14A Scottish Light Flashcards
14A Scottish Light - Overall Impression
A malt-focused, generally caramelly beer with perhaps a few esters and occasionally a butterscotch aftertaste. Hops only to balance and support the malt. The malt character can range from dry and grainy to rich, toasty, and caramelly, but is never roasty and especially never has a peat smoke character. Traditionally the darkest of the Scottish ales, sometimes nearly black but lacking any burnt, overtly roasted character.
14A Scottish Light - Aroma
Low to medium maltiness, often with flavors of toasted breadcrumbs, lady fingers, and English biscuits. Low to medium caramel and low butterscotch is allowable. Light pome fruitiness in best examples. May have low traditional English hop aroma (earthy, floral, orange-citrus, spicy, etc.). Peat smoke is inappropriate.
14A Scottish Light - Appearance
Pale copper to very dark brown. Clear. Low to moderate, creamy off-white.
14A Scottish Light - Flavor
Entirely malt-focused, with flavors ranging from pale, bready malt with caramel overtones to rich-toasty malt with roasted accents (but never roasty) or a combination thereof. Fruity esters are not required but add depth yet are never high. Hop bitterness to balance the malt. No to low hop flavor is also allowed and should be of traditional English character (earthy, floral, orange-citrus, spicy, etc.). Finish ranges from rich and malty to dry and grainy. A subtle butterscotch character is acceptable; however, burnt sugars are not. The malt-hop balance tilts toward malt. Peat smoke is inappropriate.
14A Scottish Light - Mouthfeel
Medium-low to medium body. Low to moderate carbonation. Can be relatively rich and creamy to dry and grainy.
14A Scottish Light - Characteristic Ingredients
Originally used Scottish pale malt, grits or flaked maize, and brewers caramel for color. Later adapted to use additional ingredients, such as amber and brown malts, crystal and wheat malts, and roasted grains or dark sugars for color but not for the ‘roasty’ flavor. Sugar adjuncts are traditional. Clean or slightly fruity yeast. Peatsmoked malt is inauthentic and inappropriate.
14A Scottish Light - Style Comparison
Similar character to a Wee Heavy, but much smaller. Similar in color to a Dark Mild, but a little weaker in strength.
14A Scottish Light - Comments
Malt-focused ales that gain the vast majority of their character from specialty malts, never the process. Burning malt or wort sugars via ‘kettle caramelization’ is not traditional nor is any blatantly ‘butterscotch’ character. Most frequently a draught product. Smoke character is inappropriate as any found traditionally would have come from the peat in the source water. Scottish ales with smoke character should be entered as a Classic Style Smoked Beer.
14A Scottish Light - History
N/A
14A Scottish Light - Commerical Examples
McEwan’s 60
14A Scottish Light - OG
1.030-1.035
14A Scottish Light - FG
1.010-1.013
14A Scottish Light - ABV
2.5-3.2
14A Scottish Light - IBU
10-20
14A Scottish Light - SRM
17-22
