Orkney Red MacGregor

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Pours a semi-cloudy red amber with a one finger head that disappears quickly. The carbonation is noticeable in the glass. Aroma is of bread dough and sweet malts. Taste is dry and metallic with hints of malts and rye. Finishes off very dry. Orkney Brewery has some solid brews but I find this one a tad lacking.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 10 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Pours a medium tan brown .. some light lacing .. caramel, butterscotch and soil .. decent brew .. . My friend said to me, "I think the weather's trippy." I said, "No, man, it's not the weather that's trippy, perhaps it is the way that we perceive it that is indeed trippy." Then I thought, "Man, I should've just said, 'Yeah.'

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

A brownish copper colored body. The head is moderate in context, a fluffy white, that settles quickly into a soapy ring. The aroma is sweet and floral. It is moderate in body and sweet on the palate. The malt is evident in the taste and there is nicely blended background of hoppiness.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 8

Pours a deep reddish amber with a frothy light tan head with massive lacing. Good carbonation. Aromas of toasted malts, sweet caramels, toffee, very slight smoky peat and an ample supply of hops. Taste is potent yet balanced with a sweet, toasted maltiness and a medium hops bitterness. Loved it.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 8

Cask (return system) at The Abbotsford, Edinburgh. Copper to chestnut coloured beer, moderate head. Lovely malty aroma with loads of butterscotch. The flavour is malty with plenty of caramel and some butterscotch, low bitterness. Rerate: 500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 4.0%. Copper to mahogany coloured beer, big off-white head. Pleasant aroma of lightly toasted malts, caramel and floral and fruity hops. The flavour is first very malt-accented with caramel and biscuits, then spicy and moderately fruity hops come through, leaving a nice bitterness in the aftertaste. Definitely a good Scottish ale this one.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Bottle. Dark red amber colour with a thick off-white head. Mostly malty aroma with some fruit. Nicely balanced flavours of malt and earthy hops, some dark fruit. Dryish with a sweetish finish. Medium bodied, smooth and lightly carbonated. Enjoyable.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

Clear ruby brown, small creamy white head. Sweet caramely aroma, hints of earth and toffee. Carmel malt dominates the flavour as well, small hints of sweet chocolate, soil and oranges. Some dull grassy hops back in the the throat with a very subtle smokey note. Grassy hops in the finish the strong caramely notes. Reminds me of an avarage american amber...

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 8 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

This bitter pours a light brown amber color from a 500ml bottle. Medium sized white foamy head. Aroma is caramel, peat and smoke. A medium bodied bitter. Malts are caramel, and earthy. Hops are mild and earthy. Nice balanced. Milder bitter. There is a very nice understated smokiness to this beer, Soft carbonation blends with a soft mouthfeel. Would make a nice session ale. Mouthfeel is full. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is slightly sweet.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 5 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

Dark amber colour, mediumsized beige bubbly head. Hops and fruit in aroma. Strong ryebreadish malty and hoppy flavour with hints of fruit. Long ryebreadish aftertaste. A bit mouthdrying.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Well despite my out-spoken opinion that there is no such thing as a "Red Ale" style, and that I've hated almost every "Red Ale" that has crossed my path the past 10 years or so..., I have to admit that this isn't too bad. Not bad at all, actually. Of course, I'm deluding myself into thinking that this an Amber Ale, but hey, work with me on this one, eh....? :)

But seriously, this has an old-school charm to it that makes it fairly appealing. I wish it wasn't bottled in a clear bottle (um, hello? skunk-city?), but assuming that you can get untainted bottles, this is rather interesting. Malty in the front, middle, and back, with some peat smoke in the mix, as well. Very old-school in the hops, it seems to me -- all in the beginning of the boil, to make sure they don't show up in the finished beer's aroma.

More of a speciality Scottish Ale than anything else, this strikes me as something of 60/- or 70/- Ale. But whatever style it does or does not fit in, it's worth investigating.
//TB