Kilt Flasher
Devils Backbone Brewing Company

Kilt FlasherKilt Flasher
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From:
Devils Backbone Brewing Company
 
Virginia, United States
Style:
Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy
ABV:
8%
Score:
85
Avg:
3.76 | pDev: 10.11%
Reviews:
51
Ratings:
225
Status:
Active
Rated:
Nov 24, 2018
Added:
May 09, 2012
Wants:
  4
Gots:
  44
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Hoptimus-Prime:
Photo of Hoptimus-Prime
Rated by Hoptimus-Prime from North Carolina

3/5  rDev -20.2%

Jan 03, 2014
More User Ratings:
Photo of VAFolks14
Reviewed by VAFolks14 from Virginia

3.6/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.75
Pours a deep amber color with red highlights. Smells of molasses and toffee. Taste very much so like it smells with notes of molasses and hint of vanilla. Finishes with a fruity and smoky profile and is moderate to light on carbonation. Very light head that dissipates quickly. Light on hops and alcohol is hidden by the malty profile. Smooth finish and easy to drink. Overall I enjoy this beer and will buy again in the future. Fits the style of beer well and is one of the better Scotch Ales I've had.
Nov 24, 2018
Photo of macrosmatic
Reviewed by macrosmatic from Florida

3.68/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
Thanks to ZachKelly for sending this bottle to me! Reviewed from (very) long-standing notes. Poured from a 12 oz. bottle into a Cycle Brewing goblet. 2014 vintage, consumed 9/10/17 while waiting for Irma to start.

A: Very hazy to muddy brown, with a thin tan head that fades away to bubbles. Overall fairly low amount of visible carbonation, although not inappropriate for style.

S: Malty sweet with a modest toasty character. Caramel, toffee, and vanilla. A touch of dark fruit, a touch of leather. Nice and decently complex.

T: Malty sweet again, with caramel and toffee and brown sugar. Vanilla and a bit of dark fruits again. A fair amount of fruity yeast esters as well – not quite like you’d find in a Belgian dark ale, but fruits than many Wee Heavies. I believe it's still within style guidelines, but it’s not a personal preference. More malty sweetness and caramel in the hang.

M: An average body for style with a full mouthfeel. Relatively low carbonation sensation. The alcohol is noticeable but not hot.

O: Reasonably decent. It's not my favorite Wee Heavy, especially with the amount of fruity esters. But that's not a total deal breaker. I’ll drink the rest of this bottle, but likely wouldn't go back for more.
Nov 04, 2018
 
Rated: 5 by DBbeer_Lauren from Virginia

Jul 06, 2018
Photo of stevoj
Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho

3.66/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Bottle from Giant. Easy going and smooth Scottish ale Medium brown, mostly opaque, minimal head. Robust arose , nutty, roast grains. very earthy. Taste continues with some sweetness, not out of place, nice bite. well rounded Scottish. tasty.
Mar 21, 2018
Photo of SaCkErZ9
Reviewed by SaCkErZ9 from South Carolina

3.57/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Bought a bottle of this a while back and just now enjoying it. Poured into a snifter. Pours a very dark brownish hue with a bit of cloudiness. Generous head with minimal lacing. Aroma is severely lacking. Minimal molasses with hints of tobacco and alcohol. Luckily, the flavor comes through a bit more. I like the tannins and slight sweetness. Tobacco and a touch of coffee. Dark figs and raisins. Pleasant.

Not a bad effort on the Scottish ale side. Needs more help in the aroma, but otherwise, quite acceptable and possibly a candidate for a future repeat visit.
Nov 08, 2017
 
Rated: 3.24 by hophugger from Virginia

Jun 25, 2017
Photo of dbl_delta
Reviewed by dbl_delta from Pennsylvania

3.67/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Undated bottle into pint glass. Pours a clear ruby-amber with a thin, light-tan head that dissipates quickly. Initial impression is caramel, roasted malts, a little smokiness, and maybe a hint of dark fruit. Nothing dominates here, but things don't exactly complement each other either. Mouthfeel is medium, Carbonation is also medium. Finish is in keeping with the taste - caramel, malt, and a little dark fruit. This is a pretty uninspiring Scotch Ale. The style can be so good, but Klt Flasher just misses the mark.
Apr 30, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by nstygles from Pennsylvania

Apr 10, 2017
Photo of JayQue
Reviewed by JayQue from Virginia

3.54/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
Fairly mild Wee Heavy. Looks good, clear dark brown with plenty of red light coming through. Big light tan frothy head with average retention and lots of frothy lacing on the glass. Aroma and taste feature strong maltiness with light caramel and toffee. This is a Wee Heavy but none of the component flavors are very pronounced. Mouthfeel is smooth and the alcohol presence is light. A tasty enough brew but not a top Scottish Ale.
Mar 06, 2017
Photo of ordybill
Reviewed by ordybill from Georgia

4.02/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from the tap into a pint glass at the Distillery in Savannah. The appearance is a dark brown with a reddish tint. The head is a small off-white color. The aroma is all caramel malt. The taste is matches the nose except there is some vanilla in there.
Feb 22, 2017
Photo of oberon
Reviewed by oberon from North Carolina

3.74/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Bottled on 1/23/17.Pours a brilliant ruby tinged mahogany with thinner lighter beige head atop.Big caramel aromas with some vanilla intertwined in there,obviously malt forward.Caramel with a cola element finishing buttery on the palate,no hop profile here.Palate is full of caramel and mild dark fruit,again no hop presence.Not bad but a little one sided.
Feb 10, 2017
 
Rated: 4.38 by Adam1993 from Maryland

Jan 14, 2017
Photo of avalon07
Reviewed by avalon07 from South Carolina

3.06/5  rDev -18.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25
L: Poured from a bottle to a pint glass. Had a brownish color with red tints, and somewhat cloudy texture. There was a small amount of off white, foamy head that lasted an average amount of time. Fair lacing.

