malts. Mouthfeel is a bit on the heavy side. Taste is of roasted malt, smoky peat, some caramel and brown sugar. Alcohol is well hidden until the end. When the brew is warm, the alcohol comes out to play. The finish is a bit on the hoppy side. Bitter aftertaste.
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