Mild Winter - Goose Island Beer Co.

homersimpson67

Minnesota

4.43/5  rDev +19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours a beautiful dark chocolate with a giant frothing 3-4 fingers of thick malty foam.

Very inviting ale that smells terrific, malt and cocoa and perhaps a smidge of nutmeg, reminds me of Christmas in the 70's.

Taste is quite enjoyable, definately mild as the name implies but very satifying and quite drinkable, maybe its the rye that is so inviting, quite delicious.

Mouthfeel is nothing special but the overall mild flavor and smell make it a real nonfactor, at least for me.

Overall a very nice winter ale that was a pleasant surprise at the small town local liquor store. Haven't always been a huge fan of Goose Island but they seem to have gotten something right with this one. Don't remember trying a beer with rye before but it is definately something I'll look forward to trying again.

Serving type: bottle

11-17-2011 02:57:38 | More by homersimpson67

hustlesworth

Ohio

4.47/5  rDev +20.2%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A- pours a clear rusty burnt orange-brown with a thick very stable ivory colored head. nice thick rings of lace and excellent foam retention, this one is rye rye nice to look at.

S-tons of spicy rye character in the aroma, with the allowance of not being overly hopped. toasted bread crust, mild caramel and toffee, and a touch of cocoa, faint hint of citrus and cassia. the toasty rye aroma is amazing.

T- again, plenty of rye flavor with some tartness, some caramel & chocolate, but this is not a sweet beer, its grainy and woodsy and dry, a little smokey, a real 'man' flavored beer. it literally tastes like hearty toasted grains, rye bread WITHOUT the caraway, and floral noble hops and that's all. what beautiful simplicity. finishes with a zesty bitterness that smooths out quickly .

MF- medium carbonation, medium bodied, with a pleasant husk feeling, somewhat juicy, tight prickly bubbles, slightly astringent

D- you know, when i was a young boy, my grandfather would... wait a minute. nevermind. i like how this beer lets the rye flavor stand out most of all. very satisfying. goose island is one of my favorite breweries despite their AB ties and they continue to supply this side of the country at least, with excellent beer. great for a session, even in springtime.

Serving type: bottle

04-10-2009 21:15:01 | More by hustlesworth

bamadog

Kentucky

4.47/5  rDev +20.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 5

Poured from the bottle into a pint glass, and to be sure, I'll definitely be picking up some more of this. I see that when I am reviewing this that it has a B+ average, but I feel that when it's said and done my numbers will give it a slightly higher score than that because I am absolutely digging this beer.

Appearance: Pours a deep brown, but not like a coffee brown, more like a really dark tea, and shows some light ruby highlights; comes with a 2 finger head that is thick, frothy and merengue-like; body is very clear and shows moderately strong carbonation; full lacing holds to the sides of the glass; head dwindles very slowly and remains a full thick skim on the surface.

Smell: Amazing! Light coffee roastiness (reminds me a bit of Coffee Bender, actually); slightly carmalized sugary scent is blended in as well... not really complex, but very potent and wonderful smelling.

Taste: Just like the name, the flavors are mild, yet very nice, especially the light coffee roastiness; slight nuttiness and natural sweetness; aftertaste is a soft hoppiness that brings about just a slight touch of a grassy bitterness for balance.

Mouthfeel: A little thin, but still fairly creamy; carbonation is very soft; a very slight stickiness is left behind. I would have liked the body to be a bit thicker, but overall it's still pretty decent.

Drinkability: Nice for cool weather; moderate ABV and it's not heavy at all, nice mild flavors make for a great sessionable beer. I could drink this all day long during the holidays.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2009 04:47:37 | More by bamadog

boilermakerbrew

Indiana

4.51/5  rDev +21.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottled on 11-18-12.

A- Pours a deep, rusty brownish red. Clarity is high despite the dark color. Dense, medium head of about 1.5 fingers. Great lacing and retention.

S- Mostly malty, with some sweet mixed in. Dull malts include caramel and toffee notes. Nutty flavor mixed in too, with a muted brown sugar like sweetness.

T- Starts off just like the scent, with a pretty solid malt bill. Caramel and toffee notes start and dominate throughout most of the drink. Persistent moderate sweetness underlies the whole drink with brown sugar notes. Slight hints of the rye and wheat grain peak in and out. The drink ends with a small, malty bite. Lingering caramel and toffee malts stay on the palate for a short while after the drink.

M- More carbonated than expected, but still incredibly smooth. Dense, frothy head adds to the feel on the tongue, thickening it up a bit. Smooth and moderately thick going down. Having no alcohol feel or taste, this one is good for a session.

Overall, I am presently surprised by this beer. I've been passing this up quite often and find myself regretting it now. A pretty darn tasty malty beer that's easy drinking and affordable. Go out and try it.

Serving type: bottle

02-15-2013 22:40:00 | More by boilermakerbrew

Chugmonkey

Wisconsin

4.53/5  rDev +21.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Wow. Thought this would be passive and boring - NOT!!!

Enticing looking brown/auburn color, creamy thin head, nice webbed lacing.

Smells earthy, slightly spicy, very inviting. Taste is earthy, slightly spicy, toasty, bready, lots of depth to savor in the taste.

Feel is pure silk, just slides down before you know it. Leaves you craving another big swig as you ponder the wonderful complexities of all the flavors.

This blew me away. May be the best thing besides deep dish pizza to come out of Chicago ever. I can't imagine how a fresh mug on tap would be. Excuse me while I wipe this drool off of my chin.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2009 14:57:18 | More by Chugmonkey

TheOtherBob

New York

4.53/5  rDev +21.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This reminds me of the old, long-mourned Goose Island Nut Brown that I used to drink in college, with perhaps more of a rye note. The Nut Brown was one of my favorites, so I'm glad to see a similar beer make an appearance.