S: A kind of underwhelming aroma of malt, toffee, and caramel.

T: Tasted of a hint of caramel (not enough), some toffee, a fair shot of roasted malt, light hops, a light, smoky quality, and a little bit of dark fruits (plums, maybe?). This is a pretty disappointing flavor. It's fairly flat, without much character to speak of. Could have been better.

F: A good amount of carbonation with a dry finish. Medium-bodied.

O: Kilt Flasher is one of those beers that just doesn't stand out. On the whole, a bland brew.
Dec 30, 2016
 
Rated: 3.59 by American_Hawk from Massachusetts

Dec 29, 2016
Photo of Pantalones
Reviewed by Pantalones from Virginia

3.85/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
My last bottle of this one from the six-pack. Bottled on October 13th, 2016 -- so it's exactly two months old today.

Very dark red-brown in color, almost a cola-like color to it. Upon pouring a big bubbly head of off-white foam develops, but it quickly shrinks and then vanishes -- I suspect this is more down to how I poured it than the beer itself, though, as I'm using a differently-shaped glass than usual and I'm not really used to it. Shining a light through it reveals that the beer is very dark red and perfectly clear, with occasional rising bubbles.

Smell is almost caramel-ish medium-dark malts right away, with a background sweetness and then a bit of a woody/smoky presence even further behind. Possibly a bit of alcohol present in the smell, too. Probably the weakest element of the beer, mainly because it's just a bit faint in comparison to the "bigger" flavors and mouthfeel. As it warms, a bit of that really nice toffee-like thing starts to stand out more than before, so I think I'll bump my score up a bit here.

Flavor is similar to the smell but bigger in every way. The woody/smoky aspect is definitely more prominent right away, and it's very nice -- I've found that I definitely like some smokiness in my Scotch ales. It's stronger right away, fading a bit as I drink more, but never overpowering. The caramel-y dark malts stand out pretty well also, especially as the beer warms -- I was very pleasantly surprised at just how much the caramel/toffee-like malt flavors popped out when I drank the last little dribble in the bottom of my last bottle, so I intentionally let this one sit outside the fridge for a little bit to warm up before drinking it. It's definitely not a "fridge temperature" beer. In the cooler months, there's probably no reason for these to ever see the inside of a fridge, honestly. There's a bit of that sweetness from the smell present too, possibly a bit of alcohol mixing with the sweeter malts, or maybe yeast-related... I'm not 100% sure but I want to say the alcohol is a factor there. Around the halfway mark it seems like the malts, sweetness, and slight alcohol presence are standing out more than the smokiness, though that's still there too especially in the aftertaste. Speaking of aftertaste, there's a nice dark-bready element to it that doesn't stand out as much with all the bigger flavors going on, but hangs on a bit after they've faded some.

Feel is pretty nice too -- even without any foam on top it feels like it has a thickness to it. Definitely a "big" beer, leaning more toward the heavy sticky end of the spectrum rather than being light or anywhere near watery. There's a bit of warming involved from the 8% ABV, but it's not as prominent as in some other beers I've had in that alcohol range. Does seem to feel slightly thinner toward the end of the glass than it was at the beginning, but still good.

Overall a very nice beer -- I'm especially fond of the toffee-like flavor that pops out so well once the beer has warmed well beyond fridge temperature. Scotch Ales seem to be fairly hard to find around here, so I'll always appreciate this one being so readily available when it's in season. And heck, with it being 8% ABV and very malt-forward I figure it would hold up very well to age (I know I've seen some "actually-from-Scotland" examples of the style with best-by dates years in the future), so there's not really any reason not to stock up when it's in season if you'd like to have it around longer. I might end up doing just that if I have the money.
Dec 14, 2016
Photo of ikapaMK
Reviewed by ikapaMK from Texas

3.59/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Appearance: Deep mahogany-amber with a 3-finger, beige head - head stays pretty easily

Smell: Yeasty, bready, with a hint of alcohol and sweet malt

Taste: Toasted malt with coffee notes and a slight bitter-sweetness on the back of the palate

Mouthfeel: Moderate body with a slight hint of carbonation on the tongue - not a full malty texture, but not thin either; it matches the rest of the beer

Overall: Hits all the right notes and yet, it could be so much better. Not a complex beer, but a solid, reliable one.
Dec 08, 2016
Photo of Buck89
Reviewed by Buck89 from Tennessee

3.8/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Poured into a pint glass. A clear dark-brown color with a frothy tan head. Nice lacing. Nice aromas of toast. caramel, cherries, and some toffee. A bit of a floral presence from the hops. The taste was similar. I liked this beer but it also seemed a tad thin - would prefer more full-body. Clean finish without too much sweetness.
Dec 04, 2016
 
Rated: 3.76 by BrysonMingione from Virginia

Dec 03, 2016
Photo of obywan59
Reviewed by obywan59 from Virginia

3.54/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
A ferocious pour gave me a 5 finger head in my Duvel tulip that receded rather quickly leaving some spotty lacing. Generally dark brown in color, but near mahogany when held up to a bright light.

Smell of toasted malt and doughy bread. A bit of dark fruit.

Sweet dark malt at first, but more tangy as it warms. Toasted malt is predominant.

Medium-full in body with light carbonation. Sticky and drying.

A good beer. It's well balanced, with good aroma and taste, and a great bpdu.
Nov 29, 2016
Kilt Flasher from Devils Backbone Brewing Company
Beer rating: 85 out of 100 with 225 ratings