Originally published in What’s Brewing October 2002
Origin: Bridge of Allan, Stirling, Scotland
ABV: 4 per cent
Buy from the brewery, tel 01786 834555, www.bridgeofallan.co.uk
Traditional Scottish Ales Brig o'Allan 80/- / Stirling Brig
Sadly, bottled beer drinkers haven’t done as well as their draught-quaffing counterparts in the current Scottish beer renaissance. The craft-brewed bottles lining the shelves of posh delis and carry-outs in Edinburgh and Glasgow stand tall alongside the single malts, wearing their saltires with pride – but almost none are bottle-conditioned. Even Champion Beer of Britain-winning Caledonian has withdrawn its toes from the BCA water (though they tell me a revival of bottle-conditioning is currently under discussion). Admittedly some of the brewery-conditioned bottles are still worth trying, but most are crying out for a little more life.
An exception is this entrant from Bridge of Allan, established in 1997 in the spa town of the same name, just north of Stirling. It’s based on draught beer Stirling Brig, and the vegetarian-friendly recipe includes Maris Otter pale, crystal, roast and wheat malts, Goldings, Fuggles and Bramling Cross hops. The designation 80/- goes back to the days before inflation and deep discounting, when beers were named after their price per barrel in now-obsolete units of currency (80/- = £4), and signals that this is a variant on the traditional malty Scottish style.
The beer is a lovely ruby-amber colour, easy to pour clear with only a little sticky sediment, and initially throws a creamy white head. The distinctively toasty, smoky, pastilley and slightly sharp aroma leads to a very malty, fruity and minerally mouthful that reminded me of “Scotland’s other national drink”, Irn Bru. There’s some burnt rubber smokiness, then a sudden brush of rounded ashy hops down the sides of the tongue in the finish. This quickly subsides, leaving a long-lingering fruitiness laced with flashes of powder-dry bitterness and a hint of salt.
Crystal malt produces some intensely smoky and toasty flavours that can easily overwhelm, but here it is well controlled and balanced by elegant hopping: in fact the beer is on the dry side for its style. Overall it’s a distinctive and refined yet easy-drinking ale.
Though its pasteurised stablemates are quite widely distributed in Scotland, as yet this beer is only available direct. Brewer Douglas Ross says wholesalers are still nervous of bottle-conditioned beers, but if he can turn this 80/- into a success he’ll consider adding more to his portfolio. A beer of this quality certainly deserves to succeed in its own right – and it might also encourage a few more Scottish brewers to start bottling the live product.
Try also: Beeck Veldwachter (Netherlands), Flying Dog Road Dog (US), Orkney The Red MacGregor (non-BCA), Pitfield Hoxton Best Bitter (formerly Hoxton Heavy)
Note the brewery is now part of Traditional Scottish Ales (12/2009)
Read more at ratebeer.com: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/bridge-of-allan-brig-o-allan-80—ale/5885/
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