{"title":"Scottish beer","description":"\u003cp\u003eScottish beer has traditionally meant malty ales with little hop, but today's scene is a lot broader. At Hoptimaal you'll find Scottish beer from Vault City Brewing, in the sour beer style. Below you can see all the Scottish beers we currently supply.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!--verhaal--\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eA beer scene that goes back thousands of years\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn Skara Brae on Orkney, Neolithic stone buildings have been found, about 5,000 years old, with traces of grain processing: malting, mashing and fermenting. So Scottish beer history begins long before the first breweries in the modern sense.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the twelfth century, Benedictine monks in Edinburgh and Dunbar developed commercial brewing, using fresh spring water and locally grown barley. Belhaven in Dunbar, founded in 1719, is considered the oldest brewery in Scotland. In the nineteenth century, Edinburgh and Alloa were known for their beer exports, including to the British Empire.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the 1950s, almost all independent breweries disappeared in a wave of takeovers. Scotland now has more than a hundred breweries again. An important boost came from the Progressive Beer Duty, now Small Brewers Relief, which lowered the tax for small breweries.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eMalty ales, whisky casks and idiosyncratic brewers\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eScotch ale is dark, malt-rich and barely hopped, with a rich sweetness and a soft, smooth texture. The designations 60\/-, 70\/- and 80\/- come from the nineteenth-century shilling system, based on the price of a hogshead of beer. The wee heavy resembles a barley wine. American brewers often make it with smoked malt, against the wishes of the Scots.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHops grow poorly in the Scottish climate and were expensive to import. There is some written evidence, and a lot of folklore, that heather, myrtle and broom were used as bittering herbs. Brewers such as the Heather Ale Company are going back to this.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eScottish brewers have also often been at the forefront of innovation. Harviestoun, Fyne Ales, Orkney, Highland and Black Isle have each developed their own styles. Harviestoun matures Ola Dubh in former whisky casks, and BrewDog from Aberdeenshire has been playing the bad boy for years.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eScottish beer at Hoptimaal\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the moment, Vault City Brewing is the Scottish brewery you'll find with us. That's a different direction from traditional Scotch ale: our Scottish range consists of sour beer.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHighly rated on Untappd are, among others, Vault City Stoopid Spaceshake, Vault City Bake-Off: Cranachan, Vault City Bake-Off: Sago Pudding and Vault City Bake-Off: Matcha Mochi.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery brewery in our range has its own page, including Vault City Brewing. There you'll find everything we supply from the brewery.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!--faq--\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat is typical Scottish beer?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eScotch ale is the classic Scottish style: dark, malt-rich, with little hop and a rich sweetness. That malt-forward taste comes from a tradition in which hops were hard to grow and expensive to import.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhich Scottish breweries are well known?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWell-known names are Belhaven (founded in 1719), Harviestoun, Fyne Ales, Orkney, Highland, Black Isle and BrewDog. At Hoptimaal you'll find Vault City Brewing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eWhat do 60\/-, 70\/- and 80\/- mean on Scottish beers?\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThey are shilling designations from the nineteenth century, based on the price of a hogshead of beer. A 60\/- was a light ale, a 70\/- a heavier one and an 80\/- an export ale.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"vault-city-brewing-bake-off-matcha-mochi","title":"Vault City Bake-Off: Matcha Mochi","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp\u003eVault City Brewing takes a classic Japanese dessert and pours it into a glass: this sour brings together matcha and mochi in one fresh, fruit-forward package.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe name gives away the inspiration: on the nose, expect the bitter freshness of green tea alongside the soft, slightly chewy sweetness of rice cake. At 7.4% ABV, this sits stronger than the average sour, with the sharpness of matcha keeping the sweeter notes in check.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBrewery\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eEdinburgh-based Vault City Brewing is the UK's largest producer of modern sour beers, known for experimental, heavily fruited creations.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Vault City Brewing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":59634120360281,"sku":null,"price":8.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0728\/0076\/4249\/files\/IMG_0721_processed.png?v=1790771822"},{"product_id":"vault-city-brewing-bake-off-sago-pudding","title":"Vault City Bake-Off: Sago Pudding","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith \"Bake-Off: Sago Pudding,\" Vault City Brewing returns to the kitchen for a dessert-inspired sour, promising comfort food in liquid form from one of Scotland's largest sour beer producers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn the nose, expect a hazy, juicy sour at 5.8% ABV built on Vault City's signature sweet-sour balance. Specific flavor details for this release haven't been disclosed by the brewery, but the dessert-inspired name hints at a creamy, rounded character.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBrewery\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eVault City Brewing has been brewing in Portobello, Edinburgh since 2018 and has grown into the UK's largest producer of modern sour beers, known for a steady stream of fruit-forward new releases.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Vault City Brewing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":59634121703769,"sku":null,"price":8.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0728\/0076\/4249\/files\/IMG_0722_processed.png?v=1790771822"},{"product_id":"vault-city-brewing-bake-off-cranachan","title":"Vault City Bake-Off: Cranachan","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp\u003eBake-Off: Cranachan plays on the classic Scottish dessert, reimagined as a 5% ABV sour.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn the nose, expect a bright tartness paired with a dessert-like character that nods to its namesake. The finish stays crisp and refreshing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBrewery\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eVault City Brewing, based in Edinburgh, is one of the UK's largest producers of modern sour beers, brewing by the sea in Portobello since 2018.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Vault City Brewing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":59634121965913,"sku":null,"price":8.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0728\/0076\/4249\/files\/IMG_0723_processed.png?v=1790771822"},{"product_id":"vault-city-brewing-stoopid-spaceshake","title":"Vault City Stoopid Spaceshake","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp\u003eVault City Brewing, one of the UK's largest sour beer producers, delivers a lively 5.5% ABV sour with Stoopid Spaceshake.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn the nose, expect a bright, tangy acidity typical of the modern sour style Vault City is known for. The body comes through juicy and refreshing, finishing with a short, slightly tart edge that invites another sip.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBrewery\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eVault City Brewing has been brewing in Portobello, Edinburgh since 2018, growing into one of the UK's largest producers of modern sour beers with an annual output in the millions of litres.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Vault City Brewing","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":59634122096985,"sku":null,"price":8.5,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0728\/0076\/4249\/files\/IMG_0720_processed.png?v=1790771822"}],"url":"https:\/\/hoptimaal.com\/en\/collections\/scottish-beer.oembed","provider":"Hoptimaal","version":"1.0","type":"link"}