Harpoon 100 Barrel
Series Session 22: Firth of Forth Ale
Review Date 9/17/2008
Try?
Re-buy?
If you ask me (and you did, or you wouldn't be reading
this), Scottish ales and Scotch ales are the two most easily confused styles
in the beer world. Not that they should be; if you sip the one and then the
other, you'd easily be able to tell them apart. I suppose the confusion
arises from the fact that both seem to refer to a style from Scotland, which
they are.
But here's the thing. Scottish ales (the classic example being Belhaven) are somewhat akin to pale ale, although they have a light chocolate note and a heath-bar like toffee character to them. They are also not particularly strong, either, weighing in at about the same alcohol content as a pale ale or standard lager.
Scotch Ales, on the other hand, have definitely been kicked up a notch. They should be higher in alcohol, around 7% or so (maybe even higher) with a thick, viscous maltiness and notes of raisin (prune even) and chocolate. No confusing these two puppies, as I said.
But it happens all the time, and many a brewer is guilty of it. Brewers like Boston's Harpoon with their Firth of Forth Ale, session 22 in their 100 Barrel series. The label clearly states "The combination of Scottish malts and American hops give this dark scotch ale..."
Hey wait. A Scotch ale? As I read down the label I saw the alcohol content of 5.4% alcohol by volume, clearly not in the Scotch range, but certainly in the Scotttish. So, I grabbed a bottle and winged it home to try the stuff.
Harpoon Firth of Forth Ale pours to a bright cherry red color with a light creamy tan head formation and a subtly sweet malty nose. The palate is a bit sweet like a fine Scottish ale should be, a little nutty, chewy with a touch of toffee, a hint of chocolate, and eminently creamy. When I think of Scottish ales, I think of the classic Belhaven, and Firth of Forth really reminds me of that one. It finishes with a touch of grassy hops, just enough to dry it out and make it very drinkable.
And yes, it is very drinkable. But to be quite frank, I was expecting a bit more from this one. Yeah, it's a fair approximation of Belhaven, and it reminds me of that beer, but it ain't that beer. It doesn't impress me with the combination of Scottish malts and American hops, either (nothing Earth-shattering in the hops department here). And it's not a Scotch ale.
But it is a decent Scottish, and at $2.99 for a bomber bottle, not a bad buy these days, either. Buy one and try it, as this is a one off like the rest of the series. But don't buy a case.
But here's the thing. Scottish ales (the classic example being Belhaven) are somewhat akin to pale ale, although they have a light chocolate note and a heath-bar like toffee character to them. They are also not particularly strong, either, weighing in at about the same alcohol content as a pale ale or standard lager.
Scotch Ales, on the other hand, have definitely been kicked up a notch. They should be higher in alcohol, around 7% or so (maybe even higher) with a thick, viscous maltiness and notes of raisin (prune even) and chocolate. No confusing these two puppies, as I said.
But it happens all the time, and many a brewer is guilty of it. Brewers like Boston's Harpoon with their Firth of Forth Ale, session 22 in their 100 Barrel series. The label clearly states "The combination of Scottish malts and American hops give this dark scotch ale..."
Hey wait. A Scotch ale? As I read down the label I saw the alcohol content of 5.4% alcohol by volume, clearly not in the Scotch range, but certainly in the Scotttish. So, I grabbed a bottle and winged it home to try the stuff.
Harpoon Firth of Forth Ale pours to a bright cherry red color with a light creamy tan head formation and a subtly sweet malty nose. The palate is a bit sweet like a fine Scottish ale should be, a little nutty, chewy with a touch of toffee, a hint of chocolate, and eminently creamy. When I think of Scottish ales, I think of the classic Belhaven, and Firth of Forth really reminds me of that one. It finishes with a touch of grassy hops, just enough to dry it out and make it very drinkable.
And yes, it is very drinkable. But to be quite frank, I was expecting a bit more from this one. Yeah, it's a fair approximation of Belhaven, and it reminds me of that beer, but it ain't that beer. It doesn't impress me with the combination of Scottish malts and American hops, either (nothing Earth-shattering in the hops department here). And it's not a Scotch ale.
But it is a decent Scottish, and at $2.99 for a bomber bottle, not a bad buy these days, either. Buy one and try it, as this is a one off like the rest of the series. But don't buy a case.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft
