You never know where you will find a great brewpub. Even the happiest place on earth has a microbrewery with Big River Grille and Brewing Works located at Disney’s Boardwalk in Orlando.

While I didn’t find Mickey, Donald or Goofy throwing back pints, I did happen to be seated next to Head Brewer Sky Conley. Conley was gracious enough to tell me a little about the brewery and the beer.

Boardwalk’s Big River has been around for the past 22 years, originally opening its doors in July 1996. What makes it interesting is that is the only brewery/brew pub on the Disney World property, which is 27,258 acres. The brewery itself is not owned by Disney but rather by Gordon Biersch, part of Craftworks Restaurants & Breweries.

Conley has been brewing professionally for six years and has been the Head Brewer at Big River for the past two. In that time he has done about 40 different styles of beer. “When I came in, there were about six brands that they always made and one tap that would rotate,” said Conley. “They let me have creative freedom and now I change the menu up all of the time.”

Two beers have been part of Big River since the beginning: Rocket Red, an American red ale, and the Southern Flyer Light Lager. The pub has a total of seven beers on tap, which is all they can do based on their space. Even with mixing it up, Conley tries to keep a couple of standards on the taps for easy ordering. He likes to keep the Light Lager and Citra Grove Double IPA available most of the time. “You would be surprised how many people come in and don’t know it is a micro brewery. They are just looking for something light and crisp which is exactly our light lager. As for the Citra Grove, it was the first recipe I came up with when I started here. I’m proud to say it has become our number one seller. ”

Perhaps one of the most interesting beers you will find on the menu is the Beermosa, a fruited sour ale/Florida Weisse. It’s a beer that is sour but also sweetened with orange and pineapple flavours. Conley shared his inspiration for this unique brew. “Pineapple is my favourite fruit. In Florida, sours and the addition of tropical fruits have really taken off and it has become its own style called Florida Weisse. I just took my two favourite Florida fruits, pineapple and orange, and put them in a sour beer. I called it Beermosa, so people kind of knew what they were in for. It’s a taste of Florida in a glass.”

The brewery has a 10-barrel system, which roughly translates to 310 gallons in the final. Conley brews twice a week so they produce about 620 gallons a week. Unfortunately, they don’t have distribution because they have a full liquor bar so they are unable to sell growlers. That means if you want to try out some of Conley’s unique brews, the only way to get them is at the pub itself.

Despite not being able to distribute his brews, Conley still has some goals for the future. He is working on introducing a “taste of the week” similar to a cask beer but in a keg that would only be good for a week and offer different unique flavours.

If you are visiting the pub, you really can’t go wrong with the selection, as there is a little something for everyone. At the end of the day, my favourite ended up being the Citra Grove Double IPA. It was flavourful, nice and hoppy (56 IBU) yet smooth. So if you find yourself doing the Disney vacation thing, hop on a monorail or fairy boat and head over to Big River on Disney’s Boardwalk where you are sure to have a magical day.

Cheers!

Like us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter

Follow us on Instagram