MacLean's Blonde
MacLean's Beer
- From:
- MacLean's Beer
- Ontario, Canada
- Style:
- American Blonde Ale
Ranked #412 - ABV:
- 4.8%
- Score:
- 81
Ranked #36,026 - Avg:
- 3.42 | pDev: 9.65%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 10
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- May 09, 2025
- Added:
- Jul 12, 2009
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 3
SCORE
81
Good
81
Good
Farmhouse blonde. A distinctive golden ale that confidently showcases its local ingredients. Ontario hops and malted barley are reminders of its small farmhouse brewery beginnings. Light tasting, and easy drinking. An ideal summertime thirst quencher and a year-round sessionable ale.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by talisen-crw from Canada (ON)
3.75/5 rDev +9.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.75/5 rDev +9.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, 473mL in a pint glass. From my favourite LCBO at Tecumseh Mall in nearby Windsor. My first beer from the Thornbury, Ontario brewery.
May 09, 2025
Reviewed by Tony787 from Canada (ON)
3.9/5 rDev +14%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
3.9/5 rDev +14%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
I bought a can at the lcbo in Ontario 473ml at 4.8%.
poured a 1finger head into glass leaving a lace as you drink very bright golden color good carbonation.
easy drinking with a light bitterness .
overall a very good blonde beer.
cheers.
Jul 13, 2021poured a 1finger head into glass leaving a lace as you drink very bright golden color good carbonation.
easy drinking with a light bitterness .
overall a very good blonde beer.
cheers.
Reviewed by InspectorHound from Canada (ON)
3.37/5 rDev -1.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
3.37/5 rDev -1.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Look: Bright pale yellow in colour. One finger white head with little retention.
Smell: Grassy with biscuits.
Taste: Grassy with a barnyard funk. Lingers with a sticky sweetness in the end.
Feel: Light bodied.
An adequate farm house ale. Earns a B-
Oct 14, 2020Smell: Grassy with biscuits.
Taste: Grassy with a barnyard funk. Lingers with a sticky sweetness in the end.
Feel: Light bodied.
An adequate farm house ale. Earns a B-
Reviewed by Beginner2 from Illinois
3.67/5 rDev +7.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
3.67/5 rDev +7.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
A balanced Blonde. (What a concept !!)
And actually, MacLean's did a pretty good job of executing this concept.
Looks like a fun Blonde (especially the fluffy, bubbly part.)
Smells mostly of malt (call it biscuit.)
Tastes much the same, but just enough hops creep into mid-palate to balance the malt which continues to run the chorus.
Feels soft (for just a barley bill), medium-bodied.
OA: MacLean's deserves more credit than they get from the average BA rating of "OK." I guess nothing spectacular wins no awards. (But what does seem to get attention is a Blonde throwing a fit ... say, of hops. That I just do not like having directed at me.)
Aug 11, 2018And actually, MacLean's did a pretty good job of executing this concept.
Looks like a fun Blonde (especially the fluffy, bubbly part.)
Smells mostly of malt (call it biscuit.)
Tastes much the same, but just enough hops creep into mid-palate to balance the malt which continues to run the chorus.
Feels soft (for just a barley bill), medium-bodied.
OA: MacLean's deserves more credit than they get from the average BA rating of "OK." I guess nothing spectacular wins no awards. (But what does seem to get attention is a Blonde throwing a fit ... say, of hops. That I just do not like having directed at me.)
Reviewed by MichaelGennings from Canada (ON)
3.88/5 rDev +13.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
3.88/5 rDev +13.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
MacLean's Farmhouse Blonde (Ale), brewed by MacLean's Ales Inc., in Hanover, Ontario, Canada.
4.9% alc. 473ml can.
Hops, barley malt, and water. No further details provided on the can.
Thick white head. The beer is a golden colour with considerable ascending bubbles.
There is a mild spice to the smell that I can't quite put my finger on. As well, there is a faint sweetness that is not unlike bubblegum.
The taste is mildly fruity, with some graininess in the backend.
The beer is light bodied and has a crisp and mostly dry finish that is quite refreshing.
Minimal lacing on the glass.
This is an extremely drinkable beverage and would be most enjoyable on really hot, humid days.
Definitely worth trying if you have not had it before.
Jul 19, 20174.9% alc. 473ml can.
Hops, barley malt, and water. No further details provided on the can.
Thick white head. The beer is a golden colour with considerable ascending bubbles.
There is a mild spice to the smell that I can't quite put my finger on. As well, there is a faint sweetness that is not unlike bubblegum.
The taste is mildly fruity, with some graininess in the backend.
The beer is light bodied and has a crisp and mostly dry finish that is quite refreshing.
Minimal lacing on the glass.
This is an extremely drinkable beverage and would be most enjoyable on really hot, humid days.
Definitely worth trying if you have not had it before.
Rated by spinrsx from Canada (ON)
3.25/5 rDev -5%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
3.25/5 rDev -5%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
..
