Pelican MacPelicans Scottish Style Ale

Brewed by Pelican Pub & Brewery
Style: Scottish Ale
Pacific City, Oregon USA

I thought this was a bit boring, but then my palate could have been overtaken by tasting through the winterfests. Big malty body with a sour fruitiness that is very unappealing. A bit of black pepper that is very subtle with lots of inviting caramel and just a hint of chocolate.

(Bottled, Oliver Twist, Stockholm, Mar 11) Colour is dark amber/copper, no head. Nose is malty fruity (peaches, cherries) with some herbal notes (fresh coriander?). Taste is mainly malty and roasted, somewhat sweet with strange rubbery notes lingering in the background. Rather short finish with hints (but just hints) of hops. Good, but unexciting.

[Tap] Pours a dark copper color with a nice head. Great flavor with a nice malt tone through otu the flavor. A tad weak on the hops I felt. Light and crisp I would drink all day if I could. Good easy to drink scottish ale.

This beer is a Scottish Export by style, and is an exceptional example, but with a PNW twist. Scottish ales tend to be very malty, and this beer has plenty of malt character. It is brewed with Golden Promise, and caramel malts, and is then hopped with locally grown Willamette hops. While not too heavy handed with the hops, MacPelican’s has a touch more than a traditional Scottish Ale giving this beer a little hop bite, which I really enjoyed. At only 4.7% abv, it is the type of beer made for well, drinking. This is the type of beer you will want to have, one, two, three, or four of. A beer meant to be enjoyed with good friends, good food, and good conversation. MacPelican’s Scottish Style Ale pours to a beautiful, bright, caramel color with a nice white head and a moderate amount of carbonation. The nose is very nice with good sweet and caramel malt aroma paired with some grassy hop aroma. The palate is firm and crisp, with good sweet malty flavors, slight toffee flavor, and hints of butter scotch. MacPelican’s finishes with more of those malty flavors up front, then ends with a snappy grassy/herbal hop bitterness that slightly lingers. This was a wonderful session brew that I enjoyed pint after pint of at the pub, and enjoyed a few 22 oz bomber bottles that I took away and brought back to my room. If you ever decided to visit this place, I suggest you do what I did, and stay at the Inn at Cape Kiwanda which is literally located across the street from the brewpub. This beautiful, charming little inn only has ocean view rooms with balconies, and fire places. There is no better way to end a day, than to gaze out from your balcony at Hay Stack Rock and hear and watch the crashing waves of the Pacific on a cool and breezy night with the fire roaring, and a MacPelican in hand. You will take complete comfort in the fact that if you run low on beer, the brewpub is but a 30 yard walk away.

Amber coloured, thin white head. Earthy, flowery nose. Thin, earthy flavour as well. Low bitterness.

[At Stockholm Beer Festival] A hazy amber beer with a thin orange head. The aroma is sweet with notes of brewmash, barn yard, and straw. The flavor is sweet with primary notes of straw, and hops.

Bottled. Brownish/orange colour with small beige head. Rotten fuit in aroma along with sugary hints. Sweetish sour apple, mango and malt in flavour. A bit hops in finish. Quite pleasant, even though it has the "rotten fruit" almost all the way through.

Bottled, alc. 5.0%
Hazy nutty brown, small creamy off-white head. Sticky glue-like harsh aroma. Unbalanced yeasty sticky malty flavors, medium-bodied. Some sweetness underlying. Not my cup of tea.