New Boulevard Smokestack Additions
September 9, 2008 9:43 am Beer NewsBack in June, Irene and I visited Kansas City for the Cardinals/Royals series. Besides visiting The Flying Saucer, we also had the chance to have a very special tour of Boulevard Brewery with Director of the Artisanal Division, John Bryan. (I promise, I’ll get these photos up soon.) At the end of the tour John sat us down and broke out two of Boulevard’s newest creations, Saison-Brett (lovingly nicknamed the ‘George Brett’) and the Bourbon Barrel Quad (also known as the BBQ.)
First the good news. Unlike the first round of the Smokestack Series which saw a delayed release in St. Louis, these beers will be released in St. Louis at the same time they’re released in Kansas City. The Brett will see a release on October 1st and the BBQ will see a release around November 1st. Now the bad news, as you can see in the images below, these are limited, numbered releases. In fact according to Beernews.org we’ll only be seeing 995 cases of Brett and 550 cases of BBQ total.
The Bourbon Barrel really helps to mellow the sweetness of the Quad and make it more enjoyable for my palate, as I’m not a fan of really sweet beers. But the vanilla and bourbon really comes through and makes for a very pleasant beer. The Saison-Brett was our clear favorite though. It had a wonderful distinctive Brett barnyard, earthy aroma and really took my favorite of the Smokestack series to the next level. Also, aren’t these bottles awesome?
cubby_swans :
Date: September 9, 2008 @ 10:42 am
My name is Brett. It was nice of Boulevard to name a beer after me. I read about this a couple weeks ago, been looking forward to it.
Bill Burge :
Date: September 9, 2008 @ 3:37 pm
As a fan of 90min, I would argue you do like sweet beers.
Mike :
Date: September 9, 2008 @ 4:12 pm
malty does not equal sweet.
Drew Huerter :
Date: September 9, 2008 @ 7:03 pm
I have had the BBQ and the Brett Saison, and while the test batch of BBQ left something to be desired, the Brett Saison was transcendant.
Marc Nolan :
Date: September 9, 2008 @ 8:08 pm
I had the test batches of the Bourbon Barrel Quad and the Saison Brett last year. Both were great.
Needless to say, but I will be buying a few cases of each.
Paul :
Date: September 9, 2008 @ 8:12 pm
I have a tentative confirmation from Boulevard that we will have both to taste at the Provisions Brews and BBQ tasting coming up Sept 27th. They will not be available for sale yet.
Paul
http://www.thewineandcheeseplace.blogspot.com
Derek Bean :
Date: September 9, 2008 @ 11:25 pm
Haha, Bill, good one! I am too a BIG fan of DGH 90 Minute.
Mike, if malty is not sweet, than what is it?
Mike :
Date: September 10, 2008 @ 6:54 am
It’s malty. Think about it this way, if you have a beer with a lot of malt character but has been dried out to 1.010, you wouldn’t consider that beer “sweet.”
brant :
Date: September 10, 2008 @ 7:38 am
^ think Duvel. It’s malty sweet, but very dry.
Mike :
Date: September 10, 2008 @ 7:45 am
I guess my point, with the exception of a few Russian Imperial Stouts, is that I’m not a fan of beers that leave a lot of residual sugar in the glass. Quads, Belgian Darks, etc.
You can have a very malty beer which gives the perception of sweetness, but without having much residual sugar left, it’s not very sweet.
Derek Bean :
Date: September 10, 2008 @ 8:33 am
Hey Mike, as an aside, the Bourbon Barrel Quad also has cherries, or cherry juice, or a cherry puree in it, I can’t remember, exactly. John Bryan has described it as a cherry beer that people wouldn’t realize had cherries in it unless they were told about it. I haven’t tasted it yet, but apparently, the cherries are extremely faint.
Mike :
Date: September 10, 2008 @ 9:15 am
Yeah, I didn’t pick up much cherry in the flavor but it’s in the aroma and definitely in the color. When I talked to John he said it didn’t come through exactly like the wanted, but they were happy it wasn’t a cherry bomb either. So I think it’s the reason they’re not really playing the cherry thing up.
PolarOpposites :
Date: September 10, 2008 @ 12:32 pm
Any idea on pricing? Will it be in line with the rest of the Smokestack Series?
Considering the packaging, I think the Smokestack Series pricing is very reasonable. Especially when you consider the pricing on stuff like Left Hand’s special releases. Why are they so expensive???
Cheers to Boulevard!
Derek Bean :
Date: September 10, 2008 @ 10:52 pm
I believe the retail pricing on these special release beers will be around $12.99 per 750ML bottle.
Boulevard Brett Saison Now Available | STL Hops - A St. Louis Beer Blog :
Date: October 7, 2008 @ 9:15 am
[…] 9:15 am Mike Beer News Andy Snead from Whole Foods Galleria posted on the STL Hops Forums that the Boulevard Brett Saison is now available at the Whole Foods Galleria. I had some more of this beer while at the Augusta […]