Scotch Irish Session Ale

On tap at Arrow and Loon (Ottawa), Jan 8/07. Rated from memory. Poured dull straw, a touch hazy and absolutely no head. Virtually flat and thinnish body. Muted flavours...I searched for hops and found none! Old keg? No idea, but this beer did not meet expectations. Oh well.

Tap at the Arrow and Loon. Hazy amber beer, thin white head. Fresh golding/fuggles hop aroma. Woody, fresh resiny aroma with a bit of light caramel sweetness. Light dusty, earthy malts. Body is quite thin but there is some very nice hop character. Well balanced, fairly tasty but a bit lacking in maltiness and body.

Draught at The Black Tomato in Ottawa. Pours a clear golden-orange with a spare white head. Sweet aroma has a nice balance of caramel malt and hops. Nice hoppy flavour also well balanced with some malt sweetness and has a pleasant bitter aftertaste. Smooth and creamy. A nice mellow session Ale.

Draught. At The Black Tomato, Ottawa. Poured oily clear deep gold with an average slightly off-white head. Aroma was very malty (no corn here), with an appropriate level of balancing hops, also yeast and light mossy grain. Taste is quite hoppy, but not aggressive about it, with mild malt and grain notes, then the hops redouble and remind you this *is* as Scotch Irish craft brew. It has a nice long linger, hop-bitter of course, but not harsh at all. Palate is a bit astringent, with enough body to put thoughts of water out of one’s head. Overall a simple but tasty brew.

On tap at the Manx in Ottawa:

Some grainy malt sweetness amidst quiet carbonation...Hop suggestions are present but distant, and the whole is headless and aimless, surprising for a Scotch Irish brew...Don’t know if the keg was old, or this is how the beer is supposed to taste, but other ratings suggest that my experience wasn’t as tasty as it’s supposed to be...Luckily I was in great company, so the beer was soon forgotten as just another drink with our wonderful meal...