Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve - Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Co.

jtierney89

New Jersey

1.5/5  rDev -52.2%
look: 1.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 1.5

beautiful crystal clear golden color with a thin white head. Semi-sweet corn husk and undercooked biscuit on the nose.

Taste is semi sweet with some off flavors. Slightly sour, a little too acidic. Definitely some strange off flavors going on, not sure what they are but not liking them. Not a good beer even at the cheap price. For whats supposed to be a lager, to much off fruit flavors. Not as clean as it should be.

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2012 02:15:48 | More by jtierney89

JoeyBeerBelly

New York

3.08/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12oz bottle served in a pilsner glass.

L - clear golden color with a white head that thinned out leaving some thin rings of lacing.

S - sweet and grainy with a little citrus rind.

T - like the aroma it tastes sweet with a wisp of citrus rind bitterness before finishing sweet.

F - light bodied, crisp and easy to drink.

O - it's ok.

Serving type: bottle

09-09-2012 21:26:53 | More by JoeyBeerBelly

BDIMike

Ohio

3.38/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Pours a clear golden lager color. There is almost no carbonation and no head is created. Very flat looking.
Smell is very nice for an American pale. A strong wheat and biscuit base has a nice West coast hop tinge to it.
Taste is nice. A very nice balance between the biscuit wheat tastes and the hoppiness.
Mouthfeel feels flat as well. A little bit of thickness, but no carbonation and a very flat feel.
A nice balanced beer. A good drinkable American pale, but nothing special.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2012 01:36:20 | More by BDIMike

allengarvin

Texas

3.18/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured into a 12-oz mug, this is a crystal clear very light gold beer with a small, dissipating head. The nose offers mostly grainy notes, but with a bit of floral, lightly citrus hops. Taste doesn't offer much more. It's grainy malt with just enough bitterness to keep you from mistaking it from a generic macro.

I'm not sure why Whole Foods was carrying this. The "Private Reserve" makes as little sense as Michelob "ultra". It's a pretty label, but it's all show with no substance. Don't buy.

Serving type: bottle

07-19-2012 03:11:36 | More by allengarvin

TheSixthRing

California

3.5/5  rDev +11.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Appearance - Pours a clear golden yellow with a good fingers worth of head, average retention, leaving behind a fine, semi-sticky lacing.

Smell - Smells of grainy malt and some grassy notes.

Taste - Starts with some grainy, bready malt sweetness, followed by a slight citrus hop bitterness on the back end.

Mouthfeel - Light in body. Carbonation lends to some decent crispness.

Overall - One of the better reasonably priced lagers on the market. Drinks closer to a pale ale than a lager at warmer temps.

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2012 23:56:28 | More by TheSixthRing

loren01

Oregon

3.18/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a clear bubbly yellow color, good sized head with nice lace down the glass
S: Smell is floral and grassy.
T: Slight sweet corn/grainy flavor up front followed by herbal bitterness.
M: Light bodied, carbonation seems to be good.
O: This is a pretty decent pale lager. Would be a good session BBQ type beer on a hot day.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2012 22:19:48 | More by loren01

StonedTrippin

Colorado

3.08/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

nothing special here. smells like a slightly more malty version of the american adjunct stuff, bittering hops only, and in small doses. flavor is fairly bland as well, some english style malts give it a decent profile, but its rather watered down. it does have a fairly crist finish, which serves it well. lighter medium body, decent carbonation. this is one of those beers that serves the purpose of being a better than mass produced lagers, but not being too offensive to the less adventurous palate. not a beer id suggest to any of my mates, but i might buy a 6er for my molson drinking old man.

