Just as yet another new brewery is opening its doors in Georgia (Burnt Hickory Brewery in Kennesaw), I finally got my taste buds wrapped around a brew I’ve been trying to find for some time: Monday Night Drafty Kilt Scotch Ale.  I should preface this that the first beer I tried from this brewery, Eye Patch Ale, was a less than impressive IPA when I tasted it at Taco Mac. Don't get me wrong, Eye Patch Ale was not a bad beer, it just didn’t excite me as IPAs go.

Monday Night has been a contract brewery here in Georgia for a few years now. They have a “pilot brewery” according to their website, but not a physical presence where you can go for tours or tastings. The company only makes two styles of beer and its products are only sold in draft form. They recently announced a third beer, a Belgian styled Wit, would be offered before long.

Despite my lackluster experience with Eye Patch Ale, I had heard good things about the Scotch ale and thus wanted to try it. My local Taco Mac never obliged by carrying it, but luckily the newly opened Moondog  Growlers did when I stopped by their shop in Marietta. I picked up a 32 ounce growler, freshly filled from the tap, and poured it into a Lazy Magnolia pint glass as soon as I got home.

Here’s how the brewery describes the beer:

A roasty scotch ale with a hint of smoke. Full-bodied, but not overpowering. Smokey, but not in a creepy bar kind of way. Sweet, but not obnoxiously so. Sound like your ideal mother-in-law? Fair enough, but it also is a pretty dead-on description of our Scotch Ale. In a difficult hop-growing climate, Scottish brewers relied on other ingredients to impart flavor and bitterness – one such ingredient was smoked malt. Drafty Kilt is a dark, malty bombshell of a beer.

Drafty Kilt is made with chocolate malt, roasted barley, and cherrywood smoked malt according to the brewery website. I think there may be some two-row in there as well, though they don’t say so. Hops are listed as Willamettes and Columbus and alcohol is 7.2% by volume.

Monday Night Drafty Kilt Scotch Ale pours to a dark mahogany color with a thick creamy tan head formation and a sweet and smoky malt nose. The beer is definitely rich in body, with a thick sticky malt palate. Notes of sweet toffee and treacle, light chocolate, and molasses, and a decided smokiness all delight the palate upon sipping. Drafty Kilt simply bursts with slightly sweet dark malt flavors, accented with fruity raisin and prune notes. The smoke comes through wonderfully as well; perhaps the best part of the beer.

I really love this beer.

Update 7/12/2012: On tap at Taco Mac. This beer is wonderful. Brought home a growler from the tap store a while back. So rich and malty, just the right amount of sweetness, dark malty goodness, licorice and a hint of smoke. Beautiful scotch ale! Their IPA failed to impress me but this one is world class.

Minty grassy herbal hop finish, did I mention that? Perfect.

Update 6/19/2014: Drafty Kilt again at Taco Mac, but this time on nitro pour. Just tapped at 5 especially for tonight. This one is its usual smoky, chocolaty, caramel-laden self-but now with the added smooth creamy texture of a nitro pour. It's like dessert in a glass, and reasonable at $5.75 a mug. Being beer of the month, I get a free glass with the purchase as well.

Update 4/11/2018: Saved the best for last tonight. Monday Night Drafty Kilt Scotch Ale on nitro pour. Smooth and creamy mouthfeel from the nitro, chocolate and treacle, hint of smoke, slightly phenolic. Tastes even better in a Chancellor's mug.

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

(G)=Growler