Boulevard Whiskey Barrel Stout

Kansas City, Missouri is home to the Boulevard Brewing Co. and their enormous 11.8% alcohol Whiskey Barrel Stout. Sold in 355mL bottles, just one WBS is a pretty fair start to a long night. The beer supplements its boozy heft with 32 IBUs as well—not particularly bitter, but certainly not timid.

Boulevard’s WBS is, as the name gives away, a barrel-aged imperial stout. It’s a black ale with a thin, short-lived wisp of tan head. It has a sweet, woody nose built around a molasses foundation. The flavour is packed with wood sweetness, chocolatey malt, and a boozy backdraft. Through it all, the beer has a thick. languid mouthfeel.

Boulevard’s Whiskey Barrel Stout is a take no prisoners ale with loads of flavour and even more booze. A quality after dinner beer, this is stuff best tacked on a full stomach. If you like your stouts sweet, thick, and woody, this is your brew.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Bring Out Your Dead 2018

During a crisp fall afternoon, my brother came by to play some cards and watch a little football. Seemed like a perfect opportunity to split a 500mL bottle of Bellwoods Brewery’s Bring Out Your Dead 2018. This imperial stout is an 11.4% brute aged in cognac barrels. It’s a black brew with a thin tan head.

Brother’s thoughts: potent grain aroma coupled with a lot of molasses and a bit of chocolate—smells complex and tasty. The beer has a flavour palate that is close to the nose, though with more bitter coffee notes. Doesn’t actually taste as strong as it is. Brother’d buy this for himself as a treat, but it’d never be a regular occupant of his fridge.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Stout Man says: Massive booze and wood aroma features a sticky molasses vibe. The mouthfeel is thick and syrupy, channeling a warm and sweet flavour. The beer blends classic barrel-aged elements with some notes of leather, cocoa, dates and raisins, and a shock of booze.

A fine ale with some bluster, this stuff is grand as long as you have someone to share it with.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

The Patriarchy-The Legend

Last up in my trio of reviews of Devil’s Right Hand Stouts is The Legend—a barrel aged version of The Elder (that one was sold out when I visited Parsons Brewing Company)—the 10% 45 IBU ale is aged in barrels that once housed Wild Oak Whiskey from Kinsip House of Fine Spirits. Sold in 650mL bombers, this stuff is a recipe for a nap if you drink it on an empty stomach on a sunny Sunday afternoon (this I know from experience).

The Legend is a dark beer with amber highlights. It pours with a think and unyielding tan foam and has a nose that is sweet, woody, and chocolatey. Flavour is sweet, particularly in the early going, with treacle and chocolate elevating a malty opening salvo. The finish is fairly bitter, though a bit more generous hopping might have made for better balance.

Thick and sticky, The Legend is an apparently dour ale with a playful side. It has nice wood aging elements, sweetness that is plentiful without overpowering, and a reasonable bitter finish. It’s strength is great, too. As mentioned earlier, another portion of dank hops might have made this beer a bit more appealing to me, but otherwise, it did a nifty job of holding my attention. After reviewing, I paired the second half of my beer with a maduro cigar, and the result was pleasing.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Monty's Aged Ryed Ale

Monty's Aged Ryed Ale is named in honour of Jon Montgomery, the Canadian skeleton racer who won a gold medal and celebrated by chugging beer in a scene of patriotic glory. The beer, constructed by the Old Tomorrow Ltd., comes from Toronto, Ontario. According to the 473mL can, this 6.2% Ale is aged with oak that has been infused with rye whisky (100% Canadian of course--though it doesn't divulge which one).

Monty's is a swampy dull orange grog. It pours with a surprisingly bright white head and has a extremely sweet aroma--woody, with some vanilla notes. The flavour is also quite sweet, with clover elements and a fairly woody body. There is little bitterness to this ale, which makes it a good after dinner candidate, but also leaves it a bit unbalanced. There is a touch of whisky at the tail end that was warm and wily.

