This article was started back in April after tapping the keg. Without further ado, the story of the 2015 scotch ale:

It's that time of year again where I need to dig a carboy out of my closet where it has been resting for the past six months. For this iteration of my scotch ale I wanted to showcase smoke and peat. Unfortunately I was not thinking when I added the melanoidin malt. I will use way less from now on.

When I put the beer into secondary on oak I wasn't happy with how it was tasting at all. The oak and aging usually help mellow out the ridiculously strong beer, so I hoped this would follow. When I racked it to a keg, I still wasn't happy. It had a weird aftertaste and zero smoke.

After carbonation and resting for a week it was finally ready to tap. This year's brew clocked in at 12.5%. The carbonation finally brought out the smoke, the body was silky smooth, but the caramel tones were a little over powered by the melanoidin. While the balance is a little off, it is still a very drinkable big beer. If I were to tweak this recipe to do over I'd probably cut the melanoidin to 6oz and use only one type of smoked malt.