Otter Creek Otter Kilter

Brewed by Otter Creek Brewing
Style: Scotch Ale
Middlebury, Vermont USA

Otter Kilter is a clear, solid red ale with a quickly fading tan-orange head. The aroma is of malt: sweet, sour, and dark. There is perhaps a dusting of some grassy hops and peat. It the mouth, it is full bodied and smooth-- almost syrupy. It has prickly carbonation and a quick, dry finish. It tastes the way it smells. There’s a little peat late in the taste. It’s quite sweet. I can’t really taste any hops. Warmth from the alcohol is present. It’s very much a malt showcase.

Appearance: Pours a clear, reddish-brown body with a light beige head. Smell: Caramel malts lead followed by peat, ripened fruits, and light notes of milk chocolate. Taste: A generous amount of caramel sweetness upfront with flavors of dark fruits, cherries, and smoke. Just a touch of hop bitterness on the finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-thin body, with low carbonation and a slight stickiness to the mouthfeel. Drinkability: It’s not exactly the best scotch ale, I should get that out of the way first, but it is decent.

22oz bottle. Reddish brown color. Copperish. Aroma has a slight smoke to it. Toasted malt and chocolate. Flavors were of Sweet malt, maple, butter toffee. Creamy nutty finish.

Bomber. Clear copper with a small beige head. Sweet caramel nose, a wisp of smoke and peat. Sweet caramel and light peat flavors, finishes pretty dry - a bit surprising. Could have used a bit more punch, but not bad.

Poured a brownish red color. Aroma was a little smokey caramel. Flavor was smoky and toffee which i often don’t catch. Overall was lacking the earthiness that i expected for this style.

22 ounce bottle from City Market, Burlington VT (020207) consumed at cellar temperature from a Unibroue glass. Pours a clear dark maple with a moderate diminishing fluffy off-white head and a fair bit of thin lacing…..faint sugary (caramel, brown sugar) aroma, very little else, perhaps a faint herbal presence and some soapiness and mineral salts….very lightly smoky, molasses-caramel flavor, slightly burnt at the finish, touch of earthiness, somewhat sticky; at the finish it grows extremely dry, charred and astringent, to the point of real unpleasantness….mouthfeel is throughout watery-sugary, highly filtered and palate-dulling. Big disappointment, I actually had some hopes for this one. Judging by the other reviews, I may have had a bad bottle or off night....but then again, I find myself being fairly harsh on my favorite style, and I’m still not really a fan of this brewery. Whatever.

Poured a brownish color, some red-like hues, a mediocre off-white head. The aroma was earthy, caramel, light smoke. The flavor was smoke, only light peat (could easily have been more), toasty notes, short of a char or anything like that, some toffee also there. An odd brew, some off-twist seeming flavors. Mouthfeel was moderately bodied, nothing special, average carbonation. Not a stellar example of the style, although certainly drinkable.

Bottle. Brown amber with a thin tan head. Sweet caramel malt aroma with some peat in the background. well-rounded flavor with caramel malt, peat, alcohol, nut and fruit. Easy to drink; well crafted.