My latest Vue Weekly review appeared on stands yesterday (you can read it here). I test drive Harviestoun’s Old Engine Oil. The tasting itself was straightforward – this is a rich, thick, warming meal of a beer. I picked up complex blendings of chocolate, coffee, dark raisin, molasses, caramel and plum. The roast is light and the finish tart and sharp. The beer has a gentle acidity that introduces a new dimension.

Where things got complicated, as I discuss in the review, is what to name the beer. Harviestoun calls it a porter. I have seen others label it an old ale, including the BJCP Style Guide. Which is it?

Neither, in my opinion. It seems to straddle the two styles. I pontificate (and could be WAY off on this) that maybe it is more like a traditional 18th century porter – bigger with a touch of sour acidity that the style lacks today. Ultimately I don’t care, as the style debate is fairly academic and, as I have suggested before, styles should only serve as general road markers for us. Old Engine Oil is what it is: one satisfying sipper of a beer.