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Score
8784
OVERALLStyle
Brewed by Williams Brothers (Heather Ales)
Style: Traditional Ale
Alloa, Scotland

bottled
common

on tap
available

Broad Distribution

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RATINGS: 760   WEIGHTED AVG: 3.37   EST. CALORIES: 225   ABV: 7.5%
COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
Bottled. A cask version at 6% is produced in March and April.
"Scots Pine Ale"
Introduced by the Vikings, spruce and pine ales were very popular in the Scottish Highlands until the end of the 19th century. Many early explorers, including Captain Cook, used spruce ale during long sea voyages since it prevented scurvy and ill health. Shetland spruce ale was said to "stimulate animal instincts" and give you twins. Alba is a triple style ale brewed to a traditional Highland recipe from Scots pine and spruce shoots pickled during early spring.Pure malted barley, is boiled with the young sprigs of pine for several hours then the fresh shoots of the spruce are added for a short infusion before fermentation.
A tawny brown strong ale with spruce aroma, rich malt texture, complex wood flavour and lingering finish.
Best drunk at room temperature from a wine goblet as an after dinner digestive.

3.5
   AROMA 7/10   APPEARANCE 3/5   TASTE 7/10   PALATE 3/5   OVERALL 15/20
mkel07 (1556) - Brisbane, AUSTRALIA - FEB 15, 2010
330ml bottle. Slightly murky and well carbonated with a light peach colour and a scattering of light brown bubbles across the top. Aromas of fruit salad with a blend of peach, melon and passionfruit thrown in. Earthy flavour with a hint of sweetness, tastes almost perfumey. Different but quite nice.

3.6
   AROMA 4/10   APPEARANCE 5/5   TASTE 6/10   PALATE 5/5   OVERALL 16/20
gsmitty80 (1362) - Washington DC, USA - FEB 15, 2010
Bottled Drink by June 10’. This is one of the more interesting beers that i have had. I was expecting it to be much heavier and syrupier than it was. Pours a copper amber color with an off white head that was billowing out of the bottle when i opened it. Interesting maltiness with a touch of the pine in the palate. A little bit of bubblegum flavor too. The mixture masks the alcohol very well.

3.2
   AROMA 6/10   APPEARANCE 3/5   TASTE 5/10   PALATE 3/5   OVERALL 15/20
Strangebrewer (496) - Chatham, Ontario, CANADA - FEB 11, 2010
bottle. Poured slightly hazy, dark amber with a creamy off-white head . The aroma is candied citrus and a bit tart. Light mouthfeel and low carbonation. Flavour is malty and spicy with and a woody herbal pine note. Finish is soft with a caramel tone.

3.8
   AROMA 7/10   APPEARANCE 4/5   TASTE 8/10   PALATE 4/5   OVERALL 15/20
Allen (2401) - SWITZERLAND - JAN 20, 2010
Bottled 33cl. Quite a lot of banana throughout- pretty boring actually if it weren’t for the great pine needle ingredients. This adds a great new dimension to this beer. Hints of vanilla and bazooka. Triple style.

4.2
   AROMA 9/10   APPEARANCE 4/5   TASTE 8/10   PALATE 5/5   OVERALL 16/20
cprochak (581) - Chicago, Illinois, USA - JAN 15, 2010
Bottle had on 7/27/09. Bottle said "Drink by August 2003" so at least 6 years old. Was kind of a risk picking it up at the bottle store, but what an amazing surprise. Pours pretty dark copper with nice eggshell colored head. Aroma of caramel and burnt toffee and only a hint of pine. Sweet caramel on the front of the tongue, then a slow pine sap finish with just a hint of maple. Pretty light and amazing mouthfeel. What a fantastic find! Definitely recommend aging this a bit.

3.4
   AROMA 7/10   APPEARANCE 4/5   TASTE 7/10   PALATE 3/5   OVERALL 13/20
dnlsartin (80) - Portland, Oregon, USA - JAN 15, 2010
A fizzy, quickly diminishing head over an amber body. Sugary molasses and pine aroma. This beer’s sweetness and texture nearly remind me of a barley wine, but its finish is more along the lines of flat Pepsi. Still, there is much bold character to be found in the aggressiveness of the pine, reminiscent of a bourbon barrel with the playful excitement of apple cider.

3.8
   AROMA 7/10   APPEARANCE 3/5   TASTE 8/10   PALATE 3/5   OVERALL 17/20
skoisirius (1029) - Seattle, Washington, USA - JAN 12, 2010
Every time I’ve had this beer over the years I’ve always enjoyed it. With no hops and lots of flavors of exactly what they say, pine trees all over your palate. Lingering spruce hints in the background and a nicely complemented sweet malt makes this a great and strange sipper. The 7.5% is well tucked away as well. Definitely drink warm!

2.7
   AROMA 8/10   APPEARANCE 5/5   TASTE 3/10   PALATE 3/5   OVERALL 8/20
dedelste (13) - Ontario, CANADA - JAN 1, 2010
12 oz. gift bottle from LCBO. Nice copper colour, slightly cloudy appearance. Aroma of forest or PineSol furniture cleaner. Tastes like I imagine the latter would. Hard to rate because probably good of its kind, but I personally hate it. Finding it more tolerable as I drink it, but still dislike. Your mileage may vary.


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Rating Notecard:
Beer: Heather Ales Alba Rating Avg: 3.37 No. of Ratings: 760
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