BJ’s Brewhouse - BJ’s Imperial Pilsner

One of our two featured Rare Beer Club selections this month, BJ’s Imperial Pilsner, is an exceptionally full-flavored and full-bodied release from the brewery, with 28 IBUs of bitterness providing a delicate balance. This beer sees very limited distribution overall, and it will only be available through the Rare Beer Club and directly through BJ’s restaurants’ Brewhouse Beer Club.

BJ’s Imperial Pilsner pours a deep slightly hazy golden amber, capped by off-white foam that’s nicely retained, leaving behind church window-like lacing around the perimeter of the glass. As we bring it up to the light the beer retains a bright and honeyed appearance throughout. The aromatic profile features prominent notes of bready and crisp German malt toastiness, complemented by earthy, herbal, and lemony hops. The aromas are well-layered and balanced with subtle hints of honey and spice accompanied by white flowers.

The BJ’s Imperial Pilsner boasts a medium to full body, with a lively cushion of carbonation. Tiny bubbles and subtle effervescence contribute to a refreshing experience. Initial sips reveal a robust bitterness that surpasses what the aromatics may have hinted at, but it’s tamed by the toasty, bready, and honeyed notes, intertwined with maltiness, becoming more pronounced as it warms. As we continue to sip, we experience apricot-like fruitiness with a round mouthfeel and creamy texture, a quite luxurious experience. The finish is long and smooth with just enough bittering hops to cling to our palates, lifting our enjoyment all the more. The BJ’s Imperial Pilsner is a finely crafted and well-appointed imperial rendition of a robust German-style pilsner, with a remarkable degree of drinkability, balance, and pronounced flavors.

The BJ’s Imperial Pilsner is built for medium term aging, 1-2 years, but we think it’s better to drink now and enjoy it. We recommend pairing with German fare such as Rouladen, Schnitzel and Kasespatzle, and of course Bratwurst.

The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club’s history with brewmaster Alex Puchner goes back a long ways. Back in 1994, Alex was brewing for what was Laguna Beach Brewing. BJ’s wasn’t even brewing beers back in those days (it was still called “BJ’s Pizza & Grill”) and the beer world overall was a far less charted place, especially compared to today. Alex had been homebrewing for nearly a decade at that point and, along with Laguna Beach, had honed his skills at Newport Beach Brewing, Huntington Beach Brewing, and Westwood (not a Beach) Brewing. Amidst all of that, Alex served as a founding brewmaster on the club’s selection panel, working with us for our first three years and providing invaluable insight into Belgian-style brewing in our fledgling days.

Today Alex is the Sr. Vice President of Brewing Operations at BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, and we’ve been looking forward to securing another one of his beers for our members. Back in September 2011 (slightly fewer eons ago) we featured Camaraderie Ale: the collaborative beer resulting from BJ’s involvement with Belgium’s Brouwerij Bavik. That first European venture proved wildly successful, to the degree that Camaraderie became a staple offering at BJ’s locations nationwide. This time, we’ve chosen one of their epic imperial pilsner releases.

BJ’s Imperial Pilsner is a well-hopped German-style pilsner that shows off earthy and spicy hops providing a citrusy and herbaceous counterpoint to the beer’s full-bodied maltiness. We’ve really been enjoying the releases we’ve gotten to sample from BJ’s, and this Imperial Pilsner release is one of our favorites to date. It’s packed with generous German malts and hops for authentic flavor, making it the perfect pilsner for cold-weather months.

It goes without saying that it’s great to have Alex involved with the club again. It’s been exciting for us to watch him even further hone his brewing techniques over the years – which have seen BJ’s take home a massive amount of hardware from prominent beer competitions, including over 200 medals from the GABF, the World Beer Cup, the North American Beer Awards, and several more. We hope our members sip and savor this full-bodied pick as happily as we did. The BJ’s Imperial Pilsner is available only through the BJ’s Brewhouse Beer Club and The Rare Beer Club.