Dec 13, 2016
Reviewed by JPNesker from Canada (ON)
3.17/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25
3.17/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25
Serviceable blond ale. My girlfriend swore she tasted some funk in this , but I suspect she read farmhouse on can and imagined a saison. This is a blond ale through and through.
Dec 05, 2016
Rated by Pmicdee from Canada (ON)
3.52/5 rDev +2.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.52/5 rDev +2.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
April 3 2024
Aug 28, 2016
Reviewed by headlessparrot from Canada (ON)
3.42/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.42/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pours a beautiful, clear gold colour with visible effervescence and some soapy head that recedes to about a finger but has reasonable persistence. Some lacing.
Smell is biscuity, crackery malt. Very bready with an interesting almost musty pumpernickel or brown bread scent. Some very light vegetal hopping, boiled greens. Cereals, lightly floral. Taste is a bit buttery (diacetyl?), floral, vanilla, cereal. Bready, and light vegetal (almost noble-esque) hops. Light body, moderate carbonation. Nicely creamy, with a dry cereal aftertaste.
Quite drinkable. Not setting the world on fire, but it's accessible, drinkable. Some flaws come through, but it still manages to be respectable in spite of them.
Dec 25, 2015Smell is biscuity, crackery malt. Very bready with an interesting almost musty pumpernickel or brown bread scent. Some very light vegetal hopping, boiled greens. Cereals, lightly floral. Taste is a bit buttery (diacetyl?), floral, vanilla, cereal. Bready, and light vegetal (almost noble-esque) hops. Light body, moderate carbonation. Nicely creamy, with a dry cereal aftertaste.
Quite drinkable. Not setting the world on fire, but it's accessible, drinkable. Some flaws come through, but it still manages to be respectable in spite of them.
Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)
3.28/5 rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.28/5 rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
473 mL can picked up at TBS in Wiarton; best before Nov 22 2015 and served well-chilled.
Pours a bright, clear sunny golden-yellow hue, producing a little over one finger's worth of fluffy, soapy white froth. This head remains in place for the better part of five minutes, continuously fading away until only a modest, foamy collar and a decent swath of sticky lace remain behind. The aroma confirms my initial belief - this is not a farmhouse ale, but a regular American-style blonde ale. Pale, grainy barley malts provide some doughy bread and honey sweetness, with additional nuances of boiled vegetables and grassy hops.
Not bad for what it is, but this is not the sort of beer that is going to earn a lot of respect from BAs. The flavour profile is relatively clean, and dominated by the same pale barley malts that were detectable on the nose - mostly doughy/bready. Light suggestions of wet grass and straw pop up toward the finish, providing just enough bitterness to remind me that I am not drinking a macro blonde. There's a bit of grainy, vegetal sweetness in the aftertaste, but it vanishes quickly. Light in body, with moderate carbonation levels that provide a fairly crisp bite. This one was clearly brewed with sessionability in mind - but unfortunately, drinkability is the only field where this blonde ranks above average.
Final Grade: 3.28, a C+. MacLean's Farmhouse Blonde is a serviceable blonde ale, yet not something worth going out of your way for. The flavour profile is mostly clean, save for a few vegetal undertones, but still a bit on the bland side. If you enjoy American blondes, there's no reason NOT to try this beer - but you'll want to keep your expectations in check, because you're not exactly in for a memorable glass of beer. A mediocre example of a mundane style; I could take it or leave it.
Jul 12, 2015Pours a bright, clear sunny golden-yellow hue, producing a little over one finger's worth of fluffy, soapy white froth. This head remains in place for the better part of five minutes, continuously fading away until only a modest, foamy collar and a decent swath of sticky lace remain behind. The aroma confirms my initial belief - this is not a farmhouse ale, but a regular American-style blonde ale. Pale, grainy barley malts provide some doughy bread and honey sweetness, with additional nuances of boiled vegetables and grassy hops.
Not bad for what it is, but this is not the sort of beer that is going to earn a lot of respect from BAs. The flavour profile is relatively clean, and dominated by the same pale barley malts that were detectable on the nose - mostly doughy/bready. Light suggestions of wet grass and straw pop up toward the finish, providing just enough bitterness to remind me that I am not drinking a macro blonde. There's a bit of grainy, vegetal sweetness in the aftertaste, but it vanishes quickly. Light in body, with moderate carbonation levels that provide a fairly crisp bite. This one was clearly brewed with sessionability in mind - but unfortunately, drinkability is the only field where this blonde ranks above average.
Final Grade: 3.28, a C+. MacLean's Farmhouse Blonde is a serviceable blonde ale, yet not something worth going out of your way for. The flavour profile is mostly clean, save for a few vegetal undertones, but still a bit on the bland side. If you enjoy American blondes, there's no reason NOT to try this beer - but you'll want to keep your expectations in check, because you're not exactly in for a memorable glass of beer. A mediocre example of a mundane style; I could take it or leave it.
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