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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Ratings	Average	Score	ABV	Style Pctl	Serve in
622	3.39/5.0	3.38/5.0	7.5%	75.1	Dimpled 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.

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hezron (601), Viroqua, Wisconsin, USA

3.7	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.7	7/10	4/5	8/10	3/5	15/20

Jun 22, 2005

A sweet mixture of caramel, maple and pine, then dried figs as it warms. Interesting aroma. Copper-amber with an inch tall, off-white head that things a little. Tastes just like red licorice! It is the dried fig with a pine twist. Sweet. Makes mouthes happy. Soft carbination, medium body, watery texture. I really enjoyed this one.

Dixen (1465), Flagstaff, Arizona, USA

2.6	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
2.6	6/10	3/5	5/10	2/5	10/20

May 29, 2005

Nose of pines, good sweetness, some alcohol. Borwn to dark red body, small white head. Has a werid bitterness from the pines, good sweetness. Interesting brew.

Boutip (2345), Gatineau, Quebec, Canada

3	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3	6/10	2/5	7/10	3/5	12/20

May 20, 2005

Bottle: Poured a cloudy dark amber color ale with a medium head with minimal retention. Aroma is different then what I’m used to with some sweet beery-like notes and some pines is definitely identifiable. Taste is sweeter then expected with some pine flavour in the back. Generally a bit lighter then expected but still enjoyable.

thedm (3834), Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA

2.5	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
2.5	6/10	4/5	4/10	3/5	8/20

May 17, 2005

This bottled brew marked best before 6/01 and served in a wine goblet poured a small sized head of quickly diminishing clear colored finely sized bubbles that soon faded to nothing. They left behind a hazy dark brown colored body. The aroma was mildly vinous like a wine with chocolate. The mouth feel was smooth initially mild and bubbly in its almost flat finish. There was a cough syrup note in the flavor that I did not care for. Otherwise it had a piny hop/strange brown malty taste that was just too weird for my palate.

Papsoe (14849), Frederiksberg, Denmark

3	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3	6/10	3/5	6/10	3/5	12/20

May 17, 2005 Updated: Feb 4, 2007

(Bottle 33 cl) Amber-coloured, presumably filtered with some sediment though. Sweetish almost honey-like. Has some Retsina-character - understandably. 240904

Got Stout? (173), Wisconsin, USA

3.9	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.9	8/10	3/5	8/10	4/5	16/20

May 15, 2005

I am blown away by this remarkable Ale. It is a very unique beer (to me) and hard to describe for me. The initial drink is a snappy, spicy swallow that stays dormant for about three seconds. Then, all sorts of flavors come through, like (predictably) pine and spice, malty berries and others that I can’t explain. I love it.

Sanchex (223), Toronto, Ontario, Canada

2.8	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
2.8	5/10	4/5	6/10	3/5	10/20

May 3, 2005

Loose golden head. Gold auburn colour. Chemical smell like pine cleaner but no hint of fresh pine. Sweet flavour profile. Nice mouthfeel. Hints of cherries, port, and apricots. Just okay. Cheers!

dm9831 (1167), Monee, Illinois, USA

1.4	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
1.4	2/10	3/5	3/10	2/5	4/20

May 3, 2005

dark amber (apricotty looking), with a small head. an assault of fruit in the aroma, with a flavor that overpowers (reminicent of blackberries), which i found disturbing. widdershins.

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