Hey Blasters! I am in Florida right now and last night I
decided to check out the small town of Coral Springs, near where I am staying
in Tamarac. I was on Maps on my iPhone and saw that there was a bunch of
restaurants in the same general area so I headed that direction. Well, that’s
when I spotted Big Bear Brewing Company! I decided to check it out and I have
to say it was PACKED! So I figured it was good! I called my sisters to see if
they wanted to join me for dinner and they came with my grandmother to have
dinner. Well, I walked in and the place was AWESOME! Beautifully decorated, had
a great vibe and the staff was super friendly. I got us a booth right by the
kitchen and it was very comfortable. Since the rest of my party was not here
yet, I figured I would take a look at the menu. It was MASSIVE! There were so
many different choices it was almost overwhelming because it all sounded so
good! I decided to take a look at the daily specials and saw that a full flight
was only $10.00!!! I figured that would be like 4 or 5 beers that were 2-3
ounces apiece. Boy was I wrong! My wonderful server Meghan informed me
that the full flight was 8 different beers at 5 ounces a piece! Best flight I've
ever had! So, I am going to review all ten of the different beers then tell you
which one I decided to order a pint of! Then we will talk about the food!
Here is a link to their site so you can browse around: Big Bear Brewing Company
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| Full Flight $10.00 8 Different Brews 5 Ounces Each! |
Brews Include:
Polar Light, Hibernating IPA, Grizzly Red Ale, Brown Bear Ale, Kodiac Belgian Dubbel,
Java Bear Milk Stout, Bad News Bear Double IPA, and Cucumber Agave Ale.
Presentation: You
get a placemat that describes each of the beers along with the Big Bear Brewing
Company brewing process. It is really nice to be able to know what you are drinking
with all the info you could need. They also give you a small glass of pretzels
to munch on!
Label: Polar Light
Type: German Golden Ale (Light Beer)
ABV: 4.9%
IBU: 11
Awards: Gold medal 2012
U.S. Open Beer Champ
Label Description: Our lightest beer.
Inspired by the Golden Ales in northern Germany. Cold fermented for a clean,
crisp flavor.
My Review: Well, this is
definitely a light beer! It has a very subtle aroma, doesn’t smell hoppy or
much like anything. First sip, I think I am drinking a Coor’s Light (Good thing
I don’t mind a cold Coor’s). It is a typical light beer, very crisp, refreshing
and smooth. Not hoppy, bitter, or anything extravagant in flavor. If you are a
light beer fan, then this is a great choice for you!
Label: Hibernating Pale Ale
Type: India Pale Ale
ABV: 6.5%
IBU: 55
Awards: Grand National
Champ IPA 2012. And judged best IPA in Mid Atlantic/Southeast USBTC 2004 and
2008.
Label Description: An aggressively
hopped American IPA. Copious amounts of whole leaf cascade hops are added for a
wonderful flavor and intense aroma.
My Review: I think this one’s label is
slightly confusing. I didn’t think it was a true American Pale Ale and they
also call it an IPA, which are often confused for one another but are
definitely different. So when I took my first sip, I was expecting an APA and
was surprised when I got an IPA flavor profile. It was delicious, just not what
I was expecting. This was a pint pick for one of my sisters, so it was
definitely good. You could taste the cascade hoppy flavor and I honestly
thought this was hoppier than the Bad News Bear Double IPA.
Label: Grizzly Red Ale
Type: Irish Red Ale
ABV: 5.8%
IBU: 18
Awards: Silver Medal 2012
U.S. Open.
Label Description: An Irish styled
red ale. It is medium bodied with a mellow caramel malt flavor that is balanced
by a medium hop bitterness.
My Review: Definitely disagree with the
label description on this one. I didn’t get much caramel malt flavor and I
really did not think it was a “medium hop bitterness”. I mean it is only rated
at 18 IBU’s so I cannot count this as medium hoppy. It had a hint of hops and
wasn’t a favorite among other red ales I have had. It won an award though so
others must like it!
Label: Brown Bear Ale
Type: English Style Brown Ale
ABV: 6.0%
IBU: 15
Awards: None
Label Description: A medium bodied
English style brown ale. Malty and complex with hints of toasted bread and
chocolate.
My Review: I’m going to come out and say
it, this was not my favorite. I really didn’t get anything out of this one and
I normally like brown ales. I really did not think it had much flavor and it
really tasted completely flat with nothing exciting for my pallet. Not much
more I can say about it.
Label: Kodiac Belgian Dubble
Type: Belgian Abbey Ale
ABV: 7.5%
IBU: 9
Awards: 2002 Great
American Beer Festival Gold Medal winner.
Label Description: A classically
brewed Belgian Abbey ale. It has wonderful aromas of cloves, banana and
underlying flavors of plum and raisins as a result of the authentic Belgian
ingredients we use.
My Review: This one was great! It was a
favorite at the table! You can smell the cloves when you take a whiff and when
you take a sip, you can tastes the banana flavor and a hint of plum. I didn’t
personally taste the raison flavor, and neither did the rest of the table. It
was smooth, and easy to drink. It was sweet, but not overly sweet and simply
drinkable. It was between this and the double IPA for my pint and I simply went
with the IPA because my dinner was going to be sweet and I wanted some bitter
to knock that down a bit. Anyhow, this was a great version of a Belgian Ale
with tons of flavor! This was a pint pick for one of my sisters.
Label: Java Bear Milk Stout
Type: Milk Stout
ABV: 6.0%
IBU: 25
Awards: None
Label Description: A full-bodied milk
stout with a rich coffee character, brewed with milk sugar and roasted malts,
then aged on coffee and vanilla beans. Served on nitro for a smooth and creamy
finish.
My Review: Ok, this one is DARK! You can
tell it is a true stout just by looking at it! It smells very sweet with a hint
of coffee aroma to it. There was a very little thin milky white head on this
brew. Well, it is SUPER smooth! Very flavorful with a great coffee and
chocolate flavor to it. Not overly bitter, very sweet, and creamy. I really did
like this one! There are a lot of stouts out there, and this one definitely is
a winner in my book!
Label: Bad News Bear Double IPA
Type: Double IPA
ABV: 8.3%
IBU: 100
Awards: None
Label Description: A hoppy
medium-bodied, American Double IPA. This complex IPA was brewed with all
American ingredients. Starts pleasantly bitter and finishes dry with a crisp
clean bitterness that doesn't linger.
My Review: Alright, look at the IBU’s.
This one sounds intimidating. It really shouldn’t be. It is a strong brew with
a higher alcohol content and bitterness rating. I was very surprised at how
flavorful it really is! The description is 100% right on because it does start
with a hoppy bitterness that finishes clean and doesn’t leave you with that
bitter feeling in your mouth. It is super smooth going down, and really wasn’t
what I was expecting from the stats. I ended up ordering a pint of this one and
it was delicious! Definitely a great choice for my dinner beer after having
this sample!
Label: Cucumber Agave Ale
Type: Light Golden Ale
ABV: 4.8%
IBU: 10
Label Description: A medium bodied,
light golden ale infused with organic cucumber and agave nectar. The cucumber
is the perfect refreshment for the summer heat, while the agave adds a subtle
sweetness.
My Review: Ok, I am going to start of by
saying I absolutely despise cucumber so my first thought on this before I even
took a sip was “Gonna hate it”. Well, I am glad I gave it a chance. This was a
very “different” beer. I could never drink a pint of this, but a taster wasn’t
bad at all. I couldn’t taste an overwhelming cucumber flavor, but they changed
the recipe and hadn’t changed the label yet so it had a kick of jalapeño in it!
That was exciting. It was smooth and sweet until you swallow and get a kick in
the pants of some heat! Very interesting brew, just not for me in large amounts.
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| Brewery Burger w/ French Fries $14.00 |
Food: Brewery
Burger
Menu Description:
Bacon Jam, Aged Cheddar, Pickled Red Onion, Garlic Aioli
Price: $14.00
My Review: Ok,
read the first two words of the description. BACON JAM!?! Yes, that is what
drew me to this one. I knew I wanted a burger, but as soon as I see bacon jam,
I had to find out more about this. Well let me tell you, it was a great sized
burger cooked perfectly for me! The bacon jam was exactly what you would expect!
Sweet and salty that was awesome on this burger! The bun was buttery and
delicious! I thought it could use a little bit thicker slice of cheese because
it really seemed like there wasn’t much cheese at all. The pickled red onion
was an awesome touch as it added a little salt and sweetness to it on top of
the bacon jam. The garlic aioli was full of flavor and just really completed
the burger. The burger itself was great! It says on the menu that the beef is
ground fresh daily and it is 100% Certified Angus beef! So great meat with a
great presentation for this burger that I thought the Double IPA paired great
with! The French Fries were good, but nothing that I need to rave about. All in
all, we all loved the food we got and the brews we got were fantastic as well.
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| Bad News Bear Double IPA 8.3% ABV 100 IBU |
Overall: Great
experience and our server Meghan was awesome! She was extremely knowledgeable
about the brews and food. She was friendly and attentive but not overly
bothersome as some servers are. We ended up hanging out for maybe half an hour
after we were done eating and we never felt rushed or like we weren’t wanted
there. It was overall a great experience and I highly recommend this place to
anyone in the Tamarac/Coral Springs/Ft. Lauderdale area in Florida. The
restaurant was clean, the restrooms were clean, and the décor was great! I will
be going back for lunch before my trip is up! So I give it a 4.5 Blast Rating! Great
job Big Bear Brewing Company! Come to California please!
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