MacTarnahans Oregon Honey Beer

Brewed by Portland Brewing Company (Pyramid)
Style: Golden Ale/Blond Ale
Portland, Oregon USA

(12 oz bottle: Cost Plus in La Jolla, CA) This pale yellow colored beer tastes like a cheap lager with a moderate sweetness. I think there’s a slight hint of honey, but I guess the sweetness is more sugary rather than honey. The malt flavor is so light that the very mild hops still has more presence, and trust me, there’s hardly any hops here either. Simply not enough flavor to create much of an impression. The nose is sugary sweetness and a cheap lager aroma. Light body barely almost slips by the palate unnoticed, except for the lingering sweetness. Small, whitish head fades to a wide rim. Not very good, and not even very good compared to other honey beers. Cool, a complete rating in about 6 ounces, so I don’t have to drink the remaining 6 ounces. Buh bye!

I had this beer many years ago at one time when I was only giving ratings to the beers but was too lazy and stupid to write down my thoughts. I will update this as soon as I get my hands on this beer again.

I expected more out of this after having the Blackwatch Porter. Imagine beer with a little honey. That’s it.

Pours thin and piss-yellow, and the head stays as long as a lead for the 49ers in a football game does. Drinks flat, and the honey only teases for awhile and then leaves the drinker with blue balls, so to speak. Not good.

In the bottle. Generally without character. Honey is expensive to brew with and you usually don’t see it in a high concentration in most commercial brews. In small doses, honey is little more than an adjunct for marketing purposes. In large doses, the homebrewer has braggot and bragging rights. This ale is nothing to brag about. A fine golden ale, but the honey sweetness is a mere suggestion compared to what it should be.

Sort of a generic honeybeer. Nothing special about it at all. I didn’t hate it but if I’m going to give MacTarnahan’s my money, I’ll buy Blackwatch.

Ok one of the Portland Brews I had been avoiding, but I gotta take one for the site! This is not a very nice looking beer poured into a glass pale yellow,almost canola oil colour..tiny wispy head. the aroma is barelly there just some weakish malt aroma,something else akin to melted plastic. the taste is very little sweet malts ,followed by a macro like semi-bitterness, can taste the honey only in the aftertaste. Not great on the palate..very watery. Im surprised that MacTs brews a beer this bad..yes most of there other stuff is only just above average..but I like them..I do not like this "effort".

Although completely non-offensive, this beer is boring and lifeless. To think this brewery bottled one of my all-time favorites (MacTarnahans Bourbon Cask Aged Blackwatch Cream Porter). This beer is nothing short of a major disappointmentfor me.