Beer

Just had Boulevard's Chocolate Ale. do not buy this shit. It was absolutely awful; way too high alcohol for what it was, competing chocolate/sour flavors that ruin the palate and trade off as the beer warms, vegetal finish with strong acetic acid rounding out a garbage mouthfeel dominated entirely by a menagerie of horrendous flavors. I drain poured it. Drank about 10 oz (came out of one of those fancy looking 750 ml cage/cork bottles) and couldn't stand it. Eugh.
 
V.V.V.V.V. said:
Just had Boulevard's Chocolate Ale. do not buy this shit. It was absolutely awful; way too high alcohol for what it was, competing chocolate/sour flavors that ruin the palate and trade off as the beer warms, vegetal finish with strong acetic acid rounding out a garbage mouthfeel dominated entirely by a menagerie of horrendous flavors. I drain poured it. Drank about 10 oz (came out of one of those fancy looking 750 ml cage/cork bottles) and couldn't stand it. Eugh.
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Glad I have never paid attention to the hype & tried to get this. It sells out instantly here. When I made my last beer purchases the lady even asked me if I got any of it & I was like no, she then said I wasn't missing out on anything. I'll stick to their Tank 7 if I want an expensive Boulevard beer.
 
I thought Boulevard Chocolate was great. I only have had it on tap though, in half pint servings. It's the only pale chocolate beer I can think of, and I really liked the contrast of the lighter malts with the chocolate. So many chocolate stouts and porters layer on similar flavors, but the Boulevard one offered something completely unique. I would recommend it highly, especially if it's on tap.
 
I'd try it on tap, and perhaps I got a bad batch, but I just could not dig it. A lot of people do so I imagine a big part of it is taste, but I couldn't get over the really strong sour aspect. Definitely overpowered the chocolate after a while, and the chocolate was pretty much cocoa powder kind of stuff, not complex or "nutty", bitter chocolate.
 
Got drunk off of tall boys of PBR and Bud and a pint each of Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and Boddington's Pub Ale. I swear that Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale is the best in America. Fucking amazing.
 
I like that they have sun king in cans while the rest of those dummies were walking around the superbowl village with thier 7 dollar beers i went to a downtown liquor store and got a 4 pack for like 10 bucks of thier delicious Osiris Pale Ale. I almost wanted to try the Wee Muckle but it was like 17 for a 4 pack. I wish more microbrewers canned their beers.
 
Picked up a bomber of Stone's Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale. It's my first time trying an American Black Ale, and only the second Stone beer I've tried after Arrogant Bastard, but I must say that I'm quite impressed. I'll forego a review because I can't be fucked at the moment, but what stands out to me is the nice progression from piney hops to a subdued roasted malt taste with a hint of chocolate toward the end. Also worth noting is the fucking monstrous head (I got four fingers from a mildly aggressive pour) that dissipates at a perfect rate and leaves a nice lacing.

Also picked up a four pack of Old Rasputin; I'm having one tonight and polishing off the remainder of a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale 6-pack from the weekend. Only death is real.
 
SSR is a pretty good black IPA... not my favorite kinda beer though. Usually gets too medicinal for me. I do enjoy when the hops go from pine-y to floral and then the roasted malt mingles with the bitterness in the back... I've been meaning to try Harpoon's new 100 Barrel black IPA but it's not really on the top of my list. I've been disappointed by a few black ales in the past (Magic Hat's Demo and 21st Amendment's Back in Black are both pretty average honestly... MH is pretty much just a shit brewery overall though imo) and have enjoyed several (Clown Shoes makes 3 and the two I've had have been pretty good).

Did just have a good one the other night, though... Southern Tier's Iniquity. Extreme alcohol up front, but the funniest part was the taste basically approximated on my tongue as "grape lollipops you got from the bank when you were a kid"... awesome.
 
Sublimely Self Righteous is probably my favorite beer in Stone's catalog (aside from some of their one off brewery only releases). I really like the whole concept of the black IPA. It's got the roasty chewyness of a stout but the hoppyness of an IPA. Their 15th anniversary Imperial Black IPA was a beast.

Deschutes' Hop in the Dark is another really good one
 
I'd have to say Smoked AB, Ruination, Double Bastard and certain bottles of Cali-Belgique (I've had some that were not even close to as good; perhaps poor handling somewhere down the line) have wowed me a good deal more than SSR, but there's no accounting for taste.
 
The SSR is the only beer that I've had to pour out because I couldn't take it. I am willing to give it and black IPAs another shot, especially considering now that my tongue is used to that kind of stuff. I just wasn't expecting something along those lines.

Anyways, I'm getting a sixer of these for the weekend. I've been meaning to get into some of the more local breweries in the area (aside from the obvious ones like Goose Island) and Imperial Stouts are turning into my favorite brews.

http://www.twobrosbrew.com/Northwind.htm

9.1 ABV 45 IBUs
 
unknown said:
I really like the whole concept of the black IPA. It's got the roasty chewyness of a stout but the hoppyness of an IPA. Their 15th anniversary Imperial Black IPA was a beast.
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That's precisely why I found myself enjoying it so much. I'm dying to try that 15th anniversary brew, as well.

I feel like I've had a beer or two by Two Bros., but I've been stupid and gotten too drunk each time to remember it. Nevertheless, I'll definitely be sampling one of the pack.
 
That sounds good like I mentioned to you on FB, Schmidt. I'm a bit weirded out you couldn't find Half Acre's stuff where you are considering they're from Chicago, but... yeah. I want some of that Northwind shit. You should buy an extra case and bring it to MDF :)
 
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