Einstök Ölgerð - Icelandic wee heavy

Here's something neat - an Icelandic beer, and perhaps my first review from the Nordic island nation. It's a 9.00% ABV Scottish-style ale (aka "wee heavy") from Einstök Ölgerð, a brewery located 60 miles south of the Arctic Circle in Akuyeyri, Iceland.

The style is a Scotch ale, also called a wee heavy, which I've reviewed a few times here: one from DC, one from California, and one in Cleveland. Today's variant is made made with Angelica root and smoked Icelandic barley. The smoked barley I get, but Angelica root? Not even sure what this is, although subsequent research (Wikipedia) indicates it's a root used in traditional medicine. Not sure what it's going to add to the beer, but I guess I'll find out.

Not much aroma here, and there's not a lot of foam produced.

On par with most Scotch ales in terms of being malty, sweet, lightly bready, with a noticeable caramel tinge, BUT - remarkably light. Which is interesting. Most of the Scotch ales I've had over the years have been on the heavy, boozy end of the spectrum, but this is refreshingly light and definitely suited for those looking for a malty, Scotch-style ale that's not high in alcohol. I'd equate it more closely to an English-style bitters in body, like an ESB. See Molly Pitcher's "Redcoat ESB", which most closely equates in terms of body.

I grabbed a six-pack of 11.2oz - 330-ml- cans at the Wegman's in Sterling, VA, for $9.99, so not a high investment. According to my friend Amanda, who has been to Iceland, everything is crazy expensive there, so how is this so reasonable? Not sure, but it's a tasty beverage and a solid price, so can't really go wrong. There were a few other offerings by this brewery at Wegman's, but this looked most intriguing. I'm curious to try others!