Alba Scots Pine Ale - Williams Brothers Brewing Company

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BA SCORE
85
good
-
527 Ratings

THE BROS
92
exceptional
-
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rAvg: 3.78
pDev: 14.29%
Reviews: 448
Hads: 79

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Brewed by:
Williams Brothers Brewing Company

United Kingdom (Scotland)

Style | ABV
Scottish Gruit / Ancient Herbed Ale | 7.50% ABV

Availability: Year-round. bottle (443), cask (5).

Notes:
Introduced by the Vikings, spruce and pine ales were very popular in the Scottish Highlands until the end of the 19th century. Many early explorers, including Captain Cook, used spruce ale during long sea voyages since it prevented scurvy and ill health. Shetland spruce ale was said to "stimulate animal instincts" and give you twins. Alba is a triple style ale brewed to a traditional Highland recipe from Scots pine and spruce shoots pickled during early spring. Pure malted barley, is boiled with the young sprigs of pine for several hours then the fresh shoots of the spruce are added for a short infusion before fermentation.

View: Beers (33) | Events (0)

Reviews

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Reviews by corey0212:

corey0212

Massachusetts

3.63/5 rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a slightly hazy coppery-amber color, beige head fades quickly, leaves a nice collar of foam around the inside of the glass, a few spots of lacing hanging around. Very sweet smell, an almost honey-like aroma to the malt. Slight spice flavor, vague floral flavors...interesting. Seems a little thin, but nice lingering flavors/spice. Worth a try, but not something I'd seek out again.

Serving type: bottle

02-04-2009 22:57:04 | More by corey0212

More User Reviews:

Slatetank

Pennsylvania

4.5/5 rDev +19%

05-25-2013 14:51:21 | More by Slatetank

kvnstfrd

Missouri

4/5 rDev +5.8%

05-23-2013 14:13:20 | More by kvnstfrd

Photekut

Azerbaijan

2.75/5 rDev -27.2%

05-18-2013 22:32:20 | More by Photekut

His_Royal_Hoppiness

United Kingdom (England)

3.5/5 rDev -7.4%

05-08-2013 20:09:28 | More by His_Royal_Hoppiness

juicebox

Massachusetts

3.5/5 rDev -7.4%

05-07-2013 01:08:23 | More by juicebox

wonothesane42

New Jersey

4.25/5 rDev +12.4%

04-17-2013 22:14:10 | More by wonothesane42

secondtooth

Indiana

4.03/5 rDev +6.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Pours a ruddy amber, with a limited head and no lace.

Nose is nicely woodsy, with definite spruce and pine needles and oils coming through prominently. Quite unique and appealing!

Tastes delicious -- very malty sweet, but the woody pine/spruce infusion adds an entirely different profile to this brew. I would gladly buy more of these if they were more widely available!

Serving type: bottle

04-01-2013 14:10:24 | More by secondtooth

Whiskeydeez

Kansas

3.5/5 rDev -7.4%

03-18-2013 16:56:39 | More by Whiskeydeez

akttr

Michigan

3/5 rDev -20.6%

03-10-2013 07:50:52 | More by akttr

t0rin0

California

4/5 rDev +5.8%

03-07-2013 12:43:30 | More by t0rin0

gopens44

Virginia

3.99/5 rDev +5.6%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Probably the most striking attribute of this beer would be the appearance. Hazy copper with a nearly perfect foamy creme colored head. Oddly, virtually no lacing. The aroma immediately took me to a direction I wasn't expecting from something called pine - this thing smells balls on like a barleywine. No difference at all. Taste immediately goes the barleywine route (sweet malty goodness) until from out of nowhere, a pungent tartness pops up. The finish is just a touch tinny with a slight bitterness lingering. Body overall goes from creamy to thin by the finish. Overall, its quite different and a good departure from pretty much anything else but not something you can really throw down in any quantity.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2013 21:55:49 | More by gopens44

heygeebee

Australia

2.75/5 rDev -27.2%

02-21-2013 09:51:12 | More by heygeebee

Braz

Washington

3.73/5 rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Aroma: Floral and woody. Good amount of malt. Has a very sweet smell.

Appearance: Very dark but clear ruby amber color. Moderate white has leaves nice amount of lace.

Taste: Very different. Starts with malt sweetness, is then followed by a woodsy punch of pine. I picked up more pine than spruce. No bitterness.

Mouthfeel. A little sweet but nicely carbonated. Has a balanced feel but the aftertaste lingers quite a bit.

Overall: Glad I finally tried this. Interesting for sure. Probably not something I'd go to great lengths to try again. Mainly due to the aftertaste, it just kicks around too long.

Serving type: bottle

02-21-2013 03:15:09 | More by Braz

lupercmda

North Carolina

3.75/5 rDev -0.8%

02-19-2013 03:49:49 | More by lupercmda

DmanGTR

New York

4.25/5 rDev +12.4%

02-10-2013 16:16:06 | More by DmanGTR

JackRB

Ohio

4.25/5 rDev +12.4%

02-06-2013 00:44:17 | More by JackRB

maclean25

British Columbia (Canada)

3.5/5 rDev -7.4%

02-04-2013 02:46:54 | More by maclean25

jbenson8774

Pennsylvania

4/5 rDev +5.8%

02-04-2013 01:41:23 | More by jbenson8774

Rutager

British Columbia (Canada)

3.36/5 rDev -11.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Couldn't sleep a wink last night, but it's finally here, the best holiday of the year, HAPPY GRUIT DAY!!!!

Appearance. Pours a clear amber-orange with a half finger of white lace.

Smell. Very sweet honey and sweet grainy malts, caramel and woody herbs along with a little bit of pine forest.

Taste. Caramel and butter, some earthy herbs and brown sugar, maybe a little light fruit, and some woody pine in the finish.

Mouthfeel. Medium+ body, a little bit sticky, Medium-low carbonation.

Overall. This is okay, a bit of a sipper and not really my cup of tea. I'm begining to not like International Gruit Day, wishing it was stout or IPA day instead.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 03:34:00 | More by Rutager