Rock away Kook, I have the same feeling about Irish Red Ale.
And I would agree with you on that one MAH, the contemporary Irish Red Ale is an abomination, with no authentic brewing heritage to hang its misbegotten hat on.
Kook, you have more recent UK experience to call upon, but I have a deeper memory vault
I suspect there is a melding of the style boundaries occuring now, and what is being promoted as the Scottish Ale style may represent a blip on the historical radar. It is not, however, simply a figment of the imagination of BJCP style nazis or enthusiastic, but misguided, American craft brewing " revivalists".
I am, for good or bad, a child of the Scotland of the 1960s, who weaned himself on various Scottish beers in the decades of the 70s, 80s and into the early 90s. This certainly was a period of huge rationalisation and centralisation in the Scottish brewing industry. With numerous "Scottish" brewers being absorbed into larger English concerns. Hence Lorimar and Clark an arm of Vaux, Dryboroughs of Watney, Tennant of Bass.
Experientially (and, I will concede, perhaps a little nostalgically) my memories are of distinct differences between the typical Scottish Beer and that from South of the Border. The Scottish beers, in general, did have a more discernable malt content, greater body. significantly better head retention and, at their best, a distinctive nuttiness. Foremost amongst those flying the flag for this type of beer, in my selective memory, were the beers of MacLays, Belhaven and Lorimar and Clarke. The initial brews form Caledonian, following the management buyout of Lorimar and Clarke led by head brewer Russel Sharpe, certainly fitted that mould. In comparison, the standard English Bitter seemed a peely wally, insipid, pallid affair indeed.
As to terminology, I would tend to agree. The shilling naming system is as much a figment of late Twentieth century marketing as it is of any continuous historical tradition. When I started to drink beer in Edinburgh it was as light, heavy, export or wee heavy. As the CAMRA inspired push for real ale moved North, so did the 60. 70, 80 and 90 shilling marques take over the hand pumps. It would, however, be pushing things to suggest that either of these naming systems were simple substitutes for the English terms of mild, bitter, best bitter or barley wine.
As to the historic production of more hoppy beers in the Scottish industry and the distinctive Scotch Ale style, one may have to consider, historically at least, the production of beers for various export markets. Edinburgh once brewed for the world, as well as itself. Many beers produced for the export market were often not readily available for the domestic market. In my drinking days this was certainly true of Scotch Ale production. Far from being simplistically a Belgian style, much strong Scotch ale production was being produced for the Belgian, French and latterly American markets. Strong Scotch ales under the brand names of McEwan's, Douglas, MacAndrews and Gordon's spread a Scottish brewing tradition globally. You would have been hard pressed to find them in Princes or Sauchihall Streets, however. The style was particulary popular in Belgium. Its imitation alone, does not make it a Belgian style.
Peated malt belongs in whisky. Characteristic Scottish ale yeasts, such as wyeast 1728 and whitelabs 1028, can, and do, produce subtle smokey notes.
Some of the most credentialed Scottish beers of recent times, such as the CAMRA award winners Deuchars IPA and Bitter and Twisted from Harviestoun are great beers, that owe as much to English or current global brewing traditions, as they do to any quintessentially Scottish ones. They are very much beers brewed in Scotland, rather than Scottish Ales by any narrow stylistic parameters. My reaction to bottled versions of both has been to find them very good beers, but not particulary Scottish
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I find it particularly sad, that the once highly distinctive and emblematic Scottish Brewer, Belhaven, now has as its leading domestic brand Belhaven Best - fermented at lager temperatures, served nitrogenated and cream flowed and even worst Extra Cold. Enough to make any nostalgic Scottish beer drinker shiver
h34r: .
As a homebrewer, I do sometimes brew beers that emulate the Scottish beers I remember. That they happen to sit broadly in accordance with the 2004 BJCP style guidelines for Scottish 70/ or 80/ is perhaps, at best, a happy coincidence. They certainly taste different from the beers I brew and label as bitters.
Awrabest, stu.