I thought that Monty's was a pretty innovative little brew. The oaked rye aging process made for an interesting taste profile, though I maintain that the beer was too sweet and could have benefited from a few more handfuls of hops. Still, I liked it and I'll buy it again.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

KBS

During a recent trip to the ol' US of A, I effected a bold beer swap with the solid and courageous MM. To her went some of my favourite Ontario brews, and my way came some of her preferred American suds. One of those was KBS, a stout flavoured with chocolate and coffee. According to the Founders Brewing Co., of Grand Rapids, Michigan, this 2016 release of KBS is bourbon barrel aged and "is good for everything a flavo[u]red stout ought to be good for." No percentage was listed on the bottle, but KBS was clearly strong (the website told me it was actually 12.4% with 70 IBUs!!!).

Scent-wise, the beer was woody and sweet, with cocoa notes. The flavour was extremely full-bodied and wildly boozy, with notes of oak, chocolate, and java providing an assertive blend. The finish was quite bitter, but not enough to surmount the boozy sweetness that lasted from uncapping to finishing the ale. It had a very thick and syrupy mouthfeel.

 

As someone who spent a little bit of time working in government, I found the lack of explanation of the "KBS" acronym unbelievably frustrating, but I enjoyed the beer all the same. This beer was way too sweet to revisit in the short term, but I'd be glad to sip it again during the winter months. It wasn't my favourite strong stout, but I liked it well enough to revisit. The coffee notes could certainly have been stronger, but this sweet and potent Imperial stout was still pretty decent.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

St.-Ambroise Oak Aged Pale Ale

The 25th anniversary of McAuslan Brewery, one of Canada's premier beer businesses, is cause to celebrate. They chose to mark the occasion by releasing St.-Ambroise Oak Aged Pale Ale. This beer hails from Montreal, Quebec. It's sold in 341mL bottles and features a heady 6% alcohol. It's a hazy, ruddy gold brew that pours with a creamy head.

Owing to its oak aging, the beer has an extremely sweet aroma--it's woody, with honey and vanilla notes. That sweetness carries through into the flavour, with bourbon and vanilla character, which is buttressed by some nice roasted malt elements. Not a lot of bitterness here, which is a knock against the stuff, but not a substantial one.

This anniversary ale was enjoyable, though too honeyed and sweet to be a frequent purchase. As with all McAuslan beers I've sampled, this stuff is well made. However, I prefer their darker, more substantial brews. Maybe for their 30th, they'll knock out an extra special imperial stout or something along those lines.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Guilford Mover and Quaker Ale

I got a 7.8% rye IPA aged in bourbon soaked wood chips while in Greensboro--a gift from an awesome dude named Greg that I met during a trip to Davidson. Greg and his wife Jenn brewed this stuff as a wedding gift for a family member and Greg said that this charming ale was selected as the grand champ at a home brewing competition in Iowa. I asked Greg what he was calling their ale, and he responded that he wasn't much good at names, so I'm unilaterally calling  the heretofore unnamed beer a Guilford Mover and Quaker Ale. Hope that's OK ...

The "Mover and Quaker" is a swampy brown grog. It's a very sweet-smelling brew, with pleasant oaky notes. The flavour is quite powerful, sweet, and woodsy. There are vanilla-soaked bourbon elements and a beefy hops finish. What's missing is the promised rye heat and IPA bitterness. For me, this beer was closer to a dark ale or maybe a brown porter. 

Especially since this is a home brew effort, Greg and Jenn's beer was a pretty seriously impressive, but I'd have been pretty darn pleased if it were a commercial offering. It was boozy, flavourful, and well-made. I'm not going to assign it a rating, since it feels wrong to put a number on a gifted home brew, but it would have done well.

