Ölbeat 326 (BC17 #13): Swannay Barrel Aged Orkney Porter (Isle of Arran)

Brewery: Swannay Brewery
Country: Scotland
Style: Imperial Porter
Abv: 10,5 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is black with a small tan head. Aroma has chocolate, nuts, roast and oaky-spicy alcohol (very nice!). Taste begins with bittersweet fruity chocolate. Sweet roasted malts, dark chocolate and booze-soaked fruits take over. Towards the end spicy chocolate and dry oaky-fruity alcohol mix deliciously, while sweet roasted malts give the liquid a solid backbone. Aftertaste has sweet fruity-spicy chocolate and dryish oaky-bitter whisky.

Rich and sweet barrel-aged Imperial Porter. The sweet chocolate-roasty basic porter is obviously nicely present, the aging of 12 months (in previous editions 18 months) in Isle of Arran Orkney Bere casks shows up in fruits, spice, oak and booze. The whole package is delicious. The brew has a fine story and tastes simply great.

Ölbeat

"I am a mountain / I am the sea / You can't take away from me." Well, OK, the Orkney Islands are mainly quite flat but there are some steep coastal cliffs. But the Isle of Arran is called Scotland in miniature: there are some mountains. And certainly, presence of the sea is always strongly there in the Scottish islands.

Biffy Clyro: Mountains (YouTube)

From the 2009 album Only Revolutions, the song was written by Simon Neil.

Ölbeat 311: BrewDog Cocoa Psycho

Brewery: BrewDog
Country: Scotland
Style: Imperial Stout
Abv: 10 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is black with a two-finger thick brown head. Aroma has dark chocolate, cappuccino and roasted malts. Taste starts with biting bittersweet chocolate. Sweet roasted malts and bitter dark chocolate take over with hints of espresso. Towards the end dark chocolate and slightly sweet coffee rise up with smooth bitterness. Aftertaste has lasting bitter cocoa and strong dry roast.

Strong and absolutely delicious Imperial Stout. Chocolate leads the way, roast and coffee follow. Smooth bitterness grows all the way. It's not punk - it's damn good beer.

Ölbeat

Punk sells. Just ask Henry Rollins. Or BrewDog. ;)

Black Flag: Black Coffee (YouTube)

From the 1984 album Slip It In, the song was written by Greg Ginn.

Ölbeat 287: BrewDog Elvis Juice

Brewery: BrewDog
Country: Scotland
Style: India Pale Ale
Abv: 6,5 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is clear orange with a two-finger thick white head. Aroma has fresh grapefruit, orange and pineapple. Taste begins with gently bitter grapefruit. Fresh grapefruit-lemon juice takes over with hints of sweet fruits. Towards the end sweet orange and bitter peel are added to the taste. Aftertaste has bitter grapefruit, sour lemon and salty-fruity dryness.

Grapefruit-orange-packed India Pale Ale. Completely fruit-dominated brew with very gentle bitterness. Craving a little more. Probably the name will change soon, so I'll get it then. But this tastes good and fresh, anyway.

Ölbeat

The name of the brew got BrewDog in a legal battle with Elvis Presley's estate, and in July 2017 they lost it: BrewDog is forced to change the beer's name. Because I don't want to link the beer in any way to the King, he will not get his first song here. Instead, I picked this classic tribute to him.

Dire Straits: Calling Elvis (Vimeo)

From the 1991 album On Every Street, the song was written by Mark Knopfler.

Ölbeat 268: BrewDog Zeitgeist

Brewery: BrewDog
Country: Scotland
Style: Schwarzbier
Abv: 4,7 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is black with a large but quickly dissolving natural white head. Aroma has charred malts, burned wood and smoke. Taste begins with burned salty liquorice. Charcoal-roasted malts take over with some meaty smoke and dark chocolate. Towards the end charred malts are joined by bitter salty liquorice and even some citrus flavour. Aftertaste has charred citrus bitterness and malty dryness.

We've come this far for the first Schwarzbier. Worth the wait - it's good. Some clearly porterish elements - a malt-driven brew - but crisp hops come out in the end. Light but tasty.

Ölbeat

Since the brew's commercial description tells it to be a timeless classic - amongst the crap about similarities in BrewDog's punk agenda and Zeitgeist movement - I looked for a timeless classic to fit a good brew. According to a research on Spotify, this is the most streamed song of the 1980's. Thus, it's just the timeless classic I was looking for. Personally, I find this song just OK, not that great.

