Traquair House Brewery :
Traquair Jacobite Ale
Nice, dark, smooth - and quite tasty. First brewed in 1995 to commemorate the 1745 Jacobite Rebellion. Despite being brewed in only small amounts a few bottles of Traquair Jocobite Ale have made it across the pond. If you see a bottle or two, pick them up. I don't think you will be disappointed.
Situated on the River Tweed, records indicate that Traquair House dates back to at least 1107, perhaps even farther, and was originally used as a hunting lodge for the royal family of Scotland. In 1491, the house was given to the Stuart family, who still own it today, and, like most large estates of the day, there is a long history of brewing, mostly for consumption within the household. It was noted during a visit by Mary Queen of Scots, that Traquair offered her a fine strong ale. For reasons unrecorded, brewing ceased in the early 1800s, and although the equipment was retained, including large copper brew kettles, it was stored away and all but forgotten.
In 1965, Peter Maxwell Stuart, the 20th Laird of Traquair, found one of the original beer recipes from days of old and, dusting off some of the old equipment, began to play around with making beer. Keeping to the heritage of the house, he even used some of the 200-year old oak tuns. Well, soon his beer began to gain a certain reputation for being quite tasty, and the brewery began to slowly expand. The folks at CAMRA note that the Traquair House brewery can be considered one of the first micro-breweries in the UK. Today, the brewery is run by Stuart's daughter Catherine, and although production is kept low, the beers have gained worldwide attention.
To date, I have found Traquair Jacobite Ale here in North America. I am still on the lookout for Traquair House Ale.
So, the Jacobite Rebellion - Ok, now like many periods in British history, this can get a little complicated. The Jacobite Rebellion was an attempt, in 1745-46, by Scotsman Charles Edward Stuart - The Young Pretender - to oust members of the then ruling Hanoverian family (Protestants) from the British throne, and reestablish the Stuarts (Catholics) as the rightful rulers of Great Britain. Well, it didn't work, and in the end Charles Edward Stuart - Bonnie Prince Charlie - fled the island, never to return. The victor of the rebellion, the Duke of Cumberland, was such a nasty fellow that he got the nickname The Butcher. In the aftermath, British King George II decided to punish the Scots for their insubordination by banning the clan system, the tartan and the kilt, and many other outward forms of Gaelic culture. Oh, and he had most of the principles of the rebellion executed. Go figure. If you managed to avoid being executed, you were most likely forced to emigrate to the American colonies, which is generally beleived to be one of the first major Scottish migrations to North America.