Big Nose IPA
Swamp Head Brewery

32 oz. growler poured into a pint glass. Thanks to nmbr0ne for this growler!

Appearance - Amber bodied with a small white head. Not great retention, but lots of sticky lacing down the sides.

Smell - Pine hops predominantly, but there's a good deal of malt to the nose as well. It is aromatic, but not in the best way. I suppose there's an equal blend of citrus and pine to the nose, but it isn't as inviting as other IPAs.

Taste - Similar hop profile. Citrus and pine. Strong malt backbone, but it's secondary to the hops, which I enjoy. It's just enough to combat an intensely bitter finish, which is slight pervasive.

Mouthfeel - That bitter finish is overwhelming. Not uncharacteristic, but strong. Low carbonation makes it feel very smooth, almost like a cask IPA. I've had this in other forms and it was similar in consistency, so I don't think it's the growler that does it.

Overall - Solid, but unremarkable. I'd drink this regularly partially to support local breweries and partially because it's pretty tasty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Received this in a trade. My first from this brewery. Pours an almost copper color with a creamy head. Pleasant pine aroma with some citrus. Bold bitterness with malt forward flavor. Lush mouthfeel with very light carbonation. Dry finish. Overall, a little disappointing. The look and smell were good. The flavor was way too bitter with no balance of juice.

 

 

 

 

RB transfer

The first can from the 6'er was FLAT, literally. My wife tossed hers; too bitter. We're disappointed knowing how good this IPA can be. Hard to believe this batch left the brewery.

Look: deep gold, creamy white head, decent lacing
Smell: tropical, spicy, herbal
Taste: tropical, piney, malty, spice/pepper, resinous
Feel: med body, moderate carbo, resiny bitterness
Overall: 7.3% - 56 IBU. Nice resiny bitter aftertaste. Wish it was crisper but it's still solid. Pairs well with Big Time by Peter Gabriel.

Copper colored with a lightly hazy complexion. There’s a fingernail of brown on top. The aroma is of citrus and pine, but I really had to search for it. I’m tasting lots of pine and a bit of citrus. The mouth is lightly sticky and resinous.

Look - great copper color with a nice white head
Smell and taste - pretty standard malt with a caramel citrus hop and bitter
Feel - medium body and carb
Overall - pretty standard IPA

Swamp Head Brewery "Big Nose IPA"
16 fl. oz. can without production codes or freshness dating
$2.79 @ Metro Food Mart, Ocala, FL

Notes via stream of consciousness: There's a nice label on this one; Swamp Head must be a fairly large brewery. It's poured a hazy deep amber colored body beneath a short head of off-white foam. What's this? !!! It smells like an old school "C hops" beer! Is that possible these days? It's citrusy and piney over a sweetish bready and biscuity caramelish malt base. It's bright and welcoming. On to the taste... wow, this really is an old school "C hop" beer, and it's well brewed and balanced. I'm old so this is one of the styles I grew up on and I have a soft spot for it. Let me run through some of the hop notes: soft grapefruit, orange, earthy, woody, piney, resinous, lychee, floral, cedar, and berry. Berry? Yeah, I didn't expect that but OK. The hops mesh in really well with the malt and a firm bitterness anchors it and brings it to a dry conclusion. I could drink a lot of this. In the mouth it's medium bodied towards the higher side, and gently crisp and smooth across the palate. The head has held up well and it's left some very nice but not great lacing about the glass. Ahh, what a beautiful gem of a throwback this is, and nicely done all around.
Review #9,145

From a 12oz can CO 0712. Pours Allen clear golden color . Smell is hoppy with citrus/grapefruit . Tast has grapefruit,pine sap , citrus and mango . mouth feel is hoppy with nice bitterness . Hey i liked this .

12oz undated can poured into a pint glass shows a cloudy dark orange/copper body with a thin cap of tight, white bubbles that leaves copious leopard skinned lacing.

Aroma includes pine resin, and grapefruit and orange fruit and piths.

Flavor is dominated by robust fruity, piney hops but a bready malt forms a solid backbone.

Full mouthfeel falls just short of chewy, and finishes clean, with just a hint of citrus remaining.

Overall a pleasure to drink.