Founded in Scotland in 2002, Innis & Gunn has built a reputation around its Scottish Ale and a host of other beer expressions, all of which are aged in oak barrels. (It’s now the most popular British beer in Canada.)

As the story goes, the company’s barrel-aged beers came about almost as an accident, when the beers were aged simply to flavor casks that would then be used by William Grant to make an ale cask-aged whiskey. Turns out the beer itself tasted pretty good, so they decided to sell it too rather than dump it out.

Innis & Gunn recently added a third beer to its core range of U.S. products, all of which we consider today.

Innis & Gunn Original – Ex-bourbon barrel aged for 77 days. This light amber Scottish Ale starts off be showing its chewy maltiness before quickly leaping into a rabbit hole full of fruit. Pears, applesauce, and vanilla ice cream all come together as the long, malty finish develops. An unusual and lively beer that lacks the heaviness that so many barrel-aged beers have. 6.6% abv. B

Innis & Gunn Rum Aged – Aged with oak rum barrel chips for 57 days. A much darker, redder beer, technically a Wee Heavy, it nonetheless offers a similar character on the whole. Malty and sweet, with tons of fruit — including all of the characteristics of the Original plus some cherry and strawberry character, almost as an aftertaste. 6.8% abv. B

Innis & Gun Toasted Oak India Pale Ale – This newest addition to the lineup is a barrel-aged IPA, which spends 41 days in bourbon casks. Despite being an IPA, it’s got the lowest alcohol level of the bunch. Not as hoppy as you’d expect, it hangs on to that trademark fruitiness with all its life, eventually letting in a little something extra by way of a modest slug of hops. That gives this beer a little more balance and a slight herbal edge that works well with all the fruit. 5.6% abv. B+

$NA per 11.2 oz bottle / innisandgunn.com

Innis & Gunn Rum Aged

0.00

8

Rating

8.0/10