Skytop Highland Diesel Scottish Ale

This slate black brew actually is somewhat translucent even in this poorly lit resturant. Minimal tight head with moderate carbonation. Great with a burger for supper. I got a kick out of the "Novemberfest" (actually the left over Octoberfest. Nose was whisped away by the ceiling fans and heating system a bit of caramel? No hops at all...duh. the smoked malt along with the other toasted malts is slightly subdued ....some oats? The body is medium. Quite nice.

(tap at brewpub) Dark burgundy body, medium off-white head with excellent lacing. Some toffee on the nose. This is as close as beer can get to my famous toasted bread and caramel breakfast recipe. Malt was bready and toasted and was surprisingly a bit smoky (no smoke in the aroma). The sweetness/caramel intensity was a bit low for a Scottish Ale but that’s not a bad thing. The best of the 5 beers we had at the pub, unlike cars it is the diesel beer that needed to be refilled the most often.

Any first impressions?
-A creamy head sits atop the brown ruby, drawing intricate lacing.
-Fruity caramel and black bean earthiness shyly announce a capable maltiness.
-Peat smoke confidently emits an earthy wooden character, dallying atop sturdy caramel maltiness.
-Effervescence may be a little too much, as I would like to feel those rich malts even more, but this is still a very well fed palate.

What if you dig deeper?
-The malty sweetness doesn’t carry through much in the finale, which is disappointing; on the other hand, this may help drinkability.
-This would really gain from being served at a warmer temperature.
-This very well malted scottish ale would make a splendid base on which to build a luxurious 8-9% abv scotch ale...

On tap at the brewpub.

Assertive peat smoked malt aroma and flavour Clear amber-brown body with dense, lasting, fine bubbled, off white head that leaves some lace. Fairly sweet, underlying toasty, biscuity malts. Medium body with fair carbonation. Sampled on tap at the brewpub with Olivier_MTL and Rastacouere.

Couleur ambrée aux reflets rougeâtres et parsemés d’une faible mais persistante mousse blanche concassée. Le caractère du malt fumé, style tourbé, est très plaisant et se marie bien à la présence herbale des houblons. Finale ramenant les traits fumés des malts. Excellente balance entre le côté herbal et le malt fumée, celui-ci semble très authentique et nous épargne de sa potentielle surdose sucrée. Corps d’épaisseur moyenne, douce carbonatation.