MacTarnahan's Amber Ale
Portland Brewing Company

MacTarnahan's Amber AleMacTarnahan's Amber Ale
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From:
Portland Brewing Company
 
Oregon, United States
Style:
American Amber / Red Ale
ABV:
5.1%
Score:
79
Avg:
3.46 | pDev: 12.43%
Reviews:
152
Ratings:
259
Status:
Retired
Rated:
May 06, 2021
Added:
Jul 11, 2001
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  20
32 IBU

Malts: 2 Row Pale, Caramel
Hops: Cascade

Still called MacTarnahan's Amber Ale.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by zacharius:
Photo of zacharius
Reviewed by zacharius from Washington

3.37/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
Is this supposed to be a scottish ale? Maybe the word "Mac" and the picture of the thistle misled me as it looks to me an American Amber Ale. This beer pours a pale amber color with a thin white head. Smell is floral hops. Taste is of hops with a slight caramel malty sweetness. There is a hint of smoke in the taste. There also is an undercurrent hint of some off taste--possibly got a bit burnt while boiling or maybe the grains were rinsed too much. Has a good body to it, oily from the hops and quite pleasant. Doesn't seem like it has much alcohol to it and it doesn't say on the side the content so I don't know if this is a good or bad thing. Inhabits that realm between "seen it before just better" and "just average."
Sep 23, 2004
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.55 by MobBarley from Oregon

May 06, 2021
 
Rated: 3.71 by jason_nwx from Oregon

Apr 12, 2021
Photo of TheBricenator
Reviewed by TheBricenator from Oregon

3.59/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
Look: Opaque light amber in color with a frothy off-white head that slowly recedes to a pillow on top and leaving good lacing behind
Aroma: Bread-driven malt, earthiness, some caramel, light floral notes, and cereal grains
Taste: Floral hops and freshly baked bread start it off and hold center stage for a bit before being joined by some caramel, grain notes, and earthiness. Bready malt and earthy notes dominate and hold through the finish
Mouthfeel: Full, medium-high carbonation, and a little sharp on the finish from the carbonation
Overall: I dig it. Although nothing about this beer is outstanding, it is solid for what it is – a reasonably priced and easy-to-find Amber ale. It’s also one of the first handful of microbrews I ever had that helped shape me to becoming the beer geek and advocate I am today. A Pacific Northwest classic and glad I got to have one last dance with it as Portland Brewing just shut their doors permanently in the last week
Jan 17, 2021
Photo of StonedTrippin
Reviewed by StonedTrippin from Colorado

3.5/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
a classic first generation sort of craft beer that has somehow not crossed my path until now. it definitely tastes old school, a clearish light copper color with a short white head from the tap, a beer built for a shaker pint, and that is how it is served to me. smells a little sweet, but also oddly hoppy, slight pine and apparent bitterness are unexpected but welcome. the flavor is a little tired to me, like maybe its been on tap awhile, and the malt is lighter than a lot of amber types of this era are or were, and i am surprised by the pervasive hoppiness, not ipa level or anything, but this is definitely on the hoppy side for an amber, more robust overall than most even with a pretty mild malt side. i get something from the yeast too, perhaps a well tamed english strain, slightly bready to me, old worldy in a good way, this might be a little boring without it. i think this beer represents a bygone era to some extent, but its versatile and sturdy and somewhat better than its ratings, even though i wasnt immediately thirsty for another one. a little slice of living history...
Sep 18, 2020
Photo of BeerCartographer
Reviewed by BeerCartographer from Oregon

4.21/5  rDev +21.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Smooth as hell. Starts off a bit hoppy, but becomes sweeter & maltier the more it warms up. The smell is also very malty, and pleasant! An appropriate amount of head to complement its smoothness.
Dec 24, 2019
Photo of rodbeermunch
Reviewed by rodbeermunch from Nevada

3.45/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
Man we're really cranking out the reviews of the 90s beers this week. I'm of the opinion this is/was their flagship beer, it was everywhere about 20 years ago.

Poured a familiar dark red with an off white 1/3" head with good retention and lacing. She looks nice. Aroma smacked of Cascade hops = grapefruit rind. This is a beer similar to Nugget Nectar, but you know, not as good (so much for being a homer). Had all the crystal malt smells.

Taste, seems like they took the SNPA recipe and melded it with a Cascade hopped Killians. Its sticky, malty, slightly bitter, hoppy, bready caramel on a stick. Has that red ale meets bitter wood mouth feel and aftertaste.

The beer might be pase these days but it was instrumental in the PacNW development in the 90s. Another beer worth having around when you aren't doing Chicago pours and just wanna relax and enjoy the outdoors or whatever it is you do when not nerding out on beer or whatever the trend cause is you're floating these days.
Dec 19, 2019
 
Rated: 3.48 by nodnaut

Dec 11, 2019
 
Rated: 3.75 by adam36 from Illinois

Jul 22, 2019
 
Rated: 3 by 1971bernat from Virginia

Jan 02, 2018
Photo of davidward
Rated by davidward from Florida

3/5  rDev -13.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A decent red ale but nothing special.
Jul 20, 2017
Photo of poisoneddwarf
Reviewed by poisoneddwarf from Idaho

3.64/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
2009 backlog. 22 oz bottle. Smells...hoppy. A little strange for an amber. I was expecting a more malty aroma. Also smells of citrus. Pours deep copper with a decent head, decent lacing. Tasting: more like a pale (in the Sierra Nevada tradition) than any amber I’ve had. The hops clearly overpower the malt. I like hops more than malt, but given that this is labelled as an amber, I think it’s a bit...confused. Maybe it should just come out of the closet and admit that it’s a pale.
Jun 17, 2017
 
Rated: 3.28 by BeerAndFilm from Oregon

Feb 10, 2017
 
Rated: 3.9 by Cheesyd64 from Washington

Sep 24, 2016
Photo of fizzician
Rated by fizzician from Illinois

3.8/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Fine, but a bit bland...probably not worth a repeat.
Sep 19, 2016
Photo of NastyNorseman
Reviewed by NastyNorseman from New York

3.24/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Thick cream colored head good lacing until finished. A deep amber color, smells of some malt, some hops. Tastes a little weak, something feels lacking here. Touch of hops and touch of malt with a faint caramel addition along with some fruits. Finishes quickly with little left to savor or long for. Lacking pop and uniqueness to make it stand out among Ambers. Light-medium finish a little too sweet for my liking, balance a little off. Overall, nimpressive. Feels thrown together in the kitchen without the necessary, refining tender love and care.
Sep 09, 2016
Photo of chinchill
Reviewed by chinchill from South Carolina

3.59/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
22 oz bottle in Oregon.
Deep amber colored body with an excellent head.
More hops than malts in both the aroma and the flavor. Mildly bitter.
Fruity hops with a faint bready background.
Medium-light body.
Jul 29, 2016
 
Rated: 3 by Jodio from Texas

Jul 25, 2016
 
Rated: 3.47 by Asics from Washington

Jun 12, 2016
 
Rated: 3.48 by rarigney from Washington

Mar 03, 2016
MacTarnahan's Amber Ale from Portland Brewing Company
Beer rating: 79 out of 100 with 259 ratings