Neustadt Springs Scottish Ale

Brewed by Neustadt Springs Brewery
Style: Scottish Ale
Neustadt, Canada

500 ml can from LCBO, served at cellar temperature in a tulip glass. JA30/09.

App.: Clear deep-ish amber with a fairly large meringue. Aroma: Sort of a weird stinky caramel/toffee, quite nutty with some burnt sugar, ashes. Palate: Medium body, moderate effervescence. Flav.: Like the nose, there is some strange malt and a lot of burnt nuts; dry with a little bitterness and lingering nuttiness.

Not quite infected, but not quite right either.

Canette de 473 ml achetée chez LCBO (Ottawa, ONT). Arôme: Odeur de caramel fruité avce une pointe d’houblons. Apparence: La couleur est blonde orangée avec une faible densité de bulle. Présence d’un moyen col mousseux et d’une fine dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Goût de caramel avec une pointe d’houblons et de céréales. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement minérale. Moyenne effervescence en bouche. Présence de céréales en arrière goût. (Rating #2176)

Pours dark copper with an off white head. Mild hop, and caramel aromas. These combine with a light malt to achieve a quiet balanced beer. A slight malted finish. Another nice, but not great beer from Neustadt.

Can exploded all over everything when opened. Resulting pour had nearly no head, having lost most of the carbonation in the messy explosion. Colour is a nice thick brown, not dark or opaque, but certainly brown and not red. If there were a head, it would be a pale tan, based on the tiny ring left around the edges of the glass. Nose is raisins, dark fruit, and some piney resiny hops. Flavour is a lot of the same, lots of raisins, lots of pine. Very nice hop presence for the style I would say. Carbonation is predictably low, though not as low as I had imagined given the mess it made when I opened it. And it is still fairly chewy. Not bad.

Can: Poured a light amber color ale with a good size foamy head with good retention and good lacing. Aroma consists of lightly sweet caramel malt with not many other discernable characteristics. Taste is dominated by some lightly sweet caramel malt. Medium body with some OK carbonation. No hint of peat smoke or fruity ester. Not bad with no identifiable brewing flaws and easily quaffable.

Cask and regular draught. Billed at Double Fuggled @ Cest What when from cask. Clear, coppery. Little head. Nose is toffee, crystal, caramel malt and fuggles with hint of strawberry. Low to no carbonation. Diacetyl is present in non-cask version. Ends in gentle whisper of balanced fuggle, is watery but quaffable.

I am rating the Neustadt Double Fuggled Ale, served from the cask at C’est What? in Toronto. I must add that this is definitely NOT the same beer as the Scottish Ale. The base might be the same or similar, but the hopping and the overall effect are entirely different. This is a fantastic beer, with a perfect balance between sweet caramel malt, in the Scottish style, and a decent amount of fuggles hops. The great thing is its originality--when have you had such a dose of fuggles straight? Never before for me. This is a beer unlike any I have ever had--not the most challenging, but perfectly balanced and extremely interesting. A must try, and I wish you guys would give it its own page!!!

[1378-20080523] Tap. Bit of boozy yeast in the aroma. Clear, amber brown body with a medium-lasting creamy off-white head. Freshly toasted dark malt flavour. Medium body is smooth. Really interesting brew, repeatable.
(@ C’est What; Toronto, ON; Labelled "Double Fuggled")