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

Henry Weinhard's Private ReserveHenry Weinhard's Private Reserve
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From:
Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Co.
 
Oregon, United States
Style:
American Lager
Ranked #288
ABV:
4.8%
Score:
72
Ranked #27,819
Avg:
3.13 | pDev: 18.85%
Reviews:
183
Ratings:
447
Status:
Active
Rated:
Aug 06, 2023
Added:
Jul 22, 2002
Wants:
  8
Gots:
  42
Malts: North American Select Pale Malt
Hops: Pacific Northwest Cascade Hops
Calories/12 oz: 150
Carbohydrates (g): 13.0
% Alcohol by Vol: 4.80
Bitterness Units: 15.0
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Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.69 by wisegreensoul from Idaho

Aug 06, 2023
 
Rated: 3.12 by rpmello81 from California

Mar 18, 2023
Photo of AronRice
Reviewed by AronRice

4.33/5  rDev +38.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
This is by far the best “value” lager you can get in the Pacific Northwest. Hop Valley makes good beer, even under Molson Coors they hit a home run with this. I see many newer hoppy lagers here in PNW but at the price point you can’t beat it at 1/3 the price. The previous version was like Coors with some malt, and this is cleaned up to a nice hoppy lager with a fairly crisp note and no lingering aftertaste. Fingers crossed someday they revive Blue Boar as well. I stock up anytime I see it on shelves now.
Jan 15, 2023
Photo of Theron1212
Reviewed by Theron1212

4.6/5  rDev +47%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5
Even with this current new version that’s supposed to be the original old recipe version now I still find it to be my favorite easy drinker beer when not doing the IPA’z..
Jul 28, 2022
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Reviewed by sfairman from Oregon

3.89/5  rDev +24.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
(new Hop Valley version, reviewed to style) Brassy pale AAL straw color, full head quickly dissipates. Sweet clean floral scent of fresh rain. Biscuit taste leads to mild hop bite. Nice smooth mouthfeel, not overcarbonated.
Overall a worthy AAL lager, definitely crushable, and welcome back! Billed as the 'original recipe,' it reminds me just as much as the late, great Olympia (this is light, but not as sweet as Oly) as much as the later Henry's, which combined a forward suggestion of wet kraft brown paper grocery bag malt with a moderate hop bite. This version available only in cans, it's far superior to the prior canned HWPR, which combined sourness and harsh carbonation. Load up on this when you find it!
May 02, 2022
 
Rated: 3.07 by LesDewitt4beer from Minnesota

Nov 19, 2021
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Reviewed by mothman from Minnesota

4/5  rDev +27.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Bottle. White head. Light lace. Clear golden yellow color.

Nice easy drinking lager. Reminds me of a kolsch. Grassy, earthy, light hops, bready, and biscuity. Light bodied, nice amount of flavor. Very easy drinking.
Feb 26, 2021
Photo of swid
Reviewed by swid from Missouri

3.2/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Pours a clear gold. White head that quickly dissipates, moderate lacing. Sweet aroma with the barest hint of the hops. The taste continues the sweetness - the light hop balance this beer has when I’ve had fresher examples has faded. Finishes sweet as well. I’ll return to this review the next time I come across this beer.

Purchased in early February. Best by date on the bottle...April 2020. Oops.
Jun 26, 2020
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Reviewed by snaotheus from Washington

3.61/5  rDev +15.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
2020-06-21
12oz can served in a shaker pint glass. Can is dated "OCT !!!!! 1220". Maybe it's a best by date. I dunno.

Pours perfectly clear dark golden, with a big head that dissipates rapidly, leaves a couple millimeter thick head resting on top. Moderate carbonation when it's at rest. Smell is slight lemon, lots of yeast/bread, a little bit of the lager funk.

Taste is a lot of malt, bready/yeasty. Lager funk is less pronounced in the flavor. Lemon is just barely present.

