McEwans Scotch Ale

Brewed by John Smiths (Heineken UK)
Style: Scotch Ale
Tadcaster, England

Serve in Thistle

12oz bottle into a pint glass. Nice scotch ale - sweet with a kick and a touch of smoke.

UPDATED: OCT 19, 2009 Bottle. 8%. Dark brown/black pour (colour of an irish stout) with a bubbly tan foam with medium retention. Aroma is roasted malts, toffee. Taste is quite sweet at first, malt and toffee, full bodied. I enjoyed this beer more as it started to warm. Lingering sweetness with a hint of nuts (almonds?). I don’t know if I can put it down... ohhh. It’s all gone. Simple, sweet, and delicious.

A nice Scotch Ale, pouring with a dark amber colour and smallish head. The taste suggested both chocolate and "roast" (thanks for that one, PhilB). A nice drinking ale.

Deep black with burnt browns, a soft khaki head disguises amber highlights at the bottom of my glass and along the sides. Whoever said their beer was just one color obviously never really looked at their beer. His head is thick and stubborn, lingering long into my quaffing session while lace spackles. His nose is as malty sweet as I remember it, though not as overbearing. Molasses, burnt caramel, and dark fruits, especially prunes with an extra concentrated hit of puree. Figs and brown sugar remind me of fig newtons while candied fruits bespeak that holiday menace, fruitcake. Melding together rather well, I wet my lips with McEwans Scotch Ale for the first time in a long time. Sweet, malty, and sticky, my lips smack with molasses, warm caramel, and caramelized brown sugars. Very mouth-coating, his weight is on the heavier side of medium. Spices linger in the back while a meaty center of prunes, figs, and dates receive a sweet kiss of maple. Dark breads continue to fill out his body while earth and wood slowly develops the further down my glass I travel. There is a developing smokiness which reminds me of sweet and crunchy burnt BBQ sauce. Unlike my first encounter, I feel no need to drain pour this bottle, and so I savor the last few sips before marking one for the history books.

Beers and palates can change over time, though it is more likely that it is one’s palate which changes. Experience and adventure truly are the spices of life. Having quaffed other scotch ales before revisiting McEwans, I can say that he is a readily available solid example of the Scotch Ale style, but not the best. Grab a bottle and see for yourself what kind of impression McEwans Scotch Ale leaves on your evolving palate.

1/30/2008: McEwan’s Scotch Ale is deep brown with ruby red highlights. It has a small tan head that is long-lasting and provides some lacing. The aroma is bready and reminds me of fermenting apples/vinegar. The flavor is very dry and dusty at first, but then gets sweeter with more fruit, caramel, and a very slight smokiness. It finishes strong with some bitterness as well. This beer has a medium body and feels slightly sticky on the lips.

12 fl. oz. bottle (8% alc/vol) shared by Tmoney99. Thanks Tom! Rating #818 for this beer.

Overall Impression: A pretty enjoyable beer, I like this one, it isn’t one of the best beers on earth, but for it’s availability, it is pretty darn good. Nice brew.

Bottle. Almost opaque dark brown-red with a medium foamy mocha head. Average retention and good lacing. Aroma is toffee, sugar, toasted malt, dark fruits and alcohol. Flavor is toffee, molasses, spices, dark fruits, hops and alcohol. Medium body.

"Yummy aroma with its bold malt and sweet dark fruits and hints of alcohol. Nice looking off white head that has a short life and a dark ruby red body. This brew has tons of flavor that changes with every sip, dark malts, prunes, cherry, maybe small hints of coffee, and just maybe clove. Brew starts to take on red wine like qualities the warmer it gets. Brew is so dam tasty didn’t even really notice the 8% until it was too late. I will never hesitate to buy this again."