Big Sky Powder Hound Winter Ale
Powder Hound is our Winter Ale, and since it is our own creation we call it a Northern Rockies Strong Ale. Powder Hound satisfies, with the fine hand selected British hops fully complimenting the smooth malt notes. After a day on the ice or in the snow, enjoy a Powder Hound Winter Ale. Available November through March. ABV varies from 6.0% to 7.5%
3.3
402 reviews
Missoula, United States
Community reviews
12 oz can. Powder Hound Winter Ale is a medium hazy red copper brew with almost no head. the aroma is just a bit of citrus with some sweetness. The taste is just a smidge of natural honey and a good amount of herbs over a nice malt base. finishes with just a bit of bitters. good lively body.
7.25 version. 12 oz pour from refrigerated bottle into Spiegelau IPA glass. Fairly aggressive pour produced a small white head that dissipated fairly quickly. A little bit of foam lingered though. Hazy copper with lots of carbonation. Nose is awesome. Kind of a caramel tropical fruit. Both strong malt and strong hops. Same goes for the taste. Mouthfeel is creamy and smooth. Taste is a strong buttery/biscuity backbone with great tropic fruit and citrus up from. Very well balanced with both the hops and the malt coming through strong. I am very impressed.
To me, Powder Hound is like a lesser version of Arrogant Bastard Ale. It has a similar ruby-brown color. The aroma is the biggest difference between the two, and the difference is not in favor of Powder Hound. This ale smells REALLY earthy. The taste is like its better contemporary - heavily hoppy. However, the mouthfeel falls short. For all the hops, I want a bright, crisp character. It’s just not here. In fact, Powder Hound feels pretty flat. Big Sky makes some great brews, but this one isn’t as impressive.
Bottle.
A- Barnyard, feces, earthy, floral, malty, latex, caramel, bread.
A- Amber color, clear liquid, white head.
T- Barnyard, skunky, earthy, caramel, bready.
P- Medium body, average texture, average carbonation, earthy finish.
O- The off putting aromas and tastes are not what I was expecting from this one. Not much to say other than I couldn’t find much enjoyment here.
Crystal clear dark amber .. red highlites when held up to the light.... good 3/4" head the drops to an off white collar with lacing that stick around to the end of the glass.
Smell is malt dominated with pit fruits.. sweet cherries and a little peach. No noticeable hops ... just toasted and bready malts ... something is missing.
Flavor is much more complex and appreciated. Malt accentuated with toasted and roasted grains .... stops well short of black grains. Fruitiness is still very prevalent .... enough bitterness to barely balance... needs more hops. Good body.. and dialed in carbonation.
7.25 ABV version. Hazy orange with a small head. Fruity sweet aroma. Medium sweet malt taste with some hop bitterness, Filling finish with some lingering hop.
2014 Bottle:7.2% ABV. Pours a hazy golden/orange color with a thick off white head. The aroma is hops, caramel malts, and bread. The taste is sweeter up front, possibly the caramel. There is also some distinct pepper to this beer as well. I also pick up a moderate amount of hops and bitterness as well. The finish is crisp and has some breadiness as well. It is hard to pin point but there is almost some almond in the flavor as well. Great beer I highly recommend.
This is a tasty beer. It doesn’t really taste to me like English hops were used but I guess they were. This is a nice clear orange yellow in color and has a small head and little spots of lacing. Its nose isn’t much, quite mild w/ just a hint of hops and some toasty malt, but it seems to burst w/ bright hop flavor when you taste it. It’s lemon up front, which is highlighted by a touch of honey-like sweetness and it wanes to a more earthy character in the finish which compliments the caramel malt flavor. It finishes clean w/ some lingering sweetness and just a touch of bitterness. I can’t quite put my finger on what it is about it I like so much but I really enjoyed this beer.
355ml bottle. Golden pour with a slowly-forming foamy head that sticks for ahwile after it finally forms. The arom ais hoppy with herbs, a sherry note, and some orange peel. Flavor is very english-hoppy/yeasty, herbal, earthy, some savory notes, birch beer note, orange peel, toasted malt, slightly watery mouthfeel, dry and bittersweet finish. Definitely stuff to savor on a cold day.
Malty. Strong flavor and not boozy. Hop bitterness present as well. Good winter warming ale.
Bottle. Pours a very clear amber color with a moderate light tan head. Nose is filled with a fair amount of toffee and a bunch of grains. Taste is pretty dry and with quite a bit of toffee. Ok.
Solid winter ale. I like the lightness foot versus all the hes drier winter varieties. Has a bit of hopiness but great flavor for the season
Pours a finger of head on a clear straw body.
The aroma is a clean grain smell.
The taste has a malty sweet beginning, a mild lemon bitter middle and finishes with a mild caramel sweetness. Nice profile.
The texture is crisp.
Nice.
12oz bottle. Aroma is a light hoppy scent. Appearance is a clear bronze. Taste is a hoppy but not bitter flavor. Some what sweet. Palate is sweet, but otherwise even. Overall, a good beer. My Dad loves it, and I agree it is a good pale ale like beer.
Malty aroma and flavor (pretty light aroma): sweet, caramel, bread crust. Spicy hop flavor, and moderate bitterness.
Poured from bottle into a pint glass
Appearance – The beer pours a deep amber color with a one finger head of thick foam. The head fades very fast leaving only a trace of lace on the sides of the glass.
