The Rebel Brewing Company Eighty Shilling

The Rebel Brewing Company Eighty Shilling

Style: Scotch Ale

Alcohol Content: 5%

From: Penryn, Cornwall, England

Purchased from: Noble Green Wines, Hampton Hill
http://www.rebelbrewing.co.uk/

"I love scotch. Scotchy, scotch, scotch. Here it goes down, down into my belly..." Ron Burgundy

The Rebel Brewing Company is a multi-award winning independent craft brewery based in Penryn, Cornwall. The brewery currently produces a range of six core beers and a craft range consisting of five rotating lines (their Chocolate Vanilla Stout, Mexi Coco was the recipient of Carma's prestigious Champion Beer of Cornwall in 2013). Currently Rebel supply over 500 outlets in Cornwall, Devon and the rest of the U.K. This number is growing very quick as their reputation continues to grow.

They also offer a brewery tour for a meager £12, where the designated driver receives a gift pack of beers to take away. Now everyone can go home happy. The subject of this review is their Eighty Shilling Scotch ale. Now if you are a fan of scotch style ales, you will no doubt notice that a large number of them are labeled as Eighty Shilling. But what does this term actually mean? We the name Eighty Shilling refers to the name of a tax charged on a 54 gallon hogshead for beer between 4-5.5% alcohol in 19th century Scotland. So onto the review.

Colour: Pours a dark chestnut neatly topped with a light tan coloured head. This head lingers for the duration of the beer and laces the glass perfectly. If you hold this beer up to the light you will notice a red hue resonating from the bottom of the glass.

Aroma: This malty bomb sings to notes of sweet caramel, dried fruit and currents. As the drink warms, hints of smoke and dark chocolate begin to resonate though the aroma profile. This drink actually smells like a high quality single malt and hopefully, it will drink like one too (especially after the week I have had).

Body: What a beautifully silky mouthfeel! This drink covers every single part of your mouth with a feeling of rich velvet and slips down the throat with an easy of a lazy sunday morning. The incredibly low carbonation ensures that this sensation stays with you sip after sip.

Taste: Very rich and incredibly sweet. The dried fruit and molasses present in the perfume return with avengeance leading a full scale assault on your tastes buds. Luckily, this onslaught of sweetness never becomes too sickly and is playfully cut though with a delicate peaty smokiness. As the drink warms, its characteristics change slightly to real notes of coffee and yeasty marmite. This is definitely not a drink to be rushed, so stoke the fire, sit back in your favorite leather armchair and relax.    

Similar to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/gordon-finest-scotch-ale.html

Different to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2014/08/redchurch-brewery-soreditch-blonde.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery or like me on Facebook at Beefsbrewery

Gordon Finest Scotch Ale

Gordon's Finest Scotch Ale

Style: Scotch Ale

Alcohol Content: 8%

From: Antwerp, Belgium

Purchased From: The Wall Bottle Shop, Bruges, Belgium

http://anthonymartin.be/en/

So we have now reached the last of the four beers I brought back from Bruges. I tried to get something different in all four and so far none have disappointed. This has left me craving for more, so I have managed to convince my parents to use their air miles on a trip to Belgium. If any readers have any suggestions on what to get, please let me know in the comment box below.  The subject of this review is my favorite of the four; Gordon's Finest Scotch Ale. A little tartan treat with a Belgian twist so to speak. But first a little on the brewery.

John Martin is the name of a beer brewery in Merchtem, Belgium, founded in 1909 by English businessman John Martin (1886-1966). A family company, it is currently run by his grandson, Anthony Martin. Besides brewing Belgian-style ales, the company also imports British and Irish beers,and produces soft drinks for Schweppes under license. In 1993 the company bought Timmermans Brewery, a lambic beer brewery from Itterbeek founded in 1781.

Love the old school label

Colour: This drink pours a ruby brown with a slight tan head. As the drink warms, a sunny, amber glow will reveal itself. The beer will look as warming as it tastes. The head dies away quickly leaving a dusting of foam which laces the glass immaculately.

Aroma: Full of warm peaty whisky notes mixed with subtle hints of sweet honey and salty soy sauce. Once the drink is brought up to room temperature, hints of cinnamon and nutmeg are revealed whilst still maintaining a overall sense of sweetness.

Body: A thick, chewy, treacle like body tempts all comers. This mixed with extremely low carbonation, ensures a pleasurably smooth drinking experience.

Taste: A perfect drink for those long, dark nights. Flavours of oak and peat interplay with rich blackberries. The flavour is very reminiscent of Kastel's bruin (which I've tried only once and fell in love with). The character of this beer changes as it heats up. Sweet toffee apples and a light marmite flavouring ooze from the beer. Nice indeed, seeing as though I'm not the biggest fan of marmite. In short, this beer is very well rounded and the alcohol content is well masked. I can certainly see why this drink is well respected in the craft beer community. Now, as Christmas day has just past, I am absolutely gutted that I didn't have one of these for the big day. It would of gone down a treat!

Similar to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/williams-bros-fraoch-heather-ale.html

Different to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/wild-beer-company-scarlet-fever.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery or like me on Facebook at Beefsbrewery