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Heather Ales Alba

Percentile
81
overall
Brewed by Williams Brothers (Heather Ales)
Style: Traditional Ale

Alloa, Central, Scotland

bottled
common

on tap
unknown

Broad Distribution
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RatingsAverageScoreABVStyle PctlServe in
6223.39/5.03.38/5.07.5%75.1Dimpled mug, English pint, Stein, Yard
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.
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 gunnfryd (3568), Kristiansand, Norway
3.4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/104/56/104/514/20
May 4, 2006  
Bottled. Red brown colour with a beige head. Malt and sweet caramel in the aroma. Roasted sweet caramel in the flavour.


 yngwie (4910), Kristiansand, Norway
3.3 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/104/56/104/513/20
May 1, 2006    Updated: May 13, 2009
Bottled. A still, copper-colored beer with a small beige head. Malt and caramel-sweetness in the aroma. It’s pleasant, almost bock-like. Malty flavor with some alcohol and sweetness. A bit dry. Lightly sticky full to medium body. Rating: 6-4-6-4-13-3.3. (060422)

Bottle. It pours a hazy orange-golden color, with almost no trace of head on top. Malty-sweet, citrusy and woody nose with some alcohol sweetness. Full-bodied and warming. The flavor is caramel-sweet and quite fruity, with some bitterness, but the tree-flavors seems to disappear in the alcohol. Still, it’s a quite nice beer. Nothing I could drink a lot of though. (090513)


 blueduk (118), Eugene, Oregon, USA
4.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
9/105/58/104/515/20
Apr 29, 2006  
I’m extremely happy with this beer. It’s a nice beer for later in the evening; the alcoholic potency didn’t really hit me until it almost put me to sleep. Pours with a medium light brown creamy head on a hazy red-brown body. There are no hop aromas (since the beer contains none), just delicious malty ones. As the name suggests, lots of pine and spruce backed up with some creamy caramel. There are so many hints of spice (coriander?) you could never name them all. The body is oily slick with a little fizzy carbonation. Just the thing for indigestion! The rich and chewy texture carries the beer through a long finish. Flavors are those mentioned in aromatics.


WhiteAlePower (91), Long Island, New York, USA
3.7 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/57/104/517/20
Apr 19, 2006  
Excellent brew. Bottle. Nice deep brown colour and spicy aroma. Excellent with a plate of fish n chips.


 caesar (3021), Bunnik/Utrecht, Netherlands
3.2 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/56/103/513/20
Apr 7, 2006  
Bottle, Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh. Sweet and sour berry aroma, same kind of taste. Bit sticky palate. Some licorice in a beer where you don’t expect it.


 BeerHawk (1175), Huntsville, Alabama, USA
3.3 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/57/103/513/20
Apr 5, 2006  
Bottle. Pours a brownish color with a thin off-white head. Aromas of dark fruits and sweet candy. The flavor was sweet and fruity with hints of malts. For a few sips I think I found spices and pine but that went away quickly. Maybe I was just imagining it from the name and commercial description. Medium body. Tingly and slightly warming in the mouth.


 MoreHead (355), Minnetonka, Minnesota, USA
3.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/56/103/513/20
Mar 29, 2006  
wow, now that’s different. aroma is very scottish with a sweet medicine dominance. taste is of glove and spice, not really sensing the pine. worth a try but i’m glad i only have 1.


 kimcgolf (828), Dacula, Georgia, USA
1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
2/104/51/101/52/20
Mar 22, 2006  
About the only thing good about this beer was it’s appearance, and the fact that I only had to choke down a 12 oz. bottle. Michael Jackson describes it as "oily, peppery and medicinal". That says it all. Overwhelming aroma, taste and finish of pine. Leave that for air fresheners. I’m sorry to say that in 35 years of beer drinking, this is probably one of the 5 worst I’ve ever had.



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