Journey: Don't Stop Believin' (YouTube)

From the 1981 album Escape, the song was written by Jonathan Cain, Steve Perry and Neal Schon.

Ölbeat 247: Swannay Island Hopping

Brewery: Swannay Brewery
Country: Scotland
Style: Golden Ale
Abv: 3,9 % 
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What about the beer?

Colour is clear golden yellow with a small white head. Aroma has lemon, malts, butter and some sweet fruits. Taste begins with fruity bitter malts. Sour-bready malts and bitter citrus take over. Towards the end sour and bitter citrus gets through with some sweeter fruits lurking in the background. Aftertaste is grainy-malty dry, citrus-oily sour-bitter and in the very end even fruity sweet.

Unbelievably tasty low abv (3,9 %!) ale. Pale malts meet fruity New Zealand hops in a crisp and fresh way. Many kinds of citrus present - sour, bitter and even sweet. Very drinkable, still.

Ölbeat

A light but refreshing ale from a brewery in Orkney, Scotland. The singer of this trio was born in Orkney, and the trio's name Lau means "natural light" in Orcadian dialect. The brew was naturally light, so it's a match.

Lau: Ghosts (YouTube)

From the 2011 album The Bell That Never Rang, the song was written by Kris Drever, Martin Green and Aidan O'Rourke.

Ölbeat 209: Alechemy Photon IPA

Brewery: Alechemy
Country: Scotland
Style: Session IPA
Abv: 4,3 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is hazy golden orange with a small white head. Aroma has grapefruit, malts and orange. Taste starts with bitter, slightly piny citrus. Tart-bitter malty grapefruit takes over with a sour citrus side tone. Towards the end some pine gets through. Aftertaste has sweet fruits, bitter grapefruit and a bit harsh dry twist.

Basically a fine session IPA with distinctive grapefruit and some malty-piny side tones. Some harsh dryness in the end makes a tiny crack to the freshness. Still a tasty thirst quencher.

Ölbeat

Bluesy rock was a sure choice for this one. For once I let the lyrics speak: "You can have your riches / All the gold you saved / There ain't room for one thing / In everybody's grave / Bang, bang, bang, bang. / Vamanos, vamanos." That's all I have to say about that.

Clutch: Electric Worry (YouTube)

From the 2007 album From Beale Street to Oblivion, the song was written by Clutch and Mississippi Fred McDowell.

Ölbeat 189: BrewDog Hardcore IPA

Brewery: BrewDog  
Country: Scotland
Style: Imperial IPA
Abv: 9,2 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is bright dark orange with a small white head. Aroma has orange, mango and pineapple. Taste starts with strong fruity bitterness. Fresh bitter grapefruit with a slice of orange and mango takes over. Towards the end sweet citrus and gentle pine come through. Aftertaste has bittersweet citrus and gently piny dryness.

Amazing fruity Imperial IPA. Bitterness strikes in the start, but then it's all fruit explosion. Soft touch of pine in the end smoothens the experience to the finish. I'm rather pissed that the commercialized punks are retiring this one from their 2017 selection.

Ölbeat

Of course it's rock, no question about it. A personal message to the brewery on quitting this superb DIPA is written in two lines of the lyrics of this song:

• Now you're messin' with a son of a bitch
• Time's come to pay your dues

Nazareth: Hair of the Dog (YouTube)

From the 1975 album Hair of the Dog, the song was written by Manny Charlton, Dan McCafferty, Pete Agnew and Darrell Sweet.

Ölbeat 182: Traquair 50th Anniversary Ale

Brewery: Traquair House
Country: Scotland
Style: Old Ale
Abv: 9 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is nut brown with a small tan head. Aroma has sweet berries, caramel malts, dark fruits and sweet spice. Taste starts with strong and sweet wooden bitterness. Oaky and spicy caramel malts take over with dark fruits and sweet berries. Towards the end caramel and fruits get gently bitter and on top. Aftertaste has sweet malts, bitter fruits and dry alcohol.

Rich and delicious like a superb Old Ale can be. Caramel malts, oak, fruit and berry flavours with bitter and boozy finish make this one a really great experience. Truly a brew for celebrating a half century of brewing excellent beer.

Ölbeat

Since Traquair House Brewery has specialized in old ales and has been around for 50 years, one might think that the brewery has become old and dusty. The anniversary ale shows that the beers are doing great. Matching song from a Scottish band is here.

Simple Minds: Alive and Kicking (YouTube)

From the 1985 album Once Upon a Time, the song was written by Jim Kerr, Charlie Burchill and Mick MacNeil.

