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Alba

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Price: £4.10

Description

This Beer is a dark triple fermented beer of 7.5% abv. It is rich warming and certainly wood-like.

Alba is Gaellic for Scotland.

This is a "triple" style ale, brewed to a traditional Highland recipe using the sprigs of spruce and pine collected every 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.This complex rich tawny ale is best drunk at room temperature from a wine goblet.

Pine Ales were introduced to Scotland by the Vikings and were popular until the end of the nineteenth century when the hop began to dominate. Captain Cook used this style of Ale on long sea voyages as it can have medicinal properties, preventing scurvy. Cook introduced the style of beer to New Zealand.

Shetland Spruce ale was said to stimulate animal instincts and give you twins.

Surprisingly, rather than being immediately piny, the nose is at first very light and fruity, a little reminiscent of a gueuze. Alba Scots Pine has lots of treacly, residual sweetness, accompanied by a strong alcohol kick. It is deep and quite sweet in a pinous way, with depth and complexity, but remains very much a beer, not a barley wine. Alba Scots Pine Ale is great as a finisher when you don't want anything heavy or too weak the end of a night.

This beer pairs well with salads and poultry dishes.