Nutty Brewnette at BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse

I went out with a couple of my old co-workers just to get together and celebrate a few things at once. I've always had really good experiences at BJ's and obviously like brewhouses, so, despite the fact that the particular location they wanted to go to was in a mall, and this is the holiday season, I was excited to go and see these folks. Plus, I remembered that this BJ's had an outside entrance so I didn't have to actually go into the mall. Yay!

Jeremiah Red and Nutty Brewnette

 I normally order their house-made Hefeweizen, which is where I discovered that Hef is actually really great by itself, sans the added squeeze of citrus.  But, I felt like I should try something new and different. I couldn't decide and the server was too busy to help, so I ordered a sample of BJ's Jeremiah Red Irish-Style Ale and the Nutty Brewnette American-Style Brown Ale. If they failed, I'd just get a pint of Hef and call it a night. But the server proved to be so busy he forgot my order. First he brought me a strawberry lemonade. Then, he brought me a full pint of the Brewnette and said he'd be right back with a sample of Hef. I took a quick sip, and told him to forget the Hef. The Brewnette seemed to be fine.

Nutty Brewnette: Not a blonde!

I took a minute to taste it and it was actually really nice. It was flat and mouthcoating. It had a very distinct and strong flavor of caramel, but it wasn't salty or too sweet. There was also hints of sweet spices such as cloves and cinammon, as well as a pecans. It had elements that can be sweet, but the ale itself was not sugary in any way. 

My experience with darker beers is that their flavor is usually lost or severely distorted by most food, but I must've chosen a good pairing in the Mediterranean Pizza, because the beer and the pie were delicious together.  

A fun night with people I miss seeing on a daily, a yummy pizza and a great dark beer.