What’s in a name?  I don’t know if Shakespeare was right when he said, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.”  SkullSplitter would be a good smelling, tasting, and sipping beer.  But something inexplicable tells me that I wouldn’t love it as much if the name were different.  Sometimes an appellation can be the perfecting touch on a beer (or numerous things for that matter).  Quick, what’s a better name for a hamburger, Homer Simpson, or “roar” for a loud noise.  Having trouble?  I am!  It’s not simply what the beer is but also what it will do that makes it’s name great.  Don’t drink all four in the pack in a short period of time.  Onward to the beer.

The Pour: SkullSplitter is a brown beer with touches of red.  Wouldn’t it be cool if it were blood color? There is a nice but not too long-lasting head, which is okay by me.

The Nose: There was a juicy, slight melon quality that I could detect on the nose of the beer.  It had a nice vinous (wine-like) quality from the 8.5% ABV present.  Some coffee tones were also notable in the body.  I even caught a touch of hops, which is unusual for many Scottish Ales.  (By the way, here is a post about Scottish Ales.)  But the biggest part of this 90 shilling/Wee Heavy Ale was the sweet-smelling, malt body.

The Taste: Plenty of residual sweetness and malts were readily apparent on the first sip.  As I said about the nose, there was a tinge of hops as well.  Coffee touches, deep roasted grains, and vinous fruits could easily be detected in the beer.  The fruit might have been honey dew melon.  The beer finished with a dry maltiness, which had a smoked peatiness to it.

Overall, I think this beer is a classic version of what a malty Scottish Ale ought to be (aside from the slight deviation on hops).  If you want a real treat, age a bottle from 3 to 5 years.  Not too long ago, I drank a bottle that I had for about 3 or 4 years, and boy did it age well.,,it made my little brother go looking for some.  Yummy!  Pick up four, but check yourself before you wreck yourself.

Mike’s Rating

Overall Satisfaction: ★★★★¼ 

Among other Scottish Ales that I've had: ★★★★½ 

Among other Ales: ★★★★☆