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The 5pm Dining Blog was at the launch of the Black Wolf Brewery last night.

Held at the lovely  Whighams wine and seafood bar in Edinburgh’s West End, the event celebrated the rebrand of Stirling-based Traditional Scottish Ales into the rather more funky Black Wolf Brewery.

Viking raid

The new name derives from an old legend in which the people of Stirling were saved from a Viking raid by the howling of a wolf.

To help mark the change, the brewers launched five new craft beers to sit alongside their exising heritage range.

You can browse all their beers here but, of the new beers, your scribbler was most impressed by two types of beer which I’m not normally that fond of.

Their Big Red is a 3.8% ruby ale which was bursting with flavour. ‘Hints of tropical fruit, sweet treacle and a bitter hoppy finish’ is how the tasting notes put it. I also thought it had a slight smoky tang.

Dried elderflowers

I was also taken with Tundra, a 4.8% golden wheat beer. Normally, wheat beers are a bit too bubblegum for me but this was an eye-opener. It’s flavoured with a handful of dried elderflowers and the result is a gorgeously refreshing, citrus flavour.

During our tasting session with head brewer Paul Wheeler, this was the beer that most of the women in our group seemed to like best.

‘I can imagine sipping this while sitting in the garden on a hot afternoon,’ was the cry.

Adult milkshake

I was also taken by Valente’s Double Espresso from the heritage range. A rich, thick mocha-flavoured beer, it would be excellent as an after dinner drink or even as the base to a very adult ice cream float.

You can get your paws on their beers in off licences and pubs. A couple of their new beers are already on tap in Whighams.

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