Ramsbottom Scottish Red

500ml bottle. It poured chestnut in colour with good carbonation and a medium beige head. The aroma was heavily malted with a deep, roasted resinous. The roast was there in the taste but, to my surprise, not as much as the aroma might suggest. Still the roast dominates the flavour together with a little dark woodland fruit in the background. The resulting dry bitter finish is harsher than I would expect from this style, but better for it, in my opinion. This is quite a heavy beer: it drinks more than 4.1% and is surprisingly bitter. But let it warm up and you’ve got a good dark beer for a winter’s day.