Bonie Rabbie Burns
I find it interesting that a country like Scotland, renowned for bag pipes and haggis, which I consider two of the most unromantic things in the world, has their biggest celebration of the year to honor their romantic poet laureate Robbie Burns.* I skipped the haggis and the pipes but I looked for a Scottish brew to tak’ a right gude-willie waught, for auld lang syne. **
Much to my chagrin there were no Harviestoun, MacLays or Windswept brews in the beer fridge. But there was a Blackburn and the beer name Old Scow sounds Burnsian. “Ye old scow by banks and braes o’ bonie Doon, How can ye bloom sae fresh and fair?”***
This brew pours very light straw yellow, a bit lighter than the picture would lead one to believe. No discernable aroma, or perhaps only an indiscernible one. Wait, are those spices on the nose, in a lager? A surprise first swig, floral and spice instead of malt and sweet, more like a saison than a lager. Are we in this old scow, floating down the bonie Doon’ without a paddle? It’s a bit fizzy too, a brut saison perhaps. I don’t think this is a lager.
Fizz with spices and a floral crisp, it certainly tastes like a saison. There is some malt in there somewhere, I’ll grant it that. In my books, and my glass, it’s an easy drinking floral spice saison with a bit of fizz, nice light enjoyable brut of a brew. Tasty saison, not a lager.
By the way, RA had noticed that he had been mentioned in the past two reviews but I told him not to worry, he won’t be mentioned in this one.
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