Edinburgh businesses team up to launch haggis beer in time for Burns night

Flavourly have partnered with Macsween, to produce a limited edition Haggis beer perfect for celebrating Burns Night (25th January).

The Cold Macsween Beer (Haggis beer) was the brainchild of Edinburgh based online drinks specialist Flavourly and uses the exact spice blend from the top secret Macsween Haggis recipe to make the Haggis Spiced Pale Ale, brewed locally by Grassmarket brewery, Cold Town Beer.

World famous haggis producer, Macsween, have been making Haggis for nearly 70 years with the top secret haggis recipe having been passed down through three generations of this family run business.

Whilst the specific ingredients are a closely guarded secret James Macsween, managing director and the grandson of the founders Jean and Charlie Macsween, hand delivered a pre-mixed batch of spices, used to create this unique Haggis Spiced Pale Ale.

Macsween of Edinburgh produces 1000 tonnes of haggis annually. Around a third is eaten over Burns equating to 1.6 million portions of haggis being consumed celebrating Rabbie Burns.

The spices in haggis lend themselves perfectly to a Spiced Pale Ale and Cold Macsween Beer is a full bodied, balanced pale ale brewed with Scottish malted barley and oats alongside a pinch of the Macsween’s secret spice blend.

Easy drinking with subtle pepper notes, the limited edition beers are brewed by innovative Edinburgh brewery Cold Town Beer and available exclusively from Flavourly.

haggis beer

Flavourly selected Cold Town based on their expertise in creating interesting, fun and delicious brews and following a successful partnership last year which saw three Cold Town beers feature in the Flavourly Explorer case (Darjeeling Table Beer, Hopped Up Wheat Beer and Pale Oat Ale).

The limited edition Cold Macsween Beer (4.3% abv) costs £19.99 for 6, £29.99 for 12 or £49.99 for 24 - 330ml cans including free delivery and is available exclusively from the Flavourly website.

The Cold Macsween Beers will also feature in two exclusive mixed Scottish cases including beers from other notable Scottish breweries such as; Tempest Brewing Co, Loch Lomond Brewery and Glasgow Beer Works and priced at £29.95 for 20 or £59.95 for 32 beers.

Assean Sheikh, founder and CMO Flavourly, said; “Burns is our national bard and as a proud Scottish company we wanted to create a uniquely Scottish beer to celebrate.

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"Macsween Haggis is synonymous with Burns Night and we are absolutely honoured that the family have granted us access to their top secret recipe for the first ever Haggis Beer and that this is a truly Scottish beer having been brewed locally by our friends at Cold Town brewery.”

James Macsween, third-generation Managing Director of Macsween of Edinburgh, added, “January is all about haggis for anyone who appreciates Scotland’s National Dish.

"We have always been pioneers in the haggis industry and when given the chance to work with Flavourly and Cold Town Beer the decision was easy.

“Haggis and Beer are a match made in heaven, so please raise a Cold Town Haggis Pale Ale to Rabbie Burns this January.”

Ed Evans, Head Brewer at Cold Town Brewery said, “We are delighted to be working on this collaboration with Flavourly and MacSweens. Burns’ is a time to celebrate in true Scottish style and we had great fun creating this brew using the secret spices from the nation’s favourite haggis.”

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For more information on Cold Macsween Beer - Haggis Spiced Pale Ale visit the Flavourly website.

Known for cake making, experimental jam recipes, Champagne, whisky and gin drinking (and the inability to cook Gnocchi), Rosalind is the Food and Drink Editor and whisky writer for The Scotsman, as well as hosting Scran, The Scotsman's food and drink podcast.
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