Motley Cru (2015)

The 2015 edition of Motley Cru from Toronto, Ontario's Bellwoods Brewery is labeled as a "sour red ale aged in barrels w/Ont. pinot noir grapes 1-3 year blend". Most interesting in that phrase (to me at least) is that I wasn't aware that anyone way growing pinot noir grapes in this province. This iteration of Motley Cru came to me by way of a regular squash opponent/cool guy. The 500mL bottle has a gnarly red and black label adorned with a cowled skeleton. The cloudy, auburn-brown liquid within contains 8.7% alcohol and pours with exactly no head.

The Cru has a tart aroma that blends cranberry and cherry notes. Red wine tannins compliment a flavour that is sour and fruity. Cranberry tastes are prominent, cut with a touch of sweetness. Hops are barely perceptible, but do pop up like a prairie dog as part of a dry, winey finish. Absent from the flavour is any real indication of this beer's potency. There's a lot going on with taste and aroma, but it doesn't feel like the liver punching booze bag that it is. An element that didn't reveal itself to me until my pint was half gone and the beer was warming slightly were the woody notes--sweet, oak-y, but not overwhelming.

 

The beer brains at Bellwoods did a grand job of barrel aging and then bottle conditioning this sour ale. It's got the flair of a Flanders red, but with some complicated wine leanings and Toronto pedigree. A fine brew, this Cru, though a touch of effervescence would have been nice.

8.5 out of 10

Weendigo Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout

Inside a wax-topped 500mL bottle that invites it's drinker to "taste the way less travelled" lives Weendigo Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout. A deep, dark, foreboding brew, Weendigo is an almost black ale. At 10.2% alcohol, it has heft to spare, and it pours with a determined and unyielding tan head. A product of London, Ontario, Weendigo is the product of the Forked River Brewing Company.

For such a powerful ale, Weendigo has a shockingly mellow, subtle aroma. It's nose is malty, tinged with woody vanilla, mocha, and molasses. These elements are duplicated in flavour form--malt is the driving force, with a sensual kiss of oak. Toward the finish, espresso bitterness demurely winks, alongside a shy but heavy hops profile. Again, for such a potent ale, it is almost mild and pleasingly smooth. As it warms, a bit more depth is revealed, with leathery notes becoming more evident. Also, its boozy warmth, evident from the get go, reaches new heights toward a pint's midpoint. It's a sleeper.

While I really enjoyed Weendigo Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout, it has a real failing that is worthy of mention. Most barrel-aged beers scream their origin from the rooftops. They're aged in oak casks. They're bourbon barrel-aged. They're lovingly born of port vessels. This is a characterization that I expect and enjoy. Weendigo's packaging doesn't give any indication of its barrel stats--neither wood nor previous inhabitant. It took a visit to the Forked River website to learn that this ale was aged in barrels that once housed Jack Daniels. I'd guess oak. Too much work. That should be spelled out plainly. Otherwise, it's a splendid brew. A bit light on flavour and aroma, I was left a tad underwhelmed, but still engaged and enthusiastic. Should you acquire a bottle or two? Absolutely! Will it blow your mind? Perhaps not, though it will warm and mellow it. Will it satisfy? Easily.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Dragon's Milk Bourbon Barrel Stout

Dragon's Milk Bourbon Barrel Stout comes from the Town of Holland, in the Great State of Michigan. It's brewed by the New Holland Brewing Co. and comes in a big ol' 650mL bottle that's all the more imposing when you realize that the nearly opaque jet black liquid within contains a whopping 11% alcohol! The stout pours with a nice cowl of tawny head.

Dragon's Milk has an ultra-sweet nose, with malty everything, boozy notes (bourbon barrels after all), and, as promised by the label, "deep vanilla tones, all dancing in an oak bath." This woody beer has a well sanded mouthfeel--smooth and thick.  While I'm typically resistant to wildly sweet dark beers, this one was quite agreeable to me. It does its damage on the malt side of things, with very little bitterness evident, and has creamy vanilla notes. There is also a bit of raisin-y pipe tobacco in small measure. At the finish, there is a sharp strike of boozy heat, and that's where the bourbon flavours imparted by the barrel-aging process are most evident.

