Wisdom Amber Ale
Big Hole Brewing Company

Wisdom Amber AleWisdom Amber Ale
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From:
Big Hole Brewing Company
 
Montana, United States
Style:
American Amber / Red Ale
ABV:
5%
Score:
75
Avg:
3.08 | pDev: 24.35%
Reviews:
27
Ratings:
31
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Nov 18, 2014
Added:
Sep 21, 2003
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Rated: 2.75 by a77cj7 from South Dakota

Nov 18, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by ADKbeerguy from New York

Oct 29, 2014
Photo of archyquaffer
Reviewed by archyquaffer from Montana

4.03/5  rDev +30.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Poured from a longneck into a pilsener sampler. A moderate pour produces a billowy, frothy, sticky head of about 1.5 inches. The head sticks really well. The beer is a deep copper color with light carbonation.

Lots of rich malt in the aroma-flavor with just a kiss of hop bitterness in the taste and finish. The malts are really flavorful, evoking caramel, vanilla, maybe a touch of dark fruit, honey perhaps, and a little bit of pecan. Creamy mouth feel with a lingering bitter-sweetness with a finish that is relatively dry, minerally, and short in duration, inviting follow-up sips. Lots of therapeutic burps bringing forth a bit of rich mineral water and sweet malt.

There is much here to remind me of some of the English ales I've sampled. Not a hop bomb by any means but very flavorful malts with a mineral quality that you don't often encounter in american ales. Excellent!

Bought as part of a six pack at Hennessey Market in beautiful uptown Butte, Montana, home of the Montana Folk Festival, which starts tomorrow (7-11-14). I'm looking forward to the music (free), unique food, and awesome local beers on tap.
Jul 11, 2014
 
Rated: 3 by harpus from Alabama

Oct 18, 2012
 
Rated: 5 by ShwarzAl3r from Minnesota

Nov 15, 2011
Photo of brdc
Reviewed by brdc from Wisconsin

4/5  rDev +29.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
From notes. Small capped bottle poured into a pint glass.

I have to say I was expecting very little from this one, and proved to be a worthy try, a nice amber ale.
Light amber color as expected, off white head with good retention.
Well balanced nose and flavors, light to medium bodied, very easy to drink.
Notes on both aroma and flavor include bread, caramel, more grains, with a nice if subtle hoppy bite.
Will not blow your socks off, but an amber is not supposed to. Good summer brew.
Jul 30, 2010
Photo of Tone
Reviewed by Tone from Missouri

3.47/5  rDev +12.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pours a clear, amber color. 1/5 inch head of an off-white color. Decent retention and poor lacing. Smells of sweet malt, yeast, slight tart malt, slight hop, and slight grain. Fits the style of an American Amber / Red Ale. Mouth feel is sharp and crisp with an average carbonation level. Tastes of yeast, sweet malt, slight pale malt, grain, and a hint of hops. Overall, then blend is a little off, body is weak, and grain flavor is off-putting.
Mar 31, 2010
Photo of veratyr9
Reviewed by veratyr9 from Minnesota

1.8/5  rDev -41.6%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 1.5
EDIT: I'm contacting the brewery to see if they had a bad batch or something. There's no way any brewery would sell what I sampled and stay in business as long as they have.

Disappointing. That is the best word to sum up this beer. Pours a reddish brown color that resembles a dark apple cider. No head, or even foam to be seen. No lacing on the glass whatsoever. Upon further inspection without tasting or smelling, this may indeed be cider.

Smell. Not cider. Smells like a protein bar, cheap cocoa. For some reason the other bottles in the sample pack all smell like this one. Guessing they used the same yeast between them???

Taste's awful. To be a little more descriptive there is a really bad taste that drowns out what ever flavor the beer actually has. Maybe the brewing equipment wasn't sanitized and it brewed with a small amount of bacteria? Judging by the other reviews it seems that this is the taste the brewery was aiming for. The taste is that of pure bitterness, reminding me of a protein bar. Very sour, bitter, hint of cocoa and caramel, though that doesn't really matter.