Serving type: bottle

04-26-2012 23:06:51 | More by StonedTrippin

MaltsOfGlory

Oregon

2.78/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pours a pretty nice one finger head into my standard pint glass. The head is completely white and is surprisingly a little fluffy and creamy looking. However, I can literally hear the bubbles fizzing away. Head retention is frankly better than I thought it would be, I still have half a finger of head left, better than most adjunct lagers. I know this isn't an adjunct lager, but I've had it before and it might as well be. The lacing looks like it will actually be pretty nice, but we wont know for sure until I get down the glass. The body is pretty damn transparent, but I suppose it's not the clearest beer I've ever seen. Carbonation looks like it's just through the roof. Overall it's actually not a horrible looking beer considering everything, the body is pretty crappy, but what can you expect with a lager. The head is actually nice though, lacing looks like it will be good, and the head is still hanging in there. The smell is just your standard adjunct lager smell, super sweet, pretty sour smelling. Pretty carbonated smelling too. extremely pale malts on the nose. Overall it's just your standard adjunct lager smell, not that great. Not a horrible smell, but nothing more than a miller or coors. Taste is just the same, adjuncts, corn, etc. Very sour, slightly bitter, pretty darn sweet. I mean it has more flavor than a BMC, but it's just the same overall as they are. Just very sweet overall, really it's not that watery, which is good, but it just doesn't have anything else going on other than sweetness and some sourness. Overall better than BMC, but just barely. The mouthfeel is actually pretty good for an adjunct lager. Somewhat dry on the mouth. Also, it's not nearly as carbonated as I thought it would be, the carbonation is more medium than high. The body is obviously super thin, but for sure not the thinnest lager I have ever felt. Not a bad mouthfeel at all. The drinkability is obviously super high, it's extremely light, and it's not ever 4% ABV. Overall I wish there was more to say about this beer, but there really isn't. It's not a terrible beer, but it's not much more than a BMC. It has more flavor than your standard lager, but it's not necessarily a better flavor. Overall not terrible, but not something I really want to have again.

As I drank more and more of this beer, it did get quite a bit smoother, further backing up that 3.5 rating for the mouthfeel. It went down really well. The taste got a little nicer too, just a nice easy beer, no real problems with the flavor. With that being said, I don't really think I'm going to change my grade.

The appearance turned out to be actually pretty darn good. The lacing was really outstanding for a lager. For the first half of the glass the lacing was literally just one big lace, no wholes or anything on the lacing. As I got down to the second half the lacing started to break up a little bit, but it was still thicker than your average lacing, and it followed me all the way down the glass to boot! Really...the body wasn't very good, but it was a lager after all. The lacing and head were so great that I think I'm going to have to give it a 4 for appearance, even if that is too generous.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2012 05:57:45 | More by MaltsOfGlory

timtwoface

British Columbia (Canada)

3.4/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

While I'm a fan of lagers, there aren't many that wow me. This beer is among that group - but it's still very good for a basic, delicious lager with a nice smoothe easy-drinking taste with no aftertaste. The price-point at under $1 for a stubby bottle is nice, too. I'm a fan of supporting Henry Weinhard's brews so I would always consider this a beer I'd gladly purchase again in the future.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2012 02:39:56 | More by timtwoface

DavidST

Texas

3.28/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a pint glass, Jan 09, 12 date on the bottle. Pours a light yellow color with a small white head which it quickly dissipates. The smells are light of floral hops with light malts. The feel is light along with the taste, some bread malts with a light hop bitterness (very light).

Serving type: bottle

11-04-2011 01:44:37 | More by DavidST

mjurney

Texas

4.13/5  rDev +31.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance:
Golden color, clear. Carbonation is moderate. Thin head.

Aroma:
Clean and crisp. Sweet grassy.

Taste:
Grainy up front along with crisp bitterness in the finish. Very nice grainy character, cereal and hay like with touch of sweet caramel. Spicy hops towards the end, yet very crisp.
Body is light-medium, well carbonated.

Finish:
Crisp finish. Slight spicy-grainy aftertaste.

Overall:
Pretty good for a basic lager.

Serving type: bottle

10-23-2011 21:47:57 | More by mjurney

megahurts4

Louisiana

3.4/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve

Appearance: golden straw, medium head, and some lacing.

Smell: malts, hops, and some grain.

Taste: malts, grain, and faint hops.

Mouthfeel: medium.

Overall:
This is a decent brew. It does not have any strong flavors, but it seems well balanced and easily drank.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2011 17:39:02 | More by megahurts4

claytong

Vermont

3.1/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

appearance - straw color with minor head (about one inch). head dies off pretty quick like and has minor rim lacing then none

smell - grass, some minor citrus/grapefruit hops. tid bit of malt

taste - grass and malts, minor hops, neither corn nor rice is strong making it a lot nicer than a lot of its style

mouthfeel - not too bad thickness. maybe something i like about this a lot, its good solid medium body. pretty good carbonation. drinkability is also pretty solid.

