Boulevard Tasting Room Whiskey & Cabernet Cask Imperial Stout

I have to admit that I wasn't sure what I was in for when I bought a bottle of this stuff yesterday. The description on Boulevard's website makes it sound like they threw together whatever was just laying around, forgot about it for a year and called it "aged":

"This beer is a blend of two different imperial stout recipes aged in an arrangement of rye finished Cabernet casks, French oak Cabernet casks, bourbon barrels, and barrels once containing both Cabernet AND bourbon."
~~The Boulevard website Tasting Room page

I must admit that I was completely wrong about the apparent cobbled-together nature of this stout.

It pours a dark brown with scarlet highlights without much of a head. There is a distinct wine-ish aroma and at the same time a hint of high-end whiskey. For some unknown reason these two aromas go perfectly well together and do not clash at all. The high (12.5%) ABV gives it a boozy quality as well. As it warms up, I can taste something akin to chocolate covered cherries and there's the usual dark fruit suspects.

I was pleasantly surprised. This is not one to give to your lawn guy.

Boulevard Tasting Room Imperial Sweet Stout Aged in Bourbon Barrels

Day drinking for me is a rater sedate affair these days. No 24-packs with other drunken comrades, just a nice craft beer while writing a beer review at my desk!

Since Belgian brewer Duvel Moortget bought Boulevard in 2013, their already impressive array of experimental beers expanded exponentially. The Tasting Room series dabbles in ales that are on the cutting edge of the craft beer market. Usually the Tasting Room beers lack names like "Dark Truth" or "80 Acre" and usually just have descriptions.

Today's selection, Imperial Sweet Stout Aged in Bourbon Barrels combines several of my favorite beer styles in one. When it comes to stouts I've always been partial to sweet stouts, sometimes referred to as milk stouts. Since lactose doesn't ferment into alcohol like other sugars, adding lactose causes the resulting beer to retain some sweetness. I also have a weakness for anything aged in a bourbon barrel.

As recommended on the Boulevard website I'm enjoyed this stout in a tulip glass. The first impressions that I'm detecting are some dark chocolate and bourbon. The "Imperial" appellation lets you know in advance that there will be some alcohol heat from the 11.9% ABV. As you might expect from the combination of stout and bourbon barrel aging there are also a symphony of dark fruit notes: figs, dates, and black cherry. As it warms up, I can also taste some vanilla and toffee as well as some brown sugar. and maple The IBU count is only 26, so the bitterness is quite restrained.

Overall, a 9 on the IGB scale

Père Noël Beligian Christmas Ale

From Brouwerij Brasserie De Ranke, Père Noël  Belgian Christmas Ale is unique among the many Winter Warmers and Christmas Ales. Usually they tend to be malty and sweet, and are darker in color. Père Noël is quite hoppy and pours a coppery-amber hue. There's a 7% ABV, but no noticeable alcohol heat. Behind the almost overpowering hop bitterness there are some citrus notes and a bit of licorice. As the temperature inches up I detect some cloves and nutmeg as well. You have to really be a hop fan to get into this brew

Kinkaider Barrel-Aged Snow Beast Winter Ale

The big boys are alright, but nothing supports the local economy like buying beer from local brewers.

Snow beast poured a lovely caramel hue with a coy little tan head, with the bourbon derived from the barrel aging immediately evident. But wait! There's more! Vanilla is the predominant flavor, with a hint of cinnamon that rounds out the holiday festiveness of the brew. There's also something in there that may or may not be gingerbread...and ooh...molasses and toffee! This is a winter warmer worthy of the snow gods!

Boulevard Brandy Land Spiced Imperial Stout Aged in Apple Brandy Barrels

Yay! Another barrel-aged brew! And a stout! I love stouts! This cute l'il guy pours a reddish-tinged mahogany with a thin brown head. The alcohol heat from the 12%+ ABV really predominates. I'm not really sure what brandy is supposed to taste like, but the apple damn sure comes through! According to Boulevard's website, the imperial stout aged for 12-24 months in casks that have held both bourbon (yay!) and apple brandy. Wow! Even though it's a stout, there isn't the heaviness associated with most stouts; it's a medium weight, with a smooth sweetness that I associate with milk stouts. The dark fruits are really coming through, dates and black cherries especially.  As the brew warms up, the promised cinnamon finally comes through. I can imagine pairing this with plain cheesecake or vanilla ice cream for some holiday goodness. A 9.5 on the IGB scale.

Boulevard Plaid Habit - Canadian Whisky Barrel-Aged Imperial Brown Ale

Il-Gotten Booty has seriously cut down his alcohol consumption in the last few years, but every so often he heads on down to the local purveyor of spirits to try a few of the new brews. Of course I (let's drop the haughty use of the third person) am a sucker for bourbon-barrel-aged stouts - this isn't bourbon aged, it Canadian Whisky aged, and it's not stout, but imperial (that means extra alcohol) brown ale. It's a nice twist though on one of my favorite styles.

According to Boulevard, this brew started it's life as a double-mashed brown ale that was then aged for 18 months in Canadian Rye Whisky barrels. There are evident notes of vanilla and some nice boozy heat from the 12.5% ABV. It pours a medium brown with a lacy tan head. As it warms up to room temperature maple and brown sugar aromas make their appearance. Maybe even a little black pepper. Dark fruits such as raisins, figs and dates dance out during the final acts.

This is a surprisingly appropriate winter warmer. I give it an IGB score of 8.5/10.

Zipline Citra Summer

I still had a couple of summer seasonals in the 'fridge, so I figured I'd better drink 'em up. Citra Summer from Zipline is definitely a beer for summer. It pours a pale, pale yellow, kind of like the inside of a lemon. It's a wheat ale, so it has that characteristic wheatiness. The citra hops give it a lemony/orangey tang. The 25 IBU's give it mild hoppiness. Perfect for those hot summer days out by the pool or after mowing the lawn or demonstrating for universal healthcare.