So I finally got back from a trip to DC during which I was able to visit some breweries.  BJ’s Brewhouse was my first stop as it just opened about 2 weeks ago at a new location in Tyson’s Corner, VA.  In fact, the location is so new that it doesn’t yet show up on the locations page of their website. Although a chain, I was not familiar with them, their food, or their beers. Apparently, their primary locations are out west but according to their website they do have some locations in the Ft. Lauderdale area.

I started by ordering a sampler that consisted of 8 beers.  I was very disappointed when I received the sampler, because it was clear the server didn’t know much about the beers. They were clearly mislabeled and misplaced. I find this is a common problem– brewpubs hiring staff that know next to nothing about beers.  I was, however, impressed by the way the sampler was served.  The restaurant has a great iron beer sampler holder that provides for a unique presentation.  Needless to say, I had to correctly label the beer myself– good thing these were all pretty standard beers.

I was really looking forward to a good pumpkin beer. I had been out of town, for the most part, during pumpkin beer season and completely missed my favorite, Dogfish.  The pumpkin beer here at BJ’s was good but not great– the presentation would have been greatly enhanced by sugar and cinnamon on the rim. It was, however, good enough that I ended up going back during my stay and getting a second.  The Piranha was a standard pale ale– nothing to write home about but very drinkable.  The Hop Storm IPA reminded me very much of Shipyard and was, therefore, another very drinkable beer.  The Oasis amber was standard.  The Jeremiah red tasted exactly like Killian’s.  The Nutty Brewnette brown ale was quite weak, as was the Octoberfest.  The worst beer, by far, was the PM porter which was very bitter with a weak chocolate taste.

The beers at BJ’s Brewhouse are pretty fair; however, the food here was quite good and varied.  The pub offers a wide range of entrees from salads to pizzas.  A friend got the pizza and said it was good but not spectacular.  I got the signature appetizer of the avocado egg rolls. I would highly recommend this appetizer and it made it well worth the trip.