Big Rock McNallys Extra

Brewed by Big Rock Brewery
Style: Irish Ale
Calgary, Canada

(Bottle) Pours a clear amber body with a small off-white head. Aroma of caramel, florals, and nuts. Flavor of light cherry, caramel, nuts, and mild hops.

Date: 10/21/1997

amber, light malt aroma, light malt flavor, hint of bitterness in the finish

Aroma: 5/10; Appearance: 5/10; Flavor: 5/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 10/20
Rating: 2.6/5.0
Score: *4
-------- /> The score was calculated based upon the notes and an old scoring system.

One of the only Big Rocks worth drinking. caramel in the nose. Quite good actually.

Pours a nice velvety red into the glass with some white head on top. Aroma is sweet malts. the taste is nice, but the alcohol is a little too apparent. A nice beer though for sure

Pours a deep medium amber-brown with a moderately-sized off-white head with some lace. Strong, sweet butterscotch aroma. Beautiful subtle and balanced malting - this beer is so ridiculously drinkable. Slight buttery diacetyl, understated hops, but not cloyingly sweet either. This beer accomplishes in a brisk macro-brewed moment what so many micro-brewed Irish and Scotch ales fall short of: balance. As it warms, the hops begin to gently sway the finish in their favour. Smooth but thin, almost oily at times, on the low end of carbonation. This used to be my regular drinking beer in Banff, and nearly 250 beers later I finally review it. The best Big Rock beer by far.

A good Irish ales, head disappears fast but has a good palate of flavours. A bit malty, but one of Alberta’s best...

Short lived head but with good buttery herbal aroma on the nose, deep amber colour with solid body on the palate, lighter than you think at 7% so it’s perilously easy to drink. Beautiful butter malt flavour well balanced by a peppery bitter finish, definately the best Irish ale i’ve ever had!

341 ml bottle from Premier Wine and Spirits in Halifax, NS (May 2007) drunk a bit below cellar temperature from a Corsendonk glass. Very little head, though what there is lasts a bit, topping a clear dark amber-brown body....nose is herbal, lightly malty, yes there’s that vaunted butteriness though it doesn’t seem to be infection, fairly pleasant if innocuous....smooth, sweet, pretty full-bodied on the tongue, carbonation very low at first but develops a light prickliness at the finish; some faint herbal bitterness (thyme/oregano) and a bit of caramel keep this from real dullness but it never really asserts itself either....alcohol is light, pleasant and warming. I would have thought of this as more of an English Strong Ale, but "Irish Ale" is what it calls itself. Best beer I’ve had from Alberta thus far. :)