MacLean’s Pale Ale

Brewed by MacLean’s Ales
Style: English Pale Ale
West Grey, Canada

Serve in English pint, Shaker

UPDATED: DEC 31, 2007 [548-20070819] Tap @ Victory Cafe (Toronto, ON). Hoppy citrus aroma is mildly lemony. Hazy, amber brown body with a very long-lasting creamy white head. Mild citrus hops continues in flavour with a bitter finish. Medium body. Very nice to sip on the patio, especially in such fresh shape. (7/4/6/3/15) 3.5

[779E-20071021] Cask @ Volo Cask Days 2007 (Toronto, ON; "Dry Hopped"). Citrus and hoppy grass aroma. Slightly hazy, orange brown body with no head. Doughy yeast and mild alcoholic grass flavour. Smooth medium body. Uninteresting. (7/2/6/2/11) 2.8

UPDATED: FEB 20, 2009 Sampled at the Kitchener Craft Beer show. Pours a nice amberish colour. Not much aroma, mostly hops. The taste is a nice blend of some sharp tasty hops, and some sweet bready malts. Very enjoyable over all. BIT OF A RE-RATE: Same as above, but I swear this stuff gets exponentially better every time I have it. Such an awesome British malt body behind this one with a perfect hop presence to add amazing balance. Incredibly sessionable and probably one the best all-around OCB brews out there right now. Delicious stuff.

draft at bow and arrow in toronto. clear amber with copper hue (pale ale?). it has almost no head. the aroma is slightly malty and has a hint of sweetness. light bodied, it has tea like fell. a strange pale ale.

I think i had a dry hopped version of this at the C’est what? spring beerfest in 2006. There was a reall ynice nose of english hops, its was actually kinda skunky it was so hoppy. I seem to recall it being served at room temperature, and it was abubble frothy head, so i’m guessing it was on cask. Nice beer, great english pale ale. well made.

UPDATED: APR 23, 2009 On tap at Communist’s Daughter - transparent copper colour with a small white head. Earthy aroma with some English hops. Flavours of caramel, smooth malt and some nice hop balance in the end. This particular style is sort of limiting, but it’s a pretty solid example. A very good and highly sessionable EPA, and one I’d surely try again. Update: had on cask at C’est What and it is a revelation. Supremely balanced flavours are intensified and a real earthy mineral quality shines through with a yeast character. Brilliantly hopped and my new favourite session beer. Draught got 6/3/6/3/14/3.4, Cask gets 7/4/8/3/16/3.8, we’ll split the difference. Good on draught, WONDERFUL on cask.

Cask @ Hostex: I think I lucked out getting this one on cask at a foodservice trade show, so chalk me up as a happy camper to start off. Poured virtually head free, but with a pleasing cloudy copper colour. Aroma is subdued but I could pick out significant hops and a bit of caramel. Flavour is great! Great hopping with an awesome earthiness alongside sweet malts that hit after the hops.

The pour reveals a slightly cloudy golden color with a medium diminishing bubbly white head. Aroma of caramel malt with mild hops. Surprisingly good flavor of woody hops and caramel malt with a mild bitter finish. The body has a medium thickness with an oily texture and lively carbonation. This pale ale is interesting, the hops are satisfyingly flavorfull.

Hazy amber ale with a thin creamy off white head. Light english hops in aroma, with notes of caramel. In mouth, however, the hops are very present, in your face, with a very woody character, followed by sweet caramel, and lingering bitterness. A nice EPA. Used to drink this in Guelph, in 92-93, and they havent lost their touch.