Smell- The aroma of the brew is heaviest of a caramel and slightly doughy smell. Along with these aromas are some light darker fruit aromas of raisin and plum. With a little bit of a spice and alcohol that are there as well create a very inviting aroma overall.
Taste – The taste starts with a sweeter caramel and fruit flavor with a slightly doughy and bready flavor. Some more darker fruit flavors of raisin and plum come to the tongue as the flavor advances. Some light alcohol, grassy, and light herbal flavors come to the tongue as well more toward the end of the taste and with the combination of sweeter and malty flavors, one is left with a nice and robust sweet but balanced flavor to linger on the tongue.
Mouthfeel – The body of the beer is on the rather thick and creamy side with a carbonation level that is on the slightly lower side. For the sweeter and slightly boozy flavors of the brew the feel is very nice making for a nice robust brew.
Overall – A rather tasty and nice brew overall. Good flavor with a lighter alcohol hit and a good sweeter and maltier taste.
"light-medium bodied, leaving me wanting more from this winter beer. the malt nose and flavor, with a slightly dry hop finish is pleasing, if a little on the light side. probably won’t be back for this one."
Call it the clash of aromas: you get both a hoppy citrus and a malty bread plus some sort of spice. Taste is equally well balanced though the hops win out by just a little on the finish. Pours to a beautiful head. My bottle stated the alcohol content at 7.2%, but it was not at all boozy. I realize I drank this a little out of season, but I enjoyed it on the home patio with an early evening chill in the air, so I’m going to say it all balanced out.
A different ale. Not really one distinct flavor profile to pigeon hole it for a singular style. There is an amount of hoppiness present, but also conflicting caramel malt, almost burnt toast like.
bottle. amber with small head. caramel malt sweetness with some fruity elements. interesting.
Pours from the bottle a clear amber with a big foamy head. Nice lacing on the glass. Aroma is of biscuits and caramel. Both come through predominately in the taste, along with a bit of coffee. Hops give it a touch of bitterness and warmth. Medium mouth. This is a really nice beer for a cold winter evening.
On tap @ Beachwood BBQ. Golden-orange pour with a small white head. Nose is big on the caramel, apple, and orange marmalade. Quite sweet and sugary. Some fruity esters, light spicy and herbal hops, and toasted bread. Flavor is also very sweet. Tons of caramel, toast, and sugar. Candied orange/marmalade, baked apple, and some lightly bitter, herbal hops. Not my thing.
Appearance: pours a 1" off white head that slowly recedes with some lacing. Amber color with plenty of streaming carbonation.
Aroma: rich aroma of yeast rolls, pungent earthy hops, some caramel and raisins.
Mouthfeel: medium bodied and a bit sticky with a pleasant finish.
Flavor: complex combination of bread dough, sweet caramel and toffee, fruity raisin, significant bitter earthy hops and with a slight astringent alcohol burn in the finish.
Overall: a pleasant sipper on a cold winter day and appropriate to the style.
Decent and easy to drink. Sweet malty aroma with a slight citrusy bitterness. Clear amber color with a white head. Good carbonation and relatively light palate. This was a hoppier English ale. Caramel sweetness that mellowed the beer but with a distinct hops bitterness on the finish that dried it out. Good but not your typically winter brew.
Light somewhat green stamp upper left corner of the label "032014." I’m assuming that’s best by date, ok, no worries, here goes.
The appearance is mostly clear amber/red colored body with a one fingered white foamy head that dies within almost a minute. It manages a nice amount of foamy somewhat sticky lacing.
The smell has a mostly soapy caramel nuttiness about it with a cardboard grassy note to it.
The taste is mainly sweet with some caramel kinda crackery malt to it. The aftertaste is super crackery maltiness with a very dry finish.
On the palate, she sits about a light to medium on the body, and comes across mostly sessionable. Carbonation comes across fairly smooth and is decent for the style and for me.
Overall, not much to see here, just an average American Amber/Red Ale that I’m unsure if I’d have again.
Not terrible but not that good either. Was not expecting a whole lot, just trying to find a final drink for a build your own six pack. orange, pretty clear, minimal head, not too sour, a little bitter but just overall not a very captivating taste.
Tap at T&P. pours a clear light golden orange. Aroma is sweet hops, light spice and fruit. Flavor is bitter upfront, spiced winter, dry malts with a touch of hops on the finish.
Shared at Kerry’s mini tasting. An orange gold pour with no head in a snifter but a thick head of foam in a tulip. The aroma is bready, cream soda like, lemon & honey. The body is medium-full, the flavor is herbal, sweet, smooth, smooth, orange, cream soda, pine, herbal, a bit of soapiness, good stuff. Interesting, like a cream ale not what I’d call a winter seasonal but well received.
Quick rating. 12oz bottle, from BeerCraft. Bright pour: glossy foam, streamlined lacing. Honeyed aromatics, herbal hops, little else. Taste: ditto. Decent texture, crackly malts, red fruits, eh warming. Mostly harmless.
12oz botle pours a clear orange with some lacing, white head. Nose is nice, some cracker, some rye, some orange, bread crust, mild soap, some herbs. Flavor is good, sweet malt, honey, orange, pine sap, soap, mild herb, some spruce. Mostly clean, herbal finish. Not bad.