Alba Scots Pine Ale

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Pours a very cloudy pale orangish/amber color with a small off-white head with a creamy looking lacing. The aroma has a strong scent of pine and herbal notes. Nothing else stands out. The taste has a very strange sweetness to it, like pine sap, but it's good. Very herbal along with a strong honey flavor. Maybe a little bit of lemon citrus? The alcohol doesn't show through too much and has a mild bitter finish. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with low carbonation.

Aroma: 5 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

A bright amber colored beer with a small frothy textured, white head rising oh so briefly above. Settles into a barely noticeable soapy ringlet. Despite the nameI don’t get any pine. I get a lot of sweetness, maybe some candy sweetness in both the nose and more forcibly in the taste. A medium to medium thick beer with a resin syrupness on the palate. Certainly different, but by far not the preferred of the historical Scottish ales I’ve tried to date.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

It pours a hazy dark-amber with no head and a ring of lace. An aroma of caramel malts, hops, cinnamon applesauce, citrus blend, brown sugar, plums, and spices. The mouthfeel is smooth, zesty, and rich. Flavors of caramel malts, hops, cinnamon applesauce, orange/citrus, brown sugar, plums, and an excellent sting of spices. Wow!!! .. although not noticing too much pine.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Pours a nice rosy/amber/orange.... well whatever color it is it looks nice, with a small, creamy off white head. The small head does stick around for a bit though and leaves some light lacing. Aroma is primarily malty, faint sweetness with some pine. Good flavour from the pine, I had no idea this was a 7.5% until I looked at the bottle, the alcohol is extremely well hidden with just a hint in the flavour. Medium mouth and carbonation. Interesting beer, It's unique, I like it.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

This ale is fantastic, definatly a departure from what you may have imagined infact. Initially I thought it would be quite sweet, maybe have a rain like freshness and then a taste of pine, similair to a pine infused tea. This was not completely the reality. It was quite bitter but I found the malt to be reminiscient of tree resin, perhaps from the spruce shoots and not the malt. Definative dry taste to it, the pine was noticeable on the nose. Light carbonation probably contributed to the drinkable element in this beer, and the 7.5% was lost in all the flavours. Fantastic, I would love more of this and would love to try a few other brewers takes on this, if they exist...

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Very different - pours a murky light butterscotch color with little head and no lacing. Very little carbonation. Sweet malty aromas with an almost sour butterscotch presence accented by a touch of spruce and oranges. Taste is at first sweet with a thickish mouthfeel, then the very slight sourish buttery flavor with a touch citrus. Unusual but tasty.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

An unusual combo, but it worked for me. They say it is an old method of flavouring beer in Scotland, and I say bring on more. Lovely aroma and flavour.

Aroma: 5 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 5 | Overall: 5

Best Before June 2009: After trying a couple other beers from Heather (Elderberry and Gooseberry), I decided to give this a try. Not sure if this is a little past age (only 2-3 months?), or just has a slight sour taste to it...but I'm not diggin' it. I can kind of see where they are going with this, and I like trying new stuff and reading the history and all. Now I can say that I tried, but don't think I'd pony up the $2 and change again for this. Got a decent buzz though from the 7.5%.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

This is a hazy gold pour with a thinj loose white head. The aroma is earthy, almost saison-like with hints of pine and grainy malt. The flavour is mild with no strong presence coming through. One cast taste the malt and citrus tones throughout

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

Has a nice clear amber ale-ish color, typical but good. Aroma is malty with strong fruit and spicy hints and some hop tone. Flavor is strong, both malty and hoppy, with an overtone rather like the way a pine tree smells. Bitterness is minimal. This is unlike any ale I have ever tasted, pleasant and distinctive.