Ölbeat 129: Belhaven 90/~ Wee Heavy

Brewery: Belhaven
Country: Scotland
Style: Scotch Ale
Abv: 7,4 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is oaky brown with a small whiteish head. Aroma has brown sugar, sweet malts, strawberry and vanilla. Taste bites first with spicy sweetness. Fudge-caramel malts and dark berries with oak and vanilla bars take over. Near the finish syrupy bitterness comes through. Aftertaste has sweet malts and fruity bitterness.

Tasty Wee Heavy! Sweet malts, berry-fruity flavours and gentle bitterness make this a strong and rich one. Deliciously spicy traditional Scotch Ale.

Ölbeat

Wee Heavy by a Scottish brewery forces one choose a song from the Scotsmen. Instantly forgetting the bagpipes and searching for something more powerful I came across a band that had it's years of fame in my youth. This song shares sweetness and joy with the brew.

Simple Minds: She's a River (YouTube)

From the 1995 album Good News from the Next World, the song was written by Jim Kerr and Charlie Burchill.

Ölbeat 115: Brewdog Albino Squid Assassin

Brewery: BrewDog
Country: Scotland
Style: Specialty Grain
Abv: 7,4 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is murky amber brown with a small vanishing white head. Aroma has pineapple, citrus and rye-bready malts. Taste starts with hoppy and fruity sweet bitterness. Bitter grapefruit with tender malty and sweet pineapple flavours takes over. Sweet fruit comes more in front later, and near the finish smooth piny dryness gets through. Aftertaste has citrus, malts, pine and alcoholic bitterness.

Quite complex Rye IPA with moderate-to-heavy bitterness, sweet fruits and steady rye malts. Ending adds some piny dryness and alcohol warmth. This is tasty as hell, and it surely would have been a murder (or a lesser crime) to leave this on the shelf.

Ölbeat

What comes to mind from a multi-tentacled octopus hitman? What comes to mind from a heavy brew with bloody damn tasty flavours? Right. And I select the original version of the song.

Adamski & Seal: Killer (YouTube)

From the 1990 album Doctor Adamski's Musical Pharmacy, the song was written by Adamski and Seal.

Ölbeat 112: BrewDog Monk Hammer

Brewery: BrewDog
Country: Scotland
Style: India Pale Ale
Abv: 7,2 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is cloudy golden yellow with a small white head. Aroma has mostly lemon and grapefruit with some sweet fruits and yeast. Taste starts with sharp heavily dry bitterness with a yeasty twist. Yeasty and bitter grapefruit dominates with some piny dry. Grapefruit bitterness comes out strongest near the finish. Aftertaste is piny dry and grapefruit bitter.

Elements of the brewery's basic Jack Hammer are clearly present. They are coated with yeasty, Belgian aleish flavours. The result is still clearly a strong IPA or even Double IPA. Strong, heavy and tasty brew for the first Ölbeat from the Punks. ("What took you so long?")

Ölbeat

Since I'll reserve the punk rock song for another BrewDog brew - just wait - I chose a joyful soft guitar metal ballad to accompany this one. Somehow the brews that have some relation in their name or style get connected with song themes at least with a thin thread connected to faith and religion. Time for a head check, perhaps? 

Yngwie Malmsteen: Heaven Tonight (YouTube)

From the 1988 album Odyssey, the song was written by Joe Lynn Turner and Yngwie Malmsteen.

Ölbeat 094: Traquair Jacobite Ale

Brewery: Traquair House
Country: Scotland
Style: Traditional Ale
Abv: 8 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is dark reddish brown with small natural white head. Aroma has caramel malts, syrup and sweet spices. Taste lifts off with sweet syrupy malts. Sweet malts continue in the lead with a caramel hoppy bite  and some sweet spices added. Towards the end we get some sugary alcohol and berry flavour. Aftertaste has malty sweet and gentle bitterness.

Magnificent traditional ale. The union of  caramel malts, gentle hops and sweet spiciness really makes this spectacular. While and after enjoying you have a really warm and comfortable feeling.

Ölbeat

Although tempted to attach this traditional ale to a traditional Scottish song like "Ye Jacobites by Name", I finally chose a modern rock ballad by a Scottish band. The song just echoes the same kind of simple beauty I tasted in the brew:

Biffy Clyro: Skylight (YouTube)

From the 2013 album Opposites/The Sand at the Core of Our Bones, the song was written by Simon Neil.