Scotch Ale

As the wind blows with the seasons' inevitable change, there's nothing better than Scotch ale to warm your bones in the cool Spring breeze.

Steve Wermuth, one of the Great Dane's (Madison, WI) great brewmen, recounted his celebrated Scotch ale experience: an autumn excursion to central Wisconsin's Copper Falls State Park. With his pumpkin-colored canine by his side crunching last fall's forested debris under paw, a medium-warm McEwan's became meditatively major; everything was right with the world.

Malty to the max with a hint of peat playing amidst its nutty chocolate undertones, fine Scotch ales are the color of caramel tinged by the ruby of a vernal sunset. Super sugary scents spotlight a full spectrum of fall's flittering flotsam.

Scotch ales are often known by old tax descriptions reflecting alcohol content (i.e., Lights, Heavies and Exports are known as sixty-, seventy- and eighty-shilling, whereas Wee-Heavies are ninety-or even 120-shilling). In my opinion, the bigger, the better.

Three Floyds is the place for the Chicago-area's top Scotch Ale, Robert the Bruce, a big-bodied beer with reddish undertones.

Get It

All respectable breweries make a Scotch ale of some sort; get some on tap and take a growler home with you. Buy imports like McEwan's in bottles or cans at Binny's or other large liquor stores.

Serve It

Scotch ale is unassuming in its presentation and loves a standard pint glass, its dazzling dark reddish browns shining through.

Entertain with It

Kick up your kilt--bagpipes optional--and combine the caramel malts of a classic Scotch ale with fire-grilled game, roasted veggies or your cheesiest of cheesecakes. Pair Scotch ale with charcoaled, marinated chicken breast or with potatoes and carrots and a garlic clove grilled in a pouch.

As many obsess over baseball this time of year, remember that tailgate parties are especially fun fueled by a multitude of locally brewed beers. Grab growlers and 6-packs wherever mass malts are mashed. Store them in ice chests and serve them that day to your kith and kin.