The Edinburgh version of Burton ale: dark, with a bittersweet, sometimes slightly metallic tang, and generally strong. While a broad range of ale types is produced in Scotland, the term Scotch ale is used internationally (especially in the USA) to denote a malty, strong ale which is amber-to-dark red in coloration. The malt may be slightly caramelised to impart toffee notes.

The classic styles are Light, Heavy and Export, also referred to as 60/-, 70/- and 80/- respectively (from the 19th century method of invoicing beers according to their strength).

Scotch ale (or whisky ale) is also a designation used by brewers in France for peat-smoked malt flavoured beers.