BJ’s Brewmaster’s Reserve Imperial Red Ale

Brewed by BJs Restaurant & Brewhouse
Style: American Strong Ale
, USA

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

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A 10oz "cervouise" on tap at BJ’s in Cincinnati. The bartender said she thought this was 8.2%, but I have no other evidence of that. Nice spicy hop flavor, lightly earthy, light tropical fruit... Maybe the most pleasant first sip I’ve had from a BJ’s brew yet. Little caramel malt, some tastiness. Bigger body. Smooth, lighter, kind of crisp carbonation. Lightly dry in the finish. Hint of chocolate. Nice bigger bitter taste, lightly spicy, minimal sweet. Light hint of the alcohol in the finish. I don’t mind it at all. Mostly clear orange amber color. Thin off-white head with good retention. Nice splotches of lace. Very satisfying imperial red ale. Much better than expected. Definitely the best BJ’s I’ve had so far.

shocked to see this listed at 9%, it hid the abv amazingly well! .. . on draft at my local bj’s .. wasn’t expecting to find this, went looking for the lager .. . deep amber brick .. . mild foam .. . mild caramel and a solid bitterness- a very nice beer .. . . funny dog to make life worthwhile

Pretty good. This is my first in their reserve series and you can tell they put some real effort into it. Nice hoppy aroma, more floral than anything else. The color was a reddish copper with a very small head. The palate was average weight with above-average carbonation. The flavors were well-balanced with a good malt backbone that had some caramelized sweetness. This was followed by a hop presence; in fact, it could’ve easily been an imperial IPA. Worth a second go around.

The beer is a rich, clear, red color that is topped by a frothy, tan colored head. The aroma smells of hoppy grapefruit, slight herbal notes, some pine, and, as it warms some berry-like notes, and a hint of alcohol. The malt character here plays second fiddle to the hops (something I wasn’t expecting, but still contributes aroma of toast, caramelized nuts, and whole grain cracker notes.

The taste is quite hoppy as well with flavors of grapefruit, and lychee up front. Alcohol, subdued malt, and a supporting caramel maltiness as well as a toasted, nutty maltiness also plays a role here. In the end this is a bit too alcoholic leaning to be great, but it is still quite tasty and definitely good.

Draft @ The Falls location. Pours clear copper color with light tan head. Aromas of toasted malts, fruits, pine and hints of citrus. Toasted malt and pine flavors with some citrus. Medium body with average carbonation. One of their better beers I’ve tried.

Pours orange with off white head and some lacing. Aroma is light - grassy hops. Taste is better. Citrus and pine hips mixed with sweet carmel malts.

A clear golden-like lager color. Good thick head. Thick malty aroma. Strong bitter flavor underbalanced by the malt. Floral, bitter flavor and finish. Pretty damn good actually, for a starter only.

Orlando, Fl - on tap at BJ’s. Dark copper pour, off-white sticky head with a fair amount of lacing. Spruce-like aroma with some fruity nectarine accents. Flavor has some fruity notes reminiscent of passion fruit, some grapefruit bitter citrusy notes, a sweet cherry-like finish. Thick, sticky mouthfeel. Pretty solid.

Pours a red and copper color with aroma of malt. Taste is very malty with a distinct hop taste to it. This beer is too hoppy for an imperial red, more like an IPA.

Malt, nut, and pine hops in the aroma. Flavor starts sweet with caramel, then finishes with pine hops, fruit, and alcohol. Overall a pretty good effort from a decent brewpub.