Mackinaw Brewing GT Golden

Brewed by Mackinaw Brewing Company
Style: Golden Ale/Blond Ale
Traverse City, Michigan USA

On tap at the brewery. Clear golden with small white head. Aroma is medium sweet caramel malt, that’s it. Flavor is sickly sweet and grainy and lemon. Light body, active carbonation. Meh.

<i>Draft at the brewpub:</i> Golden pour with a nice creamy head that lasts. The nose is quite undetectable, with only the slightest nuiances of a light hopping present. The body only offers a touch more with light notes of grassy hops, heavy carbonation and delicate caramel. Finishes clean and is quite quaffable. This seems to be made for the masses and is quite approachable in that sense.

Draft sample at the brewpub. Pours a clear golden with a small alka seltzer esque white head. The aroma is lightly citrusy and cornbread. The flavor is light citrus, corn, grains, and bread. Light bodied and underwhelming. I didn’t expect much and didn’t get much.

On tap at the brewpub. Pours a transparent pale gold color with a tinge of honey, topped with a quickly dissipating head of fizzy white. A mild citrusy hop character freshens up the canned corn aroma that oozes from the glass. Light bodied, lightly carbonated mouthfeel with a slick, oily texture. I wasn’t expecting much flavor after reading the description, but this didn’t deliver on the promise of "clean and smooth", or a "quick fix to a thirsty day". Excessive DMS. Vegetal blah. Drinkable, but limp on the palate with little flavor to hide the creamed corn and little crispness to be refreshing.

Draft at brewpub. Poured clear amber color with a moderate frothy white head that diminished slowly with minimal lacing. Light sour citrus hop aroma. Light body with a thin texture. Light sweet citrus flavor with a light sweet finish of short duration.

What made this a good beer was that I had it right there from wher it was made. Seemed fresh and delightful. I would not buy this anywhere but the barit comes from.

Pretty generic golden ale intended for macro crossover drinkers. It had virtually no head, proper carbonation, and some pronounced hoppiness. A good lawnmower brew.

The two breweries in Traverse City have rather remarkable food and hit and miss beer. Mackinaw is the weaker, beerwise, IMO, but this, their transition brew, does have some body - though not much else to speak of. The airbrushed grocery store newstand blonde.