Truthfully, I've had better strong stouts, and better barrel-aged ales, but I got to this stuff just before dinner on a beautiful fall Friday evening when all was right with the world, and I found it really satisfying. It kicked my night off right--don't even imagine driving after a dance with Dragon's Milk. Pulling my critic's hat away from the drink faeries, this beer is too sweet and, if you strip away the barrels, I'm not sure that the underlying stout is all that remarkable. Still, well worth the price of admission. While this beer would pair well with an after dinner cohiba, my pre-dinner value stogie activated some flavours all the same. One must make do, you know.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

De Wallen

De Wallen is a "Barrel Aged Sour Framboise". It's brewed by Toronto, Ontario's Amsterdam Brewery. Having just read a novel set in De Wallen, Amsterdam's notorious Red Light District, when I saw this stuff on the shelf at my favourite liquor store, I jumped to buy it. It contains a solid 6.5% alcohol and comes in a 330mL bottle. According to the label, "Souring a beer is a risky endeavor, much like venturing into the red-light district of Amsterdam.

It's a cloudy, copper brew with definite reddish leanings. It has a very tart and yeasty sour cherry aroma. I think this stuff would make a nice introduction to sour beers--it's definitely tart, but it's not too sour. There are considerable fruit notes--raspberry, certainly, but also cherry--and a short finish.

This is a very nice take on the framboise. It's well worth your time.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Inertia 2

My second foray into Brassneck Brewery's offerings was their Interia 2, a barrel aged stout with a whopping 11% alcohol. For some context, I was with some pals at the brewery on a very sticky, hot Vancouver afternoon. Unfortunately, a boozy, sweet stout was not the right call for a hot day. Still, I'm an amateur professional, so I battled through by enjoying my 12oz. mug of draught like a champ.


Inertia 2 is an oil-black ale topped with a rather thin layer of tan head. Its extremely sweet aroma is full of alcohol, woodsy, and has a honey character. At first sniff, you can definitely tell that this stuff has known a barrel--my guess is bourbon was the previous occupant.


The flavour is syrupy sweet, particularly in the early stages. There is some molasses in there, as well as a grain alcohol streak and some vanilla bean bounce. It's a very warm, thick ale--way too heavy for July.  The finish has boozy tobacco notes and an understated, but enjoyable, bitter presence.

The 11% heat was great and the bourbon/vanilla combo was enjoyable. However, Inertia 2 was too sweet for this guy. Still, if you're in Van City and find yourself with a hankering for a sluggishly sweet dark mug of ale, this stuff is a fine option. I'd definitely revisit it one day--preferably near Xmas.

Innis & Gunn Rum Finish

Another product from Edinburgh, Scotland's Innis & Gunn, Rum Finish is sold in 330mL bottles and contains a hefty 6.8% alcohol. I happened to have a sixer of Innis & Gunn Original in the fridge, so I decided to review these beauties back-to-back. Rum Finish has a handsome, brownish red colour that is considerably darker than the I & G Original--more of a deep chestnut.  It pours with a thick and creamy off-white head.  According to the bottle, it's "matured over the finest rum-infused American oak hardwood" and it is aged for 57 days.

 

Rum Finish has a warm aroma with notes of molasses, honey, brown sugar, and raisin. It's a smooth-bodied brew with a rich flavour. There are some characteristics of a dark rum, but presented demurely and subtly. In addition, there are faint notes of dates.

While this stuff is dangerously easy-drinking, given its 6.8%, there is not a lot of hops to mention. I found it to be slightly bolder than the I&G Original, despite the fact that it's aged for 20 fewer days. Like the Original, this beer is slightly sweeter than I'd like.  However, there is an array of really interesting flavour notes.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Innis & Gunn Original

Innis & Gunn