Mouthfeel is almost a soda fizziness, otherwise fairly thick. Overall, it's not bad.
Jun 21, 2020
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Rated by bv51 from Washington

4/5  rDev +27.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
simple honest lager - drinkable by all
Jan 20, 2020
Photo of ReneauJ62
Reviewed by ReneauJ62 from Oregon

3.23/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 2.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
The look of this beer is really nice and it does have a nice head. The smell is a bit off. Not sure why but it smells like every other American beer (which is not good). However, the taste makes a departure from the smell and actually has an acceptable taste quality even though it does leave a strong acidic aftertaste. Mouthfeel is almost non existent unless you consider being "watery" a trait of mouthfeel. It leaves a bitterness that is rather strong. If you run out of your great homebrew and need some decent beer in a pinch, this would work nicely. If your have a group of Coors Light drinkers, buy this and they will think you are a spoiled rich man showing off.
Jun 18, 2019
 
Rated: 3.12 by Oh_Dark_Star from Washington

May 25, 2019
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Reviewed by poopsichord from Oregon

3.94/5  rDev +25.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.5
Weinhard's flagship beer has become my go to since they started offering it in cans and at the same price point as Rolling Rock (18 cans for $9 at my local Rite Aid). It blurs the line between craft and macro adjunct. You can have a cooler of these at a party and anyone ranging from craft snob to bud light diehard will find it acceptable if not praiseworthy. Just good enough to drink room temp. Terrific balance of malt breadiness and hops, although hop-heavy taste buds may disagree. Plenty of carbonation. Delightful golden color. A bit too sweet (the residual carbohydrate could be lessened for a beer like this (sources range from 10-13g carbs per 12oz) for a 4.8% beer. Truly an excellent beer at its price point.
Apr 16, 2019
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Rated by TheRougeBastard from North Carolina

3.7/5  rDev +18.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
1984 era craft...for me at least, first non-Miller, Bud beer I ever had...haven't had it since, but 30+years ago, it was something.
Mar 24, 2019
 
Rated: 3.29 by BlueSpader from Washington

Nov 03, 2018
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Reviewed by JWsimpleton from Oregon

3.29/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
One step above the typical American lager, while maintaining a very similar taste. Light, crisp, and refreshing without the astringent aftertaste usually associated with the Anheuser-Busch lineup and other similar beers. Not as hoppy and flavorful as one would expect from a "Northwest-Style" lager, but still a good, cheap alternative to the usual piswasser!
Aug 27, 2018
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Reviewed by Lingenbrau from Oregon

3.96/5  rDev +26.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
A much more golden body than the straw color expected. Private Reserve is brilliantly clear, with an unending group of streams bubbling in single file from bottom to top. The bone white head above is sufficient, and manages some spotty lacing, otherwise this is a perfect looking pale lager.

It smells surprisingly delicious as well. A heavy crushed grain and honey aroma, followed by the faintest of green apple skin tartness. A rustic earthy and grassy hop lies in the background, stealth but not entirely hidden.

In the same vein, the flavor fits very well. A little more rice like with an elevetad sense of honey sweetness, while not being overly sweet at all. Though not entirely unique, this has a bit more heft in its flavor compared to its low budget counter parts. That forementioned grassiness cones around long in the after taste, and is welcomed.

Private Reserve shines in the feel. It's not intensely dry like so many other budget lagers. It has a bit more body to it, and is very well balanced just hugging the sweet side of the fence.

This may be my new budget beer. For $9 an 18 pack, it beats out most of the big name beers but packs a much bigger punch all around. A shell of it's former self? Perhaps, but I can't even remember that far back. For me, this is about as good as it gets for a cost friendly summer quencher. Cheers.
Jul 14, 2018
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Reviewed by Bunman3 from Canada (AB)

3.29/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
So... I will begin with a serious disclaimer. In my younger years, I played hockey in Portland and this was my absolute "go to". Nostalgia probably pads my opinion of Henry's, but it is still an above average lager. Combined with the extreme value ($10 for and 18 pack?!?), it's a still a solid choice.
Jul 07, 2018
 
Rated: 3.27 by ronniebruner from Arizona

Jun 21, 2018
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Reviewed by zscho from Oregon

3.4/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.75
The look, smell & taste, doesn't do its Justice when it comes to the touted results, like bitterness rating, 15? Definitely not that bitter. It seems a bit weaker than that.

Everything about it dissipates rather quickly to deserve those given values.

Coming back to the bitterness assessment, I kinda expected similarity between the liquid color and the label. The tint of bottle was well picked, I agree to that extent.

I do feel flush in my face drinking more than half of the first bottle, so that got higher rating.

To reiterate, everything about it seems to dissipate too quickly.

But I'd buy another sixers of this again. It wasn't all bad.
Apr 05, 2018
Henry Weinhard's Private Reserve from Blitz-Weinhard Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 72 out of 100 with 447 ratings