How can a beer be both Scottish and American you ask? I’m not sure exactly. I’m pretty sure that if you make a Scottish Heavy and use American yeast, it becomes part American.
Ok. So there is also a small amount of American hops in there as well, but I hardly think that matters all that much. Besides, I am totally Scottish and American. Ooh. That doesn’t sound right. Can one truly be American? Thit is a beer blog though, so I won’t get into that.
So this beer. Maybe I’m not a huge fan of Scottish Ales. Or maybe I’ve just not had the right one. I’ve made a few and they all seem mediocre to me. This one is no exception. I guess it’s just a personal preference. Some like light beers, some like dark, and some like ambers. Don’t get me wrong, this beer is not bad. It’s quite tasty, but it just doesn’t give me that feeling I get when I sit down with a delicious stout or porter or octoberfest. That said, it has a beautiful color and sits nice on the tongue. The head is medium with an off-white color that is wonderful. It is malty without an over sweetness. There are no fruity esters and low hop bitterness. Just enough to balance the malt, leaving it still tipping towards malty.
This beer may not be my favorite, but I still am proud when my beers turn out with a certain level of quality. This beer makes me proud.
American Scottish Heavy
OG: 1.036
FG: 1.012
ABV: 3.2%
IBU: 18
6lb Light Malt Extract
2 oz. Roast Barley
2 oz. Peated Malt
12 oz. Munich Malt
6 oz. Crystal 10
1.08 AAU Cascade (.2 oz. of 5.4% aa @ 40 minutes)
1 AAU Fuggles (.2 oz. of 5% aa @ 40 minutes)
4.5 AAU Cascade (.5 oz. 9% aa @ 40 minutes)
1 tsp Irish Moss @ 10 minutes
Fermentis Safale US-05 (harvested from previous batch)
