Heather Ales Fraoch (Bottle)

Brewed by Williams Brothers (Heather Ales)
Style: Traditional Ale
Alloa, Central, Scotland

Bottle - Golden colour. Small head. Wonderful Sweet, hoppy, grassy, hay-corn aroma. A ’Juicy’ flavour with again grass and hops, enjoyable & drinkable,will buy again. Refreshing.

Poured cloudy dull orange, with small quickly diminishing head. Aroma is funky and grainy with some sweet notes of orange, pommegranate and a little alc. Tastes dull sweet malt, cranberry. Body is very light, with a tiny carb taste. At first sip it is boring and almost puts me off, but as I let it sit in my mouth I warm up to it and it takes on the velvty texture that I imagine a heather ale should have. This can’t change the rest of the beer for me though. Blehh...

Poured a dark yellow color with a white head. Aroma was very spicey, hard to put my nose on anything in particular. Flavor was maltniess, some spices and a hint of hops in the finish.

Very floral herbal nose witha touch of sea salt and peat.clean with no problems a very unique beer drinking experience that would not be but for the extreme occasion with friends.

Soft delicate fruitiness on top of a decent malt background. I am rather intrigued by the heather. I felt like there was a decent bitterness as well as the soft floweriness (almost lavendery) from the heather.

A welcome revival of an ancient Scots tradition. However, like tartan trousers, it’s more popular with visitors than locals. It’s freely available in tourist outlets around the country but try asking for it at your local pub... It poured a copper colour with a creamy head. The nose, as you might expect, is floral, like the slopes of Ben Nevis on a wet summer’s day (are there any other kind?) However, there are also sweet malt notes there, like fresh-made Orkney Fudge. It’s a dry, smooth ale - perhaps a little oily. Hints of dried fruit and toffee in a complex swirl of flavours. I find it a little too sweet in the finish to be truly satisfying but commend the brewer for the enterprise. (Bottle)

33 cL bottle, bbf 6/05, goblet, 50 degrees. White, frothy, average-sized head is somewhat short-lived. Hazy amber-orange body with no visible carbonation or particles. Nutty, grainy, cookie malt (mod); heather spicing (mod); grape, pear, nutmeg aroma. The heather imparts a huge earthy aroma. Different, but definitely quality. Moderately sweet throughout with a lightly bitter, lightly acidic finish. The heather leaves a wonderful gingerbread-man cookie aftertaste. Medium body, watery texture, soft carbonation. The bottom line is: quite interesting, and c'mon...is there any better aftertaste than gingerbread-man cookies?

Very earthy aroma, some sweetness too it. Flavor was a mix of sweet caramel notes and some floral hop notes. light bodied and easy to drink yet it was kinda thick on the tongue. Really enjoyable.