Traquair House Ale

Brewed by Traquair
Style: English Strong Ale
Innerleithen, Borders, Scotland

Bottle: Poured a clear dark brown and burgundy color ale with a medium foamy head with some average retention and some light lacing. Aroma of subtle peat with some toffee malt is well balance. Taste is also a well balance mix between some toffee malt with some subtle notes of peat which is quite enjoyable. Body is quite full with a very nice creamy texture. Very well done and something I would love to have more often.

Hearty and rich with a thick grain flavor on the end. Definitely supremely crafted and well made and even more so definitely worth trying..and trying again. When I roamed the shelves (before the days of BA where I could find a little help here and there on what to keep an eye out for), this is exactly the type of brew I’d be searching for. Flavor and style. No need to say any more than that.

Date: 12/25/1996
Mode: Bottle
Source: total beverage, DC

deep cloudy rusty amber, whispy fine head, rich sweet carmel malt aroma with just a touch of floral hops, rich dry malt flavor, underlying bitterness, lasting through the finish, tasty but not worth $7 for 11 oz
-------- /> Date: 12/08/2004
Vintage: 1996 vintage

big sweet alcoholic aroma with some earthy hops, rich malt flavor, lots of fruity ripe plum character, nice mellow sweetness, slightly thin, a bit oxadized contributing to a light bitter finish, age has helped this beer

Aroma: 9/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 5/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 10/20
Rating: 3.1/5.0
Score: *4
-------- /> The score was calculated based upon the notes and an old scoring system.

Clean and malty, this is a good brew. Pours deep mahogany into the glass, with an initial froth that diminishes to a small ring, leaving tiny spot lace. The nose is of dark breads and wooden notes. Burnt toffee is first noted. Sweet dark malts slide over the front of the tongue and come to fruition in the mid-palate. Yeast accompanies the malt midstream, and closes with a dark doughy-bread finish. (I hesitate to bring rye or pumpernickel into the equation; however, that’s the gist of the direction.) In all, the mouthfeel is light (just this side of creamy), and the body is is light (with substance... not watery or thin). A nice sour yeast lasts in the effervescence, only enhancing the sweeter malt contingencies before it. Nice dark tones make for a delicious brew.

Prett dissapointing beer from one fo my favourite breweries. I love jacobite and 900. This however is not nearly in the same league. Thin watery and lacking the charactr and balance fo their other offerings.

Nice dark amber pour but devoid of head. Sweet aroma but not overwhelmingly so. Flavor is good but not very deep. Well worth a try.

Bottle -- A ruby-tinged brown with next to no head and only tiny touches of lacing. No sediment at all. Aroma of sweet malt with a vaguely harsh edge of peat and/or wood. Smooth palate . Flavour is just like the aroma, with some dark fruit flavours coming through with some nice alcohol warmth in the background. I can imagine this would taste even better in some quanit old English pub in the middle of winter, but it’s very nice in Oz too.

Bottle. Meh... not sure what all the hype is about. Nice nose of sweet malt a d candied dark fruit. Pours a rich, oily brown with minimal head. Quite dry flavor with some salt, dark fruit and molasses. medium bodied with average carbonation. Decent but far from spectacular.