The appearance is dark brown, with a good head that sticks around. I walked away for a bit while it warmed, and when I came back there was still a solid head. Nice.

The smell is a little nutty, with some raisin -- and clearly some malt hanging around.

Taste is what you expect -- malty, solid, smooth.

And it certainly felt good to me going down.

Overall, I don't think this is the best beer I've ever had -- but it's familiar, it's comforting, and it ...I mean, can I say this? It makes me happy. It's like an old friend. So for me it's a great beer -- even if it's not necessarily anything special.

Serving type: bottle

11-05-2012 02:26:25 | More by TheOtherBob

Darker

New York

4.58/5  rDev +23.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Goose Island Mild Winter was one of the beers I was recommended by kegworks Facebook blog. To start off it looks and smells wonderful. It is also, to date, is the first rye beer I have ever tasted. The flavor is excellent and remains solid during the first pull with little to no aftertaste, but what is really impressive about this beer was the mouthfeel. Goose Island Mild Winter is like drinking liquid silk. I could draw some parallels to a mouthfeel equivalence with some of the cold coffee beverages on the market such as the Starbucks frappuccino, but the feel of this beverage in your mouth is truly sublime. The only criticism i would wage against this beer is that, and this may be personal, is that it makes me feel thirsty afterward, as if there was a small amount of MSG in the bottle, this though may be just an aspect of the style.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2011 01:15:20 | More by Darker

equinox

New York

4.6/5  rDev +23.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

So I brought this beer along to drink after a hike on a mild late-autumn day. It was the first time I had this beer. I have enjoyed other Goose Island products, and I thought I'd give this one a try. I did not realize it was a rye beer, an I had never had a rye beer before. This was certainly the most refreshing winter beer I'd ever had and it was spot-on for after a strenuous hike. I would describe the beer as light. I did get the vanilla and hazelnut taste. It also was creamy. I would recommend drinking this in the afternoon. You could certainly enjoy a couple. I think you would like this beer and I would suggest picking some up. I

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2010 23:34:07 | More by equinox

Brunite

Illinois

4.6/5  rDev +23.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Presentation: Poured from 12oz bottle into a pint glass.

Appearance: A dark amber color with some orange tint around the edges. A nice medium spongey off-white head results from a moderate pour. Not much lingering lace.

Smell: There is sweet caramel malt backbone that comes through on front with just a little rye on the edges. Very little hoppiness noted.

Taste: This beer comes across almost as a brown ale at first. Bready, malty, sweetness predominate. Some toffee. As the beer warms....the rye comes through.

Mouthfeel: Medium thick....slightly chewy. Carbonation is just right. Leaves a touch of lingering sweetness and rye taste. I like the lingering flavors here...what I want from this beer.

Drinkability: Perfect for this style. This goes down easy and leaves a pleasant flavor memory. Lower ABV and IBU make this one a great session beer. While called "Mild Winter"...this is drinkable and fills a slot in my fridge all year long.

Overall: A great "average" beer. Not world class. But light years ahead of BMC junk. A great beer for the rotation when you want something easy too drink that is heavy on flavor without blowing you away. Good stuff and another great beer from GI to add to the stable.

EDIT: (2-5-11) The more I drink this one....the more I am impressed and the more complex the flavors seem to get. The rye stands out more and more as you experience this and know what to look for. This tastes like a loaf of fresh rye bread. Each swirl of the glass reignites the foam and the creamy/chewiness is amazing. I like this more each time I try it and had to give it props.This beer is definitely in my "top 10 to have in the fridge all the time" list. If Founders Red's is my "go-to" Rye/IPA...this is my "go-to" Rye/Brown Ale. These two will keep any rye lover happy!

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2011 23:47:41 | More by Brunite

bearsxco

Massachusetts

4.68/5  rDev +25.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Poured in a pint glass. Poured amber in color with a one finger light beige one finger head, almost white in color. Slight reddish copper color when held up to light. nice mild smell, plum and light nuttines, winter smell. A lot of retention as glass empties. Very little carbonation. Slight plum and nutty flavor. Great balance of spices and flavor. A perfect winter session beer. One of my favorites that I always have on hand during the winter.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2012 17:26:01 | More by bearsxco

Mitchster

Michigan

4.83/5  rDev +29.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

$8.99 for a 6'er. Brewed with 2-row pale, carapils, dark chocolate malts, roast barley, and rye flake. Hopped with Willamette and Tettnang. 28 IBU's, 5.6% ABV.

Pours out to a clear dark brown, forming a tall, stiff light yellow head with excellent retention and great solid sheets of lace. Very fine small layer of yeast in the bottom of the bottle. Carbonation is moderate. When I first smelled this, I thought, hrmmm...something spicy in here, and seeing as how it's a "Winter" ale, I thought, maybe nutmeg or ginger, but no, it's the rye. It's very subtle but adds a tremendous depth of character on top of the mild toasty malts and hint of lightly toasted grain husk. Wonderful nose. The mouthfeel is smooth and soft, nice and rounded with a light acidity and a clean finish. The taste opens up with a lightly hoppy carbonated acidity, followed by nuts, like toasted almonds with a lingering mild sweetness in the middle, finishing with a hint of caramel, and then this really nice mellow aftertaste of leather and tobacco. Infinitely drinkable.

This has to be the single best brown ale I've ever had. There are layers upon layers of complexity, and it's exceptionally smooth, flavorful and drinkable. Not a single fault. Subtle and balanced. This, to me, defines a mild brown ale and what it should be. I am definitely gonna have to stock up on this while it's still around. Very highly recommended. I would give it all 5's if I couldn't imagine it was even better on tap.

Serving type: bottle

05-01-2009 19:14:20 | More by Mitchster