Scotland is arguably the birth place of beer in the United Kingdom. There are some that hypothesize that the vikings brought the alcoholic staple with them when they plundered and eventually settled the northern reaches of the British Isles. Of course, at that time beer was not flavored with hops, but with heather a flower that is abundant in both Scandinavia and Scotland.

Since those barbaric days of plunder and pillage, Scotland has gained a reputation as having refined there own style of ale and the spirit named for its origin — Scotch Whisky. One of Scotland’s now beloved ale producers came about quite by accident. In 2002, Dougal Sharp was asked by Grant’s Distillers to create a distinctive beer that would season whisky barrels for a Cask Ale Reserve whisky. In those early days, the beer was used only to season the casks and thrown away after sitting on the oak…