In my opinion Innis and Gunn are beer pioneers. I realize that the recent phenomenon of oak-aged beer has left I&G eating dust as other more assertive examples blow by them, but in all of our enthusiasm for the bold and creative examples out there we should not forget that Innis & Gunn were one of the first (and certainly the first available in Canada) to take oak-aging seriously. AND they remain the only brewery in the world (to my knowledge) that brews exclusively oak-aged beer and nothing more. Most brewers release oak-aged beer as special seasonals or one-offs and even those that use it regularly, such as Mikkeller also offer non-oaked beer in their line-up as well.

I remember when I&G hit the Canadian market, the flavour profile of its beer was “out there”. The vanilla, butterscotch and woody character was something new at the time. And that is something not to be dismissed.

These days, I find the original I&G too flabby – the base beer is too timid and there is too much diacetyl (butterscotch) for my liking. In contrast, their seasonals and one-offs have a mixed track record. I quite enjoyed the Highland Cask and some versions of the Canada Day releases. Others, especially the ones with a lighter base beer, just don’t have enough beer in them to hold up the oak character.

So my curiousity climbed when their latest seasonal came out. It is aged in Irish Whiskey casks, which is mildly interesting. But it is also a stout. They call it a Scottish Stout – whatever the hell that is – but either way this is clearly the darkest beer they have produced yet. A kind of Irish-Scottish collaboration, if you will.

The beer is dark black with mahogany brown peaking around the edges. Its light tan head forms an even layer of fine bead like a sandy beach. The aroma is of light coffee, dark chocolate, hints of rye and vanilla. Some butterscotch is there too, just like all I&G beer and just a smidgen of wood sourness. I find the aroma fairly inviting.

Then we take a sip. Upfront is some chocolate and vanilla with accents of raisin, dark fruit and butterscotch. Strong diacetyl in the middle. Alcohol warmth also picks up in the middle. Bits of coffee roast but overall a fairly light body for a stout – although hard to know what factor the wood plays in lightening the body (a common byproduct of oak-aging). A sharp sour tang is also present, not lactic but not vinegar – seems to be a wood/roast sour. I can detect the whiskey loitering in the shadows – grainy and woody. Finishes sweet but with an angular kick.

Not surprisingly this version has some regular I&G characters – strong vanilla and diacetyl/butterscotch. The wood does its part – adding some complexity and depth and inserting a sharp sour edge. I wonder about the base beer, however. It is dark like a stout, but doesn’t seem rich and roasty enough.

Comparisons to Ola Dubh are unavoidable, as the fellow Scottish brewer Harviestoun may offer the best example of a wood-aged dark ale. Ola Dubh, too, loses some of its richness from the wood, but somehow ends up still more roasted, assertive and complex. I realize Ola Dubh and I&G Irish Whiskey Cask are playing in different ends of the market, so I want to be careful not to use Ola Dubh as some kind of measuring stick. That would be unfair.

However, it does point out that, once again, it may be the base beer that fails I&G. A bit bigger and bolder of a stout would have left more residual stout-iness, and would have improved the beer overall. That said, this is bolder and more adventurous than most I&G offerings. So worthy of praise for what it is. And maybe it is a sign that I&G realizes it needs to be a bit bolder to keep up in the exploding oak end of the market.