It's a lighter weight beer, seems as if water was added, a lot of water.

Drinkability... Well the feel of the beer is that where you could easily down a 12 pack in a very short time, except that the taste makes you gag so the only place this is going down quickly is on the ground.

Will not buy from this brewery again. Very disappointed.
Aug 20, 2009
Photo of dfillius
Reviewed by dfillius from Iowa

3.18/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured into a pint glass. Had their Mythical White several years back and I'm psyched to be having another from Big Hole

A: Aggressive pour yields 1/3 finger of white foam with poor retention. A thin patchy layer remains after dissipation - more head please. Chill hazy red-tannish gold. Good looking but not beautiful.
S: I'm congested from being sick, but I am smelling weird muted strong scents of garlic, mustiness, grains, tartness and citrus.
T: Subdued malt with no hop character to speak of. No off flavors, just not anything pronounced. Maybe some wet cardboard - oxidation?
M: Smooth and creamy with a good level of carbonation
D: Session beer. Easy drinking and level headed. Only minus points for oxidation and not being dynamic tasting or smelling.
Jun 11, 2009
Photo of Ragingbull
Reviewed by Ragingbull from California

3.3/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
This beer pours a dark amber color and is pretty volatile so it gives a very thick foamy head. My wife poured it for me to be nice, but I question whether or not pouring it differently could have gotten a different effect. I have more of them, so I will find out. Anyway, The thick frothy head is a couple of inches thick but settling down nicely. Very faint nose with hints of malt but also with perhaps just a tickle of hops at the start of the sniff. Light and biting attack. Mild maltiness to the flavor throughout. Very light body. Late sensation of caramel malts. Pretty simple beer. A malty amber ale but enough of a hop bite to give it some balance. Some sour notes at the finish.
Apr 25, 2009
Photo of zeff80
Reviewed by zeff80 from Missouri

3.06/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A - A poured out a copper/auburn color with a huge, foamy, bubbly, off white head. It was long-lasting but left very little lace.

S - It smelled of biscuity malt and some mild floral notes.

T - It tasted of sweet roasted malt. It had some grassy notes. Over time the beer became more and more bland. Like it lost flavor.

M - It was fairly crisp and sharp. A light bodied beer.

D - This was an okay beer. Certainly not the best amber ale.
Dec 31, 2008
Photo of KarlHungus
Reviewed by KarlHungus from Minnesota

2.95/5  rDev -4.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
This beer pours a clear amber color. The head is half an inch in height, and recedes into a thin cap of foam. The aroma is of caramel, and cherries. The taste is of caramel and not much else. The mouthfeel is light bodied with a little too much carbonation. Overall, this beer reminds me of numerous other bland amber ales. It isn't bad, it just has no personality.
Jul 10, 2008
Photo of KeefD
Reviewed by KeefD from Minnesota

2.1/5  rDev -31.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Poured an.... amber color. Nothing surprising here, translucent and amber with no foam or lacing to be seen. These Big Hole brews are quite disappointing in looks. They never develop a head, just some big bubbles on top that disappear quickly. Smell is about the same. They all smell the same to me, regardless of the style. Must be the same kind of yeast used in every style or the lack thereof of ingredients. This one has a bit of biscuit-malt aroma, very light toastiness, and the slightest hint of some burnt caramel. Taste is watered down like no other. Nothing in the way of flavor. Some graininess mixed with some bready malt character that's soaked in H2O. Where are the hops? Water, water, water. Light on the palate, little carbonation. Just a disappointing brew. Would not recommend to anyone.

Into the drain it goes!
Jul 04, 2008
Photo of bcgoldtoe
Reviewed by bcgoldtoe from Michigan

3.75/5  rDev +21.8%
look: 1.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
A= Nice reddish tones, looks darker than most amber ales. This is a RED ale. Almost NO head, lacing disappears rapidly.

S= A lot going on here. I do notice the tea scent and strong caramel scent. Very pleasant.

T= Rather sweet, yet still hopped. If you like a strongly hopped beer, you'll be disappointed but it's sweet enough to offset the moderate level of hops. It definitely gets better as you drink it. No aftertaste except for a bittersweet linger, almost as if you've just eaten dark chocolate. If you like flavored malts, but are afraid to be seen with one in your hand, this is your beer.

M=Thin but it does hit the elusive goal of the right amount of carbonation right on the head. The complexity of this beer makes you happy by the end that it isn't much thicker. Overall, not bad.

D= Easy drinking beer.

Overall, this is a good session beer. Don't let the first sip turn you off--keep going. By the end, you'll wish you had bought more than just one to sample.
Aug 23, 2007
Photo of ChainGangGuy
Reviewed by ChainGangGuy from Georgia

2.7/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5
Appearance: Pours a light copper body with a thinning, off-white head.

Smell: Light, musty grain aroma with just a faintest bit of fruitiness.

Taste: A beer so devoid and bereft of any flavor that it really gives an almost neutral impression in the mouth. Just a brief glimpse of malt and fruit and then its gone.

Mouthfeel: Medium-thin body. Medium carbonation. Watery mouthfeel.

Drinkability: Seriously, there's almost nothing there!
Aug 20, 2007
Photo of walleye
Reviewed by walleye from Michigan

3/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
from the bottle. poured amber with off white head with little lacing. aroma, caramel, brown sugar, malt, spicey, fruity. flavor, mostly caramel, with hints of malt and hops, got some raisins mouth feel was a little watery. not to bad of a beer could be a session beer.
Oct 23, 2005
Photo of Frozensoul327
Reviewed by Frozensoul327 from Michigan

2.65/5  rDev -14%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5
An unfortunate beer. Could've been so much better. Poured out to an amber red / brown color with no head. None. Nothing. Zip. Very poor carbonation. Nearly none at all. Smell... weak to say the least. Maybe some malt, with a tea like character to it. Not lightin' my fire so far. The flavor is not bad, but the lack of carbonation leaves this brew bland and boring. Flavors of malt and grain are noted, with a touch of smoke on the finish. Some bubbles would've helped greatly. Mouthfeel is watery and inconsistant. Maybe there is something there, maybe there isn't. Very hard to say. Lower drinkability. Perhaps I've got a bad bottle... nope, not according to quite a few other reviews.
Oct 02, 2005
Photo of nota
Reviewed by nota from North Carolina

2.65/5  rDev -14%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
Pours amber/brown in color. Has a small brownish head even after an aggessive pour that faded fast with little or no lacing. This held true for all six bottles. Taste reminded me of drinking cold french roasted coffee. Tasted also like liquid figs. Carbonation was flat. At first I wondered how I was going to down all six bottles, but the taste did grow on me as I went along. This is the second amber ale I have tried and I must say I liked the Bell's Amber Ale a lot better.
Jun 12, 2005
Photo of WesWes
Reviewed by WesWes from New York

3.65/5  rDev +18.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
The beer pours a dark amber/brown color with a thick frothy offwhite head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has a rich and malty scent that boasts of roasted and chocolate malts. It is sweet and earthy. The taste is decent. It has a dry, yet malty flavor that is sweet with crystal and chocolate malts. It goes down smooth and finishes earthy and weak. The good aroma doesn't exactly translate to the flavor. It has a complex malt bill, but the overall taste isn't that great. The mouthfeel is decent also. It is a medium bodied beer with adequate carbonation. This is a decent beer. I like the unique aroma and flavor. It is an above average drinker, but nothing special.
Jun 03, 2005
Photo of TastyTaste
Reviewed by TastyTaste from Minnesota

4.18/5  rDev +35.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Dark orange/scarlet/red in color, modest head fades fast to a few islands of scattered bubbles. Smells carmely, nutty, roasted, and surprisngly hoppy. Taste is very robust and flavorful. Hints of coffee and roasted malt defintely add to the flavor of this beer. Hopped very well for an Amber Ale. Another solid beer from Bg Hole Brewery.
Feb 13, 2005
Wisdom Amber Ale from Big Hole Brewing Company
Beer rating: 75 out of 100 with 31 ratings