This Ale Trail is best done by bus, and probably not all in one day.

Forfar is a significant intermediate stop, since Stagecoach buses between Dundee and Kirriemuir and between Dundee and Brechin pass through, which makes the Osnaburg Bar a good place to await the next connection.

In Kirriemuir itself, the Airlie Arms Hotel opens for lunch and is a good place to start the day, before heading into Forfar to change buses - to Dundee or Brechin.

The same is true of the Brechin Arms in central Brechin, changing at Forfar for Dundee or Kirriemuir..

It's a little difficult in terms of bus times, and number of beers, to do all three in one day, but if you have your own transport and a designated (=sober) driver, you could even add on a visit to the Drovers Inn at Memus, just north of Forfar. Added to which the 13 mile drive up scenic Glen Clova from Memus to the Glen Clova Hotel is well worth the effort, or even an overnight stay.