Busted Knuckle Ale - Big Woods Brewing Co.

rlee1390

Indiana

3.93/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A-Black in the glass, brown when pouring.

S-Roasted malt, vanilla, nuts, spice and caramel.

T-Similar to the nose, roasted malt, coffee, chocolate, not much bitterness. Wish there was vanilla in the taste and a tad more bitterness.

M-Creamy and medium bodied.

O-This small brewery could make some decent brews, I need to get over to the pub sometime soon.

Serving type: bottle

10-21-2012 16:20:03 | More by rlee1390

fredmugs

Indiana

3.75/5  rDev +4.5%

04-13-2013 21:05:54 | More by fredmugs

Hazy

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev -9.5%

03-05-2013 01:10:32 | More by Hazy

crzd33

4.54/5  rDev +26.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Busted Knuckle Ale different kind of 'light' porter; I can't think of a beer that really compares to it, but in some ways it will remind you of NewCastle. Easy to drink, no bitterness, surprising alcohol content. This is a beer you can drink for a long time and not get tired of it. It's rather light bodied, which is a contrast to its deep red color.

Serving type: on-tap

02-11-2013 20:01:46 | More by crzd33

Shagtastic

Indiana

2.66/5  rDev -25.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured out of a bottle into a pint glass

A: This is a nice looking beer. Dark with a great head retention that lasts for a few minutes after pouring. A great looking beer

S: A bit of a fall off from a great appearance here. Light notes of chocolate and almost no coffee which surprised me a bit.

T: Disappointment here. I was hoping for more with this beer being talked up as a hybrid porter. If you're going to make a hybrid of something I'd at least make sure that one part is tasty. Not much flavor here at all and what is here is so malt driven that it gets a bit boring.

M: I like the carbonation and the fact that it hangs for awhile. The bonus points gained with that however are lost with a very thin beer. I would think that something this thin would be drinkable but it really just gets boring.

O: I think calling this beer average is a bit of a complement but it does seem to get a bit better when it warms. Hopefully these guys get some better beers out in production soon.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2013 04:47:33 | More by Shagtastic

Efay

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -2.5%

12-13-2012 23:56:35 | More by Efay

woodsman196

4/5  rDev +11.4%

11-03-2012 21:12:47 | More by woodsman196

SteveForSuds

Indiana

4/5  rDev +11.4%

10-17-2012 02:25:41 | More by SteveForSuds

JackStraw

3.8/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a bomber into a pint glass; no indication of brewing date as far as I can see.

A - low 30s SRM, dark brown with a hint of red, one finger khaki head with decent retention; you can see a little light through this one, but not much

S - initially a little malt sweetness and a bit of hops, and maybe a hint of toffee, but nothing overwhelming. i'd like more in the nose.

T - better than the smell; initially get some roasted malts and "red" and then some hops and dark fruitness as it's going down. the aftertaste is sweet as well, almost like a milky toffee

M - Very smooth and rich, goes down easy with a sweet lingering feel

O - I think this a very interesting, solid beer. It defies styles (amber/red/stout) and has a good balance and is very drinkable at this ABV (7.3). I'd like a bit more on nose, but overall a very nice B-town beer.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2012 23:42:45 | More by JackStraw

LJWalker

Alabama

3.5/5  rDev -2.5%

05-05-2012 15:51:46 | More by LJWalker

SnatchyMcPants

Indiana

3/5  rDev -16.4%

04-11-2012 03:02:40 | More by SnatchyMcPants

Redglimmer

3.25/5  rDev -9.5%

04-10-2012 22:57:45 | More by Redglimmer

JamesS

Indiana

3.1/5  rDev -13.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

On tap at Tomlinson Tap Room. Poured a nice burnished copper with nice initial head and lacing. A slight earthy aroma, but very little in malt sweetness, which is odd for such a huge ABV red ale. Huge sweet caramel taste, with a fair bit of alcohol heat that covered the flavors and made it rougher going down. Thick and creamy, as well.

Serving type: on-tap

03-16-2012 18:27:48 | More by JamesS

jmarsh123

Indiana

2.8/5  rDev -22%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Pours deep brown almost black. Not red at all with a 1/2 finger off-white head and some lacing.

Lots of caramal malt here with some brown sugar sweetness and just a bit of hops.

Drinks more like a porter or stout than a red. Big malty brew. Starts out with some subtle roasty malts. The sweet caramel malts also come out quite a bit especially on warming. Finishes with a tangy brown sugar sweetness that's not entirely great. It got a little overwhelming as warmed.

Creamy mouthfeel and good carbonation levels. Got a little cloying as it warmed.

Overall just an ok beer and kind of between styles that don't blur much so a bit hard to rate properly. It's considerably better than I remember it being on tap and had a thicker mouthfeel which was lacking at the brewpub. Maybe batch variation. Either way, this one isn't bad and Tim does some good work at the brewpub so I'd recommend this one as their signature ale if you happen to be in Brown County.

Serving type: bottle

03-15-2012 18:45:17 | More by jmarsh123

boilermakerbrew

Indiana

3.73/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A- Darker than expected, but a deep, deep mahogany brownish-red. Fairly thick, foamy head that laced well.

S- I don't remember anything super-distinct about this smell. A little malty, very little hops smell.

T- Interesting. They call it a red, describe it was a red-porter mix, but it drinks like a stout. And now on here it's classified as a brown. At first drink you get a little more of the red/brown taste with malts and a tad bit of hops shining through. But then it finishes almost milky. All the flavors mellow down and kind of mix together until you're not exactly sure what to call it. Finished with little to no aftertaste, and if it is there, it's just a tiny bit of hops.

M- To me, it was thick and drank like a stout the whole way through. Little to just adequate carbonation. Head added to the stout feel because of its almost frothy texture.

Overall, this one wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible. I'd drink it way above a macro light, but I'd probably take a Fat Tire or decent porter or stout over it. It's a beer that I think if they tweak the recipe a bit, they could really dial in.

Serving type: on-tap

10-09-2011 14:01:50 | More by boilermakerbrew

theRooster90

Indiana

4.18/5  rDev +16.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Dark red with a small head that barely lingered.

S: Malt, chocolate, and some fruitiness.

T: Excellent! better than I thought it would be. Almost zero bitterness to it but still had the qualities of a great stout with it's chocolaty malty overtones.

M: Again very impressive with a smooth down

O: Definitely better with every draw. Quite impressed and would definitely get again if I'm ever in the Brown County area. Even bought a t-shirt! (well, that's my goal - to get every micro-breweries t-shirt in Indiana).

Serving type: on-tap

08-30-2011 16:31:01 | More by theRooster90

irixman

Kentucky

3.9/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - dark brown pour with hints of red. Minimal head with little retention.

S - toffee and chocolate, but not strong.

T - rich body with lots of malt, and decided hints of hop. A good amount of alcohol, but who is surprised at 7.5%!

M - very rich and lingering sweetness.

I started slow with this beer but like it with every subsequent sip. A real winner.

Serving type: on-tap

02-06-2011 18:51:19 | More by irixman

robwestcott

Indiana

3.65/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

poured from the tap to a Guinness Imperial Pint glass a deep dark brown with red around the edges with a finger and a half foamy mocha head with minimal retention.

faint aroma of dark malts and molasses.

molasses, dark fruits, roast malts, black cherries and a bit of spicy tang in the wayback.

smooth, medium carbonation, sweet, not a hint of bitter.

drinkable - sure, a pint or three.

Serving type: on-tap

11-07-2010 02:38:49 | More by robwestcott