Serving type: bottle

08-14-2011 15:45:02 | More by claytong

isualum12

Idaho

2.4/5  rDev -23.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

app-Yellow gold with white lace on top. lots of activity in bubbles
smell- skunk....reminds me of cheap beer I drank in college.
Taste- Not as bad as it smells. Not great though. skunky still with a bite. You can taste the barley to me.
mouthfeel- carbinated
overall- It is a weak tasting with a bad aftertaste. I cant recommend it. To many better choices in this price range.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2011 03:47:28 | More by isualum12

Cyberkedi

Georgia

3.73/5  rDev +18.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a pretty clear golden color with not much white head, but the glass had been sitting out for a little while. Rich aroma is mainly fruity - pear and apple - with some malt and a hint of hay. Malty, fruity, slightly sweet flavor has a hoppy hint and is quite enjoyable. Texture is smooth and quite fizzy.

Serving type: on-tap

07-10-2011 01:07:23 | More by Cyberkedi

hoppyhampy

California

2.75/5  rDev -12.4%
look: 2 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 2.5

12oz. bottle poured into a pint glass. Best by date is 6/13/11. Pours a very clear, very light yellow with two fingers of light, airy foam and almost no carbonation. Head quickly disappears and leaves no lacing. Nose has a fair amount of bitter hops with yeast and light, subtle malty notes. Mouthfeel is flat and watery. Palate has mildly sweet malt with grain flavors. Slightly bitter, hoppy finish. At the end of its shelf life and doesn't taste that old, but definitely doesn't show all that well in any aspect either.

Serving type: bottle

06-08-2011 06:28:06 | More by hoppyhampy

HugePlume

Washington

2.8/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

12oz bottle poured into a pint.

A- Straw yellow color, with average head. Head dissipates quickly. No lacing'

S- Lots or straw and alfalfa like sweetness, some dry fruity apricot like hops in the background.

T- Sweet cereal and grassy malts, some bitter hops build as you go, kudos to being detectable. Better than the macros here.

M- Nice balance of carbonation and a little chewiness.

O- Drinkable, but if I am going to have a cheapo lager I'd rather have a Rainier or step it up to a full-sail session.

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2011 03:00:58 | More by HugePlume

Snow81

Minnesota

3.9/5  rDev +24.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Golden yellow that's clear as class

Smell: grassy and malty

Head: nice white head, but dies out pretty quickly

Taste: Reminds me of Henry Weinhard's Blue Boar which is there Pale Ale, but the maltyness has been dropped in and the sweetness has left. Nice maltyness

Weight: Nice body on this medium carbonation

Finish: Grassy, granny, and malty

Serving type: bottle

03-09-2011 05:04:59 | More by Snow81

philbertk

Washington

3.45/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Henry Weinhard's, Blitz-Weinhard Company--Henry's Weinhard's Private Reserve Beer--2002 12 oz. Bottle. 5.00% ABV. (3.75 / 5.0) Pilsner--Clear rich bright golden color. Mild creamy lacy head. Mild floral Saaz hop front. Smooth mild creamy light sweet caramel butter body. Mild balanced light hop end. No adjunct notes. Tasty Macro Pilsner. Sampled 5/23/2003.

Henry Weinhard's, Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Company, Full Sail Contract Brew--Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve Premium Beer--2006 12 oz. Bottle. 4.80% ABV--15 IBU's. (4.0 / 5.0) Pale Lager--Mild head. Clear thin light gold color. Mild zesty hop front. Crisp tangy thin mild butterscotch caramel All Malt body. Refreshing slightly tangy crisp hop spice end. Pils Pale Lager. Nice Macro! Sampled 12/28/2006. First Sampled in 1983 after moving to NW from Michigan. My introduction to real beer as opposed to Macro swill.

Henry Weinhard's, Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Company, Full Sail Contract Brew--Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve Lager--2004 12 oz. Bottle. 4.80% ABV--15 IBU's. (4.25 / 5.0) Pale Lager--Tight mild lace head. Clear bright thin golden yellow color. Tangy Pils hop front. Crisp refreshing smooth mild butterscotch Pils malt body. Clean smooth balanced mild citrus hop spice end. Nice Lager. Sampled 10/17/2005.

Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Company--Full Sail Brewing Contract Brewer--Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve Classic Northwest Lager--2010 12 oz. 4.80% ABV. 15 IBU's. (3.75 / 5.0) Pale Lager. Lacy foamy very white head. Clear bright thin yellow gold color. Mild floral Pale Lager delicate hop front. Crisp zesty mild butter caramel delicate tasty Pale Lager body. Refreshing smooth mild hop clean crisp light citrus end. Balanced, smooth, good Lager. Sampled 2/9/2011. 6-Pack purchased for $5.99 at Fred Meyer--Ballard, Seattle on 8/29/2010.

Serving type: bottle

02-14-2011 04:26:54 | More by philbertk

morebeergood

Massachusetts

3.13/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Found one in the fridge while visiting family in Seattle, so popped it open and poured it into a tall glass. Bright orange / yellow color with lots of carbonation and a cloud-white head. Smell had that typical macro aroma. Flavor was pretty good. A bit bready, some malt, not a lot of hops. Mouthfeel was thin and a bit watery, but that made this beer just smooth enough to be easily drinkable. If you like lagers, then it's an OK choice. But with all the choices in WA, this beer falls towards the bottom of my list as to what I would spend money on.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2010 04:53:09 | More by morebeergood

TheMadJack

California

2.7/5  rDev -14%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Poured from 12oz. Bottle into Pilsner Glass.

A: Simple, clear yellow with lots of fizz. Moderate formation of a bright, white head.

S: Faint hops on the nose, mostly flowery and just a - what's that funny French word? - soupçon of pine. A scarce bit of fruit in the malts, which are otherwise cereal and dry grass.

T: Very even, mild flavor that is mostly malt. Clean tasting at first, but with a mildly sticky finish that actually brings out a barley flavor.

M: Light, smooth, and crisp. A little sticky at the end, but otherwise very refreshing and unobjectionable.

D: Well, it beats a Bud or Miller in terms of flavor, even if it's in that it lacks the odd essences of those macro brews. To put it simply: High Drinkability due to Low Funk. Otherwise, it's about on a par with them.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2010 22:00:34 | More by TheMadJack

echoes

Washington

3.75/5  rDev +19.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Served in a glass.

A: Pours a golden yellow color that is very carbonated/bubbly. Head is pure white, very bubbly and dissipates slowly leaving little lacing.

S: Very earthy-malty smell (hops/yeast). Also a hint of a floral or citrus-type scent.

T: Slightly bitter. Has a yeasty, (roasted?) malts taste such as barley and hops. Slight bitterness.

M: Light, airy, and smooth. Not sticky. A bit fizzy but not much.

D: Goes down easily enough. Not sure there is enough in this to make me want to have another but I could drink more if offered.

Fits the APL style pretty well in my opinion. Comes off as a kind of a light beer yet better than a light beer, if that makes sense. I like it but overall it isn't one of my favorites.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2010 04:38:06 | More by echoes

Andrew644

Idaho

1.75/5  rDev -44.3%
look: 2.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 1.5

A- Light gold with a head that very rapidly dies down.

S- Not much smell, very faint malt smell with the no hop smell.

T- Little flavor, it is hard to taste the most important aspects which is the malt and hops.

M- It does have good mouthfeel though and the good carbonation is probably the only strong aspect of the beer.

A- poor drinkability, yes it would be easy to put away a lot of these but I don't think I would enjoy it, the flavor just isn't there.

Serving type: bottle

11-02-2010 02:21:58 | More by Andrew644

jeranbrews

New York

3.53/5  rDev +12.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - clear bubbly brass color head died fast and leaves little lacing. Constant carbonation.

S - some surprising, slightly bocky meaty hops. No yeast but a few pale malt smells.

T - spicy hoppy initial flavors meaty transition and then a slightly malty finish way better than you'd expect for a little guy like this.

M - the continued carbonation leads to some fuzzy mouthfeel. Hops give a bitter pucker but it's fine.

D - needs to be a hot day and a cold beer but this is better than bud or heiny without a doubt.

Serving type: on-tap

09-24-2010 08:54:36 | More by jeranbrews

industrialswill

Washington

4/5  rDev +27.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This review is being done by someone who actually loves lagers.
This beer pours and looks just like any other, no surprise.
The aroma and flavor is what I expect, nice with no sour "after bite".
Price is right in there with the rest, if I'm in a mood for a light, simple brew..this is a good choice.
I rate this one as being good.

Serving type: can

08-13-2010 04:30:40 | More by industrialswill