Big River Grille Sweet Magnolia American Brown Ale

Brewed by Big River Grille & Brewing Works Chattanooga (Gordon Biersch)
Style: Brown Ale
Chattanooga, Tennessee USA

Brown with a good head on it. Sweet crisp aroma. Crisp, fresh, refreshing taste. Creamy, great body that fades perfectly. Sweet with good solid brown taste. Smooth. Great brown ale.

This was at The Big River Grille in downtown Nashville wanted a stout but waiter suggested this and it was fantastic. An oatmeal flavor to it.

Atlanta. On tap at Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery in Buckhead. Wow! What a great ale! One of the best American brown ales that I’ve ever had. It is quite complex, with sweetness and nuttiness. A wonderfully dark complexion makes you want to try this one; and, trust me, you won’t be disappointed in the least. A good, good beer.

Disney Boardwalk. On Tap. Props to Big River for brewing a brown ale to write home about. Oft maligned as a boring style, a good brown is difficult to come by. This one is earthy with a lightly sweet mouth-filling malty character balanced with just a touch of hops at the finish. Bordering on a brown porter, this brown makes a fantastically flavorful session beer that goes well with standard bar sandwich fare. It is also appealling to the eye with a dark brown body capped with a rocky resilient tan head. Solid lacing leaves a poignant reminder of how good a brown ale can be. 07/02/2009 - Had this on tap at Rock Bottom in Charlotte. Still one of the better browns I’ve had. Residual earthy sweetness seemed stronger.

Easily tops their other beers (except for the House IPA) in character and flavor. Very true to style with a pleasing sweetness that's not overpowering. Reminds me of Sweet Georgia Brown from Sweetwater Brewing (although not quite as good).

Sweet, nutty and dominated by chocolate malt and molasses. Velvety palate with a medium finish. Slightly hazy chestnut brown Medium bittering. Complex and sweet. Nice fizz. Quite good.

-Aroma: Sweet, floral nose (hence the name) -Apperance: Nice deep tawny color -Flavor: Very sweet with a mellow finsih -Palate: Sits very softly/smooth -Overall: I really though Big River did a good job with this one. I know a lot of people don’t like they’re brown ales messed with (keep them simply and keep them good), but they tweeked this one just right where it’s different but still a good brew.

Nice mahagony brown body is topped by a nice, reserved head. The aroma is slightly vinuous with an interesting smokiness that I wasn't expecting. The hopping is very reserved, but still manages to be a surprisingly complex brown.