J.R. Brickman Honey Red

Brewed by Brick Brewing Company
Style: American Dark Lager
Waterloo, Canada

Decent. Toffee, some floral and definite honey. Tastes a lot like Connor’s Best Bitter.

Soon to be released "founder’s series" (suggesting more beers to come) this is one of three newly released "craft" beers by Brick ( Ontario’s first craft brewer) Labelled as "J.R. Brickman" ( the Brick founder/chairman) this beer advertises "CQA Craft Brewed" as if this is a guarantee......................and from the lots I’ve tasted it is.....I was surprised to find a flavorful, all malt medium bodied beer!..................... Poured a orange-amber in the glass with a lovely puffy off white cap that lasted well and laced the glass decently................. Aroma was pungent: some grass and a distinct honey-toffee smells under the substancial bready smells of big malt protiens,...................................... bodied, with a fair malt spine....sticky mouth feel..................... Taste profile: Thick caramel malts up front are balanced by some light herbal hops but the honey is detectable and biases the balance towards sweet...although not cloying....finish is wet lightly sweet with a tang of honey and modest bittering from the German hops. An other wise nice aftertaste like a fresh biscuit with a dab of honey. ..................... Summary: This has the potential to be one of the best session beers from Brick in some years....if not "craft" quality, at least an all malt super premium lager.......update: Tried on tap today ( unpasturized) it is far better and there is a real malty finish. This is now a standard quaff for me. Consumed fresh from the tap there are few equals in taste and drinkability.

Dark appearance, only slightly darker than the Brickman Amber. Malty dark, foamy head. Very good flavour, but not overpowering.

Bottle - sampled at an Ontario Craft Brewers event. Second of the three beers in Brick’s new "Founder’s Series" line. I must admit that including a honey beer in a premium, "craft" beer line seemed odd to me, but after enjoying the Amber, I gave them the benefit of the doubt. Reddish-gold colour colour with a small head. Aroma of fresh malt, a bit of hay and grass, and a hint of honey - not bad. Flavour is fresh and sweet without being cloying, with caramel malt and honey notes balanced by a moderately hopped finish. Really well done - I’m looking forward to trying the Pilsner now!

Bottle- Pours a deep amber coloured body with a good sized lasting froth. Aromas are all malt and brown sugar with some honey and bread. Sweet malty with some actual honey flavours and the slightest bittering hops. Finish is sweet and tasty. All in all this is enjoyable. A good summer beer. Another winner in the founder’s series.

I actually really like this one, despite not totally understanding the whole honey beer thing. Nice aroma, with hints of toffee that become more apperent the longer it sits there. Nice brownish head (that leaves a good lacing on the glass), amber/red/orange in colour. Initially tastes of malty sweetness then the honey hits pretty strongly, but not severely. There’s almost some bitterness in there too, but nothing too strong. After taste is good, mostly malty and sweet like, well, honey. Lower on the carbonation which I like. Pretty enjoyable IMHO.

Bought a six pack for Father’s Day, had most for myself. Looks and smells pretty good, nice head and quite robust I must say. Had a more caramel/toffee than honey taste but a nice smooth finish nonetheless.

Medium amber in colour with a fair bit of carbonation. Aromas of caramel malts, a bit of bread, and floral honey. Very sweet in the mouth with a ton of honey flavor and a bit of grainy malt. Thankfully, the beer dries out quite quickly, and there’s a fairly nice crisp finish. Any hop aroma of flavor gets kinda lost, and might have lent a bit more complexity. Not a bad effort for a North American amber lager, but a more hopped up one would have been far more interesting. Thanks pootz!