Big Lake Brewing Reviews

blackflag321	3.3 Big Lake Double Fudgie Wednesday, March 27, 2024
blackflag321	3.2 Big Lake Imperial Chocolate Peanut Butter Stout Saturday, March 23, 2024
blackflag321	3.1 Big Lake Mango Habanero Haze Wednesday, March 6, 2024
jgb9348	4.1 Big Lake Cotton Candy Haze Very hazy, super opaque straw yellow coloured body with a nice one to two centimetre tall off-white head that stays afloat nicely above the 90 per cent opaque yellow glow. Aroma of oranges, light grass and hay, a dash of wheat malts and somehow - a ton of actual cotton candy! This is the first time i've smelt this in a beer and it's impressive as that's what they were going for! Medium-bodied; Pretty noticeable dry and wheatie malts at first with a big hit of the actual cotton candy and especially bubble gummy flavours that come out very strongly, especially towards the end, with a dash of grass and hay at the end, with a tiny bit of sweetness, but barely worth mentioning. Aftertaste is dry, pretty wheatie and balanced on the malt side with a bit of pepper here, but the fresh hop flavours that are somehow derived from the Cotton Candy and Bubble Gum notes of whatever hop varietal are in here (not specified on can) are very nice! Overall, a very enjoyable beer that hits the marks just right for the style and while on the light-side, it's drinkable, still full-of-flavour and robust - great from my home state and worth trying to find, especially if you like actual cotton candy! I sampled this sixteen ounce, pint-sized can, purchased from Beer Baron in Livonia, Michigan on 23-October-2022 for US$3,99, canned on 24-June-2021 and sampled at my house here in Washington on 06-January-2023. Friday, March 1, 2024
blackflag321	3.7 Big Lake The Undertaking Tuesday, February 27, 2024
jgb9348	4 Big Lake Piña Colada Haze Very hazy, almost perfectly opaque straw golden coloured body with a frothy, ,thick, ugly white head, about three centimetres tall at first that fades to a single centimetre, but leaves very ugly lacing on the sides. Aroma of super strong pineapple, coconut and tropically fruit notes, with a lot of sugars and wheat in the nose as well - very aromatic and reminiscent of a real Pina Colada, for sure. Medium-bodied; Relatively crisp and pungent coconut water, pineapple juice and slight orangey notes show at first with a light bitterness and a touch of sweetness towards the end, with a small nuance of hay and grass as well, but this is balanced nicely. Aftertaste is crisp and clean, with coconut and pineapple by far the strongest here, but some actual hop bitterness shows through at the end and gives this a robust and complex finish. Overall, a nice and true-to-name beer that still shows off some bitterness and stays true-ish to an IPA itself - great to sample from Michigan and especially because I love real Pina Coladas! I sampled this sixteen ounce, pint-sized can, purchased from Beer Baron in Livonia, Michigan on 23-October-2022 for US$3,49, packaged on 22-July-2021 and sampled at my house here in Washington on 14-November-2022. Saturday, February 10, 2024
MrBunn	3.2 Big Lake Sparti Parti Can. pours a hazy light orange with floats, a decent head and aromas of pit fruit, hay, aluminum, and maybe some sweet citrus (orange?). Flavor is decent, but uninteresting. It is just another NEIPA... no real distinction on the hop bill, nothing innovative with the flavor or color or palate. Decent, but that's about it. Sunday, January 7, 2024
siennadean917	4.2 Big Lake Idaho Hash Solid citrusy hazy.Bit sweet,nice resin w some yeast Thursday, November 9, 2023
WingmanWillis	3.6 Big Lake Haze And Blue Thursday, November 2, 2023
blackflag321	3.4 Big Lake Gingerbread Stout Saturday, October 14, 2023
Braudog	2.3 Big Lake Ramarillo Draft at the brewery. Very light color, just a hint of an amber tone. Thin body. "Rye" wasn't on their draft board, so maybe that's why this came across as a little grainier than anticipated. (#8721, 10/2023) Wednesday, October 11, 2023
Braudog	4 Big Lake Stoner IPA Draft at the brewpub. Shiny copper-amber, nicely topped. Smooth and flavorful .. pine, just a tingle of citrus, nice and woodsy. Westies rule! (#8720, 10/2023) Wednesday, October 11, 2023
blackflag321	3.5 Big Lake Fudgie Krueger Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Tmoney99	3.8 Big Lake Mango Haze Draft. Poured cloudy orange golden color with an average frothy white head that lasted with very good lacing. Moderate to heavy hazy mango balanced aroma. Medium to abundant body with a smooth texture and soft carbonation. Moderate to heavy juicy bittersweet flavor with a moderate to heavy refreshing bittersweet finish of medium to long duration. This solid beer met my expectations. Wednesday, June 21, 2023
ClarkVV	3.6 Big Lake Swing Juice Warm shelf but still only 4/11/23 canning, drunk 6/20/23. Haze has settled, leaving a bronzey/brassy golden, clear beer with a small, but fairly firm, white head. Earth, mineral, sweat, spice, bit of woody amarillo. Some crackery malt, bit of biscuit and such. Almost smells a hint worty, but maybe it's just medium malt or hop? Soft, reasonably malty with wood and spice from hop. Seems like more amarillo than citra, with light pine, heavy woody spice and moderate bitterness. Malty, though and good attenuation. Some hints of tropical fruit and sweat from citra. Not hazy whatsoever, but does get the good juiciness of the style. Nice little hybrid IPA. Tuesday, June 20, 2023
BlackBeerPG	3.2 Big Lake Leroy Brown Taste: earthy hops, caramel malts, toffee, hint of sweet, airy thin finish. Caramel malt grain nose. Copper colored hue, clear, with delicate head and ringed lace. Something about the taster glass may not have been clean. Wednesday, June 14, 2023
BlackBeerPG	2.5 Big Lake Orange Shandy Taste: Mellow orange citrus, crackers, hint of lactose. Mellow water nose. Golden hue, semi hazy, no real head or lace from taster glass, (was it washed well?). Light body. No very fresh as shandy style should be. Wednesday, June 14, 2023
Drake	4 Big Lake Gingerbread Stout Pint can from Jack's Fresh Market Menominee, 5/27/23. Near black, large brown head, average retention. Aroma of roast, gingerbread, cinnamon, vanilla. Taste is roast, gingerbread, vanilla. No booziness. Nice. Michigan #989. Saturday, May 27, 2023
blackflag321	3.3 Big Lake Super Stoner IPA Friday, April 21, 2023
DialSquare	3.3 Big Lake Black Berry Haze 4pk tallboy cans from Kroger in East Lansing: gold pour, big fluffy white head. aroma of light berry and pine. tastes are light blackberry, lemon, light hops. Monday, March 20, 2023
dreamseq	2.6 Big Lake BLB 95 Calorie Has a nice, full taste for a light beer. With that being said, it’s still a light beer Sunday, December 18, 2022
Onslow	3.6 Big Lake Pilsner Pour from a 12oz can. Clear golden brew with white head. Aroma of grass, light spice, light malt. Taste is bready malt up front with grassy bitterness. Finishes with a slightly spicy hops flourish. Definitely in the German pils family. Nice mouthfeel. Solid and enjoyable. Thursday, December 8, 2022
Onslow	3.6 Big Lake Exploratory IPA Series Volume #2 Pour from a 16oz can. Very hazy with creamy dense head that leaves incredible lacing. Aroma of citrus, pit fruit, earth, alcohol. Taste is moderately malty up front coupled with citrus and tropical fruit notes. Finishes with a little sweet with strong citrus, tropical fruit, and earth notes. A notable herbal note emerges in the very end. Palate is agile and creamy, dangerously quaffable. Solid. Tuesday, December 6, 2022
Onslow	3.4 Big Lake Lemongrass IPA Pour from a 1 pint can. Lots of yeast into the glass at the end of the pour, leaving a very hazy pale amber brew with a finger of intensely creamy and dense head that last forever. Lighter aroma of lemon, tangerine, light pepper, spice, herbal notes. Taste is mildly malty up front with lemony citrus, some grass, a somewhat earthy spice and herb note emerges for the finish. Overall light and mellow but leaves the tongue tingling afterwards with spice and lemon. Pretty unique and really enjoyable! Saturday, November 26, 2022
jgb9348	3.1 Big Lake Super Stoner IPA Mostly clear deep copper and slight bronze tinted body with a nice, two centimetre tall creamy tan head that's microfoamed and fades slowly. Aroma of grassy, herbal, slightly piney and ever so slightly tropically, with a small dose of sugars, but much more maltiness and hardly any alpha acid bitterness in the nose. Medium-bodied; Grassy and even slightly nutty malt flavours show first here, with a deep herbal and piney bite, that is much more noticeable after a few seconds on the palate, with some dry malts coming through and a kick of pine, flowers and yes, finally some hop bitterness is picked up - way late, though. Aftertaste is still pretty pervasive here, with a floral and perfumey hop kick that shows alpha acids and a dry, almost earthy and rustic maltiness that shows a lot of deeper characteristics and a touch of sugar at the end. Overall, a pretty disappointing beer with hops that I wasn't expecting, more malts than hops and a simplistic, one-dimensional profile that doesn't offer any surprises. Sad from one of the best beer stores here in the country, but still happy I brought it all the way back home and at least had it fresh! I sampled this sixteen ounce, pint-sized can, purchased from Siciliano's in Grand Rapids, Michigan on 03-August-2021 for US$4,39 sampled at my house here in Washington on 10-October-2021. Monday, November 14, 2022
chinchill	4.3 Big Lake Imperial Coconut Stout Plenty of coconut and dark roasted grains in this fine stout. (16 oz can from the brewery). Monday, October 31, 2022
flatmatt	3.8 Big Lake Super Stoner IPA 16 oz can. Pours amber with some light, fine particles and a white head. Citrus, herbal, pine aromas. Lots of hoppy herbal flavor, pine, citrus. Toasty malt, at times even a touch smoky (which matches the theme). Nicely done. Monday, September 12, 2022
andyhwcinc	4.1 Big Lake Darkstar Raspberry version, enjoyed at home on a Monday night, gifted to me from a friend. Better than the original. Basically the same as this beverage but with raspberries added. Good stuff. Tuesday, August 23, 2022
andyhwcinc	4 Big Lake Bourbon Barrel Aged Darkstar Gift from a friend, enjoyed at home after a long work day during a pleasant late summer afternoon. Pitch black pour, rich in espresso and dark chocolate, light burn in the profile. Good stuff. Monday, August 22, 2022
Dogbrick	3.7 Big Lake Hydra Haze Sample at Ashley's Wednesday, July 27, 2022
bpar73	3.8 Big Lake Sparti Parti Can. Hazy golden color. Large white head. Taste and aroma of citrusy hops. Mildly bitter finish. Friday, July 15, 2022
polomagnifico	4.1 Big Lake English Barleywine Solid Barley Wine. Good aroma, appearance, mouthfeel and finish. Love the apple notes. Big and loaded with abv. Can drink it all night. Friday, May 27, 2022
Ron	3.8 Big Lake Blood Orange Haze On tap on Mackinac Island. Poured a hazy golden color with a white head. aromas of mixed fruits and citru hops. Flavors of the mixed fruits and citrus hops. Saturday, May 21, 2022
flatmatt	3.8 Big Lake Lake Haze On tap. Pours a hazy pale yellow with a white head. Tropical, citrus hop aromas. Flavor has tropical, citrus hops, a bit of herbal hops. Works quite well. Sunday, April 10, 2022
Silphium	3.6 Big Lake English Barleywine Clear copper red body, medium puffy cream head that fairly quickly dissipates. Aroma sweet-tannic with caramel, brown sugar, grape/vinous notes, and toasted malts. Body sharp, sweet, and tannic with dark fruits and caramel, with a lingering but modest tannic finish. Hints of apple with warmth. Fairly simple but ultimately feels fairly substantial as the booziness becomes more apparent. Solid. Wednesday, March 23, 2022
b3shine	4 Big Lake The Lunatic On draft. Pours a lightly translucent very dark (almost dull black) cola with darker beige head. Smells RICH and malty with big notes of chocolate and oak. Tastes like it smells with a mildly warming and moderately bitter medium-full to full-bodied mouthfeel. An enjoyable sipper. Sunday, January 30, 2022
blackflag321	3.4 Big Lake Alien Rabbit Sunday, December 26, 2021
rumproasts	1.6 Big Lake Cotton Candy Haze Can. Pale golden with one finger head. I'm embarrassed for the poor guy who had to brew this. What an absolute shit show of a beer. Mediocre neipa with some fake cotton candy flavor layered on top. This absolutely sucks. I'm sure I've had at least a hundred worse beers than this, but I can't think of many that are more depressing. Can you imagine going to work every day wondering what shitty hazy crap they're going to make you brew today? I don't think they make anything else anymore... Just fake flavors and soulless beer. Friday, November 26, 2021
chucklemation	4.1 Big Lake Gingerbread Stout Pours a dark brown with a thin tan foam head. Aroma is cinnamon, ginger, chocolate, roast, and vanilla. Flavor is sweet cinnamon, vanilla, ginger, and chocolate. Quite good. Saturday, November 13, 2021
siennadean917	4 Big Lake Ryecoe Older can from Brent.Decent IPA,very rye forward.Slightly bitter Friday, October 15, 2021
blackflag321	3.2 Big Lake Lake Haze Friday, October 1, 2021
blackflag321	2.9 Big Lake Haze And Blue Friday, October 1, 2021
blackflag321	3.3 Big Lake Dragon Death Thursday, September 30, 2021
jcr	3 Big Lake Imperial Coconut Stout Can. Black body. Frothy beige head, diminishing. Aroma of coconut, roasted malts, chocolate, light coffee. Moderately sweet and lightly bitter to start. Moderately bitter to finish. Medium to full body, velvety texture, moderate carbonation. The finish of this beer is mostly bitter coconut. And bitter and coconut don't go together all that well for me. Disappointing. Sunday, September 5, 2021
crossovert	2.5 Big Lake Camper 473ml can. Hazed pour, drank while camping... Aroma is fruit cup, flaovr is sweet acidic fruit cup, new age and quite boring. Saturday, August 28, 2021
siennadean917	4.1 Big Lake Darkstar Decent coffee stout. Dark roasted malts,strong coffee,nice cacoa Wednesday, August 11, 2021
Mr_bier	2.4 Big Lake Super Stoner IPA Saturday, July 31, 2021
Mr_bier	3.4 Big Lake Cotton Candy Haze Saturday, July 31, 2021
jcr	3.5 Big Lake Mango Haze Can. Hazy, deep golden body. Fizzy white head. Aroma of citrus, mango, lemon, tangerine peel, pineapple, light floral hops, toasted grain and a slight onion smell. Sweet start with light bitterness. Light to moderate bitterness in finish with a light tartness. Medium body, watery/lightly creamy texture, lively carbonation. Taste of citrus, tropical fruit, lemon, mango, grain and onion. Nice NEIPA, especially for 5.5%. Sunday, July 25, 2021
Drake	3.5 Big Lake Lake King Pint can from Bella's Sioux St. Marie, 7/12/21. Can't find a date on it, but good bet its years old even though I bought it last weekend. Gusher. Hazy orange, large white head. Yeah, smells old. Grapefruit and caramel malt. Taste is grapefruit, dank, resin, pale malt. Juicy. Decent despite the abuse it took from its retailer. I bet Bella's was awesome... on their opening day. Tuesday, July 13, 2021