Highland Gaelic Ale

Brewed by Highland Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
Asheville, North Carolina USA

Everything looked good nice color good solid head, but then the taste. Slightly like chewing on copper. Could be a session beer.

12 oz bottle from lithy. Pours a pale reddish color with a 1/2" off white head and spotty lasting lace. Floral hop aroma with a light palate and average carbonation. Flavor is slightly sweet malt. Nothing to complex here, but a nice drinker.

Moving onto another one of my generously gifted beers from Highland Brewing Company, I contemplate before me now their Gaelic Ale. Neither amber, nor pale, nor bitter, but a Gaelic Ale, I am rather intrigued to see what Highland Brewing considers to be a Gaelic Ale and what they subsequently have to offer.

My Gaelic Ale pours a hazy amber-brown with a small head of foam which fades into a scattered layer of tufts. Not much to speak of, even with a few cheerful swirls of her brew. Not exactly exciting, but let’s see how her nose fairs. Mm, apples, melon, caramel and spice, toffee, crunchy pears, and ripe figs all dance before me. Definitely more encouraging than her initial appearance, I waste no time in seeing what she is made of. As diverse as her nose was, it wasn’t very sweet, unlike my initial impression from my first quaff which is rather sweet. A light mouthfeel and body gives way almost too easily to faint esters of apples, pears, toffee and spices. While I can taste each one, their footprint is very faint indeed and fades just as fast. No lingering character to speak of really, though some chewy toasty malts add some welcome girth to her palate. As my Gaelic Ale warms, further notes of sweet melon along with more caramel and chewy bready malts struggle for attention before a very clean finish. As I stare into my empty glass, I wonder what it was that I was supposed to have quaffed, much less enjoyed. A Scottish-style ale? Amber Ale? Pale ale? Maybe only Highland Brewing knows, but I do know that it was nothing impressive or exciting for me, unfortunately.

Of the few beers I have had so far from Highland Brewing, this has been the least exciting. Considering their previous success stories, I am a bit disappointed, but I still have one or two more beers to taste and savor. Hopefully, they will fare better than the Gaelic Ale did.

Draft poured with a thick slightly tan head. Beer color is dark amber. Smells fruity and sweet, caramel and toffee tastes are complimented well by the bitterness of the hops. Very complex for an amber ale.

Nice and malty with a nice spicy, hoppy flavor. A good choice for the indecisive beer drinker because of the balance and complexity of the brew. A little on the sweet side for my taste, but if that is your thing you will love it. Looks slightly better than it tastes, but overall enjoyable.

Bottle, 650 ml purchased at Frugal MacDoogal’s in SC, just over the Charlotte, NC border. Pours hazy dark amber caramel, off white head. Aroma is malt, caramel, dried fruit, heavy. Flavor is very malty: dried fruit, dough, caramel. There’s some bitterness but this is too sweet and malty for me.

Bottle. Moderate malt notes of roasted and caramel, light to moderate herbs for the hops, light dough for the yeast, with hints of honey and wood. Head is fizzy, off-white, with fair lacing and is almost fully diminishing. Color is sparkling clear copper. Flavor starts light to moderately sweet and lightly acidic, then finishes lightly acidic and bitter. Palate is medium, watery yet a bit slick and has a lively carbonation. A malt dominant beer, but a nice showing from the hops. This is a well rounded Amber Ale, deserving of it’s fairly high overall percentile.

My girlfriend got me into this beer. A Very soft yet strong hoppy bite. Caramel and chocolate goodness. Very good beer to tryout.