Big River Grille Winters Nip (2008 and earlier)

Formerly brewed at Big River Grille & Brewing Works Chattanooga (Gordon Biersch)
Style: Porter
Chattanooga, Tennessee USA

The beer appeared a deep ruby brown with an off whit head, served in a nice 20 oz mug. The aroma was a mild malty blend of chocolate and roasted and a slight spicey hop aroma. The flavor is clean roasted malt, and not too bitter. The body is much more a brown ale similar to Newcastle, thin and watery, without much aftertaste. This porter would probably please a lot of drinkers and encourage the brown ale drinker to order an occassional porter.

Fresh, somewhat sweet aroma with hints of fruit. Dark reddish amber in color with cascading lace. Intersting flavor. Soft, but appears heavier in alcohol than the other BR brews I have tried. Something amateurish, however. Overly carbonated, but a full-bodied brew and very good.

Atlanta (Winter Nip): Dark ruby color, creamy light head and lots of lacing (sampler in a brewpub, this is the standard here). The aroma is lightly spicy and hoppy, caramel malts are present and lots of darker specialty malts fill in the mouthfeel in the back. The flavor is slightly medicinal, but negligable as this is easy to drink. Finishes sweet at first on the palate but dries out from the hops with a subdued bitterness. A good winter beer from the far off lands.

Draft-Big River-Chattanooga, TN. A small sized tan head that contained fine-small bubbles that mostly diminished. The body was uncarbonated and opaque with a dark brown hue. The nose was that of mild coffee and it had a mild coffee and a little note of chocolate with a slight aftertaste to it. The mouthfeel was fairly smooth and this beer was medium bodied. Not one of the better Porter beers that I have rated.

TheDM and Hotstuff vacation brew 47. This draft brew was enjoyed at the brewery in Saint Augustine Florida. This brew poured a small head of fine to medium sized mostly diminished bubbles that left behind a semi opaque dark brown colored body with no visible carbonation. It had a very mild malt aroma and a thin palate with a thin malt flavor that contain just a little dark malt in it. It needed more.

A pretty standard porter. Aroma was faint with some coffee and nutmeg detectable. Appearance was black with a generous head a good lacing effect. Flavor was fairly weak with coffee and chocolate and a little spice to make it slightly different than other porters Ive had. Mouthfeel was a little thin. Not a bad beer but not a great one either.

Fairly clear dark brown with a lackluster, white head. Aromas of cinnamon and cloves along with some malt and a tiny bit of hops. Body is average. Flavors of malt, chocolate, some roastiness and a clean, mildly bitter finish. Not too shabby.

Great seasonal brew, dark brown in color, soft white head, very well balanced, hints of different spices in the flavors like nutmeg & cinammon, a bit of a dry finish, very nice seasonal