Belhaven
Commercial Brewery
in
Dunbar,
East Lothian,
Scotland 🏴
Owned by
Greene King
Associated with 6 Venues
Established in 1719
Contact
Description
Established in 1719, Belhaven is Scotland’s oldest working brewery. With abundant local barley, fine water from the brewery well and access to markets up and down the coast, Belhaven was the perfect place for a brewery back then, and it still is today. In 1719, Dunbar market gardener John Johnstone erected a brewery close to Belhaven Bay and founded a brewing dynasty which was to last for 250 years and a brewery which would last much longer. The brewery and maltings persevered through the wars and upheavals of the early 20th Century and was eventually sold by John Johnstone’s descendants in 1972. In 2005 is was taken over by Greene King who kept the Brewery open in Scotland.
6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
Nice typical pale lager.
True to style. Crisp and ok.
Malty and herbal
[On tap at Number Forty-Seven in Troon, Scotland]
True to style. Crisp and ok.
Malty and herbal
[On tap at Number Forty-Seven in Troon, Scotland]
Tried
from Draft
at
Number Forty-Seven
on 22 Oct 2025
at 08:14
8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
It a nice, classical and solid IPA, on the English way, hop, fruity, malt hidden by the hop, refreshing at all the time, 14.06.17, drinking it probably at Paris.
Tried
from Bottle
on 07 Sep 2025
at 13:34
6.1/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Fass 1 pt (0,568l) @Cuan Mor, Oban: Golden, glasklar, mäßig stabiler mittelporiger Schaum; süße + sehr malzige Nase, helle/eingelegte Früchte, nur dezente grasige Hopfennoten, leichte Hefearomen, malzige Bitterkeit; süßer + sehr malziger Körper, helle/eingelegte Früchte, dezente grasige Hopfennoten, Malz, etwas Karamell, cremig, mittlere Kohlensäure, leichte Hefearomen; malzig-trockener Nachgang
Tried
from Draft
on 03 Sep 2025
at 15:08
7/10
—
Appearance 7
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 7
Overall 7
On keg at Wigtown Ploughman, Wigtown - jet black body with a firm tan head. Loads of chocolate malts, bit of liquorice, some roasted nuts. Surprisingly smooth and creamy, very quaffable.
Tried
from Draft
on 30 Aug 2025
at 13:08
5.9/10
—
Appearance 5
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
Tap on nitro in St Andrews Scotland. Very easy drinking - lovely on nitro - great tob
Tried
on 28 Aug 2025
at 20:35
7.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7.5
Flavor 7
Texture 7
Overall 6.5
Probably the most well-know and popular Scottish ale, the group of often misunderstood and today seldomly seen low ABV beers that fall below the much better known Scotch ale or 'wee heavy' category - in fact I recall it took me a long time to find one back in the day when I tried to tick off every single beer style listed by Ratebeer.com. I noticed that there are two entries of the same name on this site, the other being identified as a bitter, but I think the ratings under that other entry belong here, as the brewery clearly - though implicitly - identifies this beer as a Scottish ale. From tap at the hotel in Aberdeen where I paired it with a Balmoral burger. Dense, creamy (nitro-tapped), lacing, medium sized, snow white head, clear pale ochre-blonde robe with odd bronze-ish hue. Aroma of wet toast, lightly toasted peanuts, a smoky effect not of Rauchmalz but rather burnt cardboard or something alike, freeze-dried chervil, tea bags, fried parsnip chips, ferrous spring water, minerals, dry hay. Fairly neutral onset, some dried apple or dried pear perhaps, softly carbonated with slender yet creamy (again: nitro-tapped) mouthfeel; slightly peanutty, thinly toasty and cereally malt core, toasted grains becoming more apparent in the finish, where a pleasantly balancing leafy and tea-ish hop bitterness sets in - but the smoky effect appears as well, again more reminiscent of burnt paper or wood ashes than actual smoke, yet adding to a dry, bitterish, somewhat minerally finish. Herbal, smoky and smooth, but thin and toasty too: took me a while to get used to as it is very different from the much stronger Scotch ale style I know and love, but in the end it did go down easily...
Tried
on 22 Aug 2025
at 23:16
5.6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 5.5
Texture 6
Overall 6
Old rating - A 500ml bottle my wife found me in Waitrose. Pours amber with a small white foamy head. Aromas & tastes of tangy grapefruit, citrus, flora, pine & spice. Body is light to medium. Strong tangy grapefruit bitter finish. Passable IPA but by not really my cup of tea
Tried
from Bottle
on 21 Jun 2025
at 12:55
5/10
Tried
from Can
on 12 Jun 2025
at 00:39
6/10
Tried
from Bottle
on 12 Jun 2025
at 00:38
6.5/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 7
Escura com reflexos rubi. Espuma efémera. Carbono suave. Corpo leve. Textura oleosa. Aroma a caramelo e a molho de ostra. Açúcar queimado,malte, alcaçuz, notas de café . Fácil de beber
Tried
on 05 Jun 2025
at 13:13