Innis & Gunn Highland Ale

Bottle: Pasteurised.

This Innis & Gunn beer has been matured in rare 21 year old single malt Scotch Whisky barrels to create a complex beer with a classic Highland character.

3.1

198 reviews

Edinburgh, Scotland

Community reviews

2.3 Bought this from Systembolaget when it was available. I have a hard time with the butterscotch which i think is dominating these beers, there’s also problems with all the ’special-editions’ which in my opinion are all pretty much alike. With that said. Roasted malt and butterscotch caramel with some sweetness.

3.1 Bottle. Pours dark brown caramel, with a big creamy head. Aroma is roasted malts and caramel, as well as bread, oak and whiffs of whisky. Full body with soft carbonation. Flavour is sweet with roasted malts, grain, oak and peat, and a too sweet finish.

4.0 I love any beer on rum casks.

3.3 Bouteille 330 ml. Merci James. Couleur ambrée foncée, mousse fugace beige pâle. Arôme de bois, whiskey. En bouche, sucrée, bois, aqueuse, alcool, malt. Bonne.

3.2 Pours a clear copper colour and after letting it warm up a bit no head just a few spots on the glass. Aroma is sweet mild toffee, mildly peaty, and sweet maltiness. I’m not getting a ton of aroma on this one. Taste is sweet caramel, vanilla, scotch notes, mild alcohol warming/bite on the finish. Very enjoyable beer, I would describe it as a sweet scotch like beverage though much less harsh/peaty and a much lower abv and makes a good dessert beer.

3.4 Pours a clear amber with a minimal head. Aroma of toffee, vanilla and peaty smokiness. Taste is toffee, vanilla, some peat, slight bitterness. Overall it’s a nice oak aged beer in scotch casks bit it’s a touch too sweet. One of the better Innis offerings though.

3.7 330 mL. 7.4%. Pours a dark mahogany, coppery colour with a tan foam that bubbles away slowly. Aroma is roasted malts, hint of peaty smokiness and toffee. Taste is quite smooth, lightly hopped and rich in roast malt flavour. Finish develops a little of the whisky character, honey, toffee, and that oaky tinge as you swallow. Delicious.

3.7 Currently drinking whilst typing. Instant aroma of vanilla, toffee, caramel, subtle whisky notes and sweet fruitiness. A crystal clear amber colour with an off white fluffy/creamy head which stays for a while and disappears sometime through the beer. Flavours of sweet Danish bread, toffee and vanilla with a woody whisky bite and low bitterness, malty throughout the finish with a very mellow hop character. Smooth and easy texture, nothing huge in the mouthfeel and a gentle carbonation. Overall a very nice beer from Innis & Gunn, It’s just a shame to see it discontinued, as for me it was one of their more enjoyable beers. The whisky bite just does it for me and I do prefer it to many of their other beers. Very nice!

2.6 This one is a nice amber in color with a small head. The aroma is slight vanilla. The flavor sweet with vanilla. It flows across the palate smooth with a little bite of carbonation. Overall not a terrible beer but a little too sweet for my taste.

3.4 33cl bottle poured into a pint glass. Copper with a small white cap. Aroma is vanilla. Flavor is the same with slight alcohol. Warm, spritzy finish.

3.1 I’m a big fan of Innis & gunn beers since the first time I tried one. This is another winner by innis&gunn

3.3 (18YO barrel) pours dark tan brown with a nice foamy head, good ringed retention, quite a few active streams. Whiskied caramel malts and strong toffee on the nose. Attack: 7/10-sweetness, whisky aromas Mid-palate: oaked scotch w/ alcohol, toffee, caramel malts, Finish: light fizzy, honeyed malt finish. Good interesting brew from I&G, this one is a winner.

3.9 Mycket doft, sötma, smörkola, ekfatskaraktär en trevlig årgång som serveras väl kyld.

3.9 nice dark color with a med white head looks very tasty smell reminds me of vanilla or like old wooden furniture that grandparents keep very interesting taste is total vanilla with a smooth creamy finish this is a really good beer damn very sweet but balanced

3.5 Pours a dark black. Aroma is oak coffee. Taste is same. Overall good beer but not best from innis and gunn.

3.2 January 26, 2013; 7.1% abv, 650 mL, rock Aroma of dark fruit and sweet breads are very obvious. Sharp tannin and booze as well. Pours amber will very little carbonation and little head. Light lacing. Malty character is overwhelming. Caramel and sweet breads are dominant, missing complexity of hops or booze. Carbonation doesn’t cut through the sweetness making this offering a bit cloying. Could benefit from more alcoholic spice. Sweet malts, needs booze.

3.4 This Ale poured a clear amber colour with a minimal head, even after a vigourous pour. Scents include wine, oak, whiskey and toast. first sip was smooth and had a creamy mouthfeel with light flavours of whiskey and barrel along with a nice caramel aftertaste. Palate is lightly boozey with whiskey flavours lingering.

3.4 (bottle) clear amber colour with a medium tall tan head; aromas of toffee, vanilla, mild if not very remarkable flavour with light medium long bitter finish

4.1 Chilled 330ml bottle from a gift pack. Pours a dark amber with a very thin white head. Lovely complex aroma - strong caramel, with hints of clove and citrus. Strong taste of the original I&G at first, heavy caramel with light vanilla and citrus. Lovely whiskey warmth at the back of the palate. A really really great brew!

3.4 [bottle in Edinburgh] Oaky aroma with brown sugar and whisky. Clear chestnut appearance under a pristine ring and wisps. Smooth oak flavour that is almost balanced by caramel and a good bitterness, though a touch sugary. Medium to full body with moderate to medium carbonation and a smooth feel.

3.5 330ml bottle from Ellie’s Cellar in Perth Aromas: Faint hops, banana, butterscotch. Slight whisky aroma. Taste: Slight heat from the whisky. Light vanilla flavours. Caramel/toffee. Underwhelmed to be honest. Heard so much good stuff about Innis & Gunn but found this a bit bland. Nice enough and doesn’t feel like such a high ABV but just expected more after all I’d heard about Innis & Gunn.

3.6 330ml bottle. Slightly more auburn then the original with same quick dying head. Silky residue for lace. Aroma is very faint - where the original is somewhat strong and skunky. Only slight hints of vanilla and malt. Flavour is quite complex! A nice surprise. A stronger initial explosion of sweet toffee and roasted malts gives way to a finish of smoke and nuts. I am getting the tobacco flavours (as a pipe smoker) which is quite unique. There is that patented oaky play in this offering as well but it blends much better with these other flavours than in the blonde or the original. Great mouthfeel. Some thickness to this on the tongue afterward. Great!

3.9 Nov 19 2012. 330ml bottle pours caramel honey amber with a small bubbly head. Soft aroma of vanilla, toffee, malt and oak. Full body, quite sweet taste with a light bitterness. More of a burnt toffee and toasted flavour than other offerings but with same warming finish, and silky mouthfeel. Whiskey gives a slightly acidic alcohol bite in finish that stays on the tongue. Not quite as dark or rich as rum but still a classic Innis & Gunn.

4.2 330 mL Bottle. Clear amber body with a frothy off-white head that settles to a film leaving some stringy lace. Aroma of sweet malts, a note of treacle, vanilla, and mild floral-grassy hops. Light sweet malts dominate in the flavor, a woody note, some treacle; sweet but pleasant and not too imposing, peppery on the tongue. Light cream cheese aftertaste and a nice finish of sweet malts and cream cheese. Ideal as a sipping beer that is best served not too chilled. "Campfire" beer.

2.6 pours cloudy copper with a decent white head, some retention. light bananas, pears, caramels, bourbon, no smoke, faint grassy-citrusy hops. average carbonation, light body. meh.

3.3 11.2oz bottle. Poured an amber color with an averaged sized off white head. Aromas of wood, earth, some vanilla, and toasted nuts. Tastes of wood, vanilla, lighter earth, and caramel.

4.2 Dark amber in colour with a small off white head. Aroma of malt, toffee and vanilla. Flavour to match with a hint of flavours from the cask, a little bitter and warming finish. --- BeerItsNice

3.4 From notes: Poured clear reddish-amber, with a 3-finger, off-white head that was gone quickly. Woody aroma with notes of caramel malt and vanilla. Medium body, with a very slight dryness to the finish. Nutty, caramelly malt flavor up front, with the wood notes coming through nicely in the finish. As it warms, the wood becomes more pronounced and a mild vanilla note appears.

3.5 A clear amber/orange colored beer, with a light beige head. The aroma has sweet of fruits, a little vanilla with wood notes. The taste is also sweet, fruits, apricote, hints of vanilla and some whisky hints. The aftertaste is sweet a little bitter and in the back vanilla.

4.2 This is a favourite for sitting on the dock enjoying the afternoon or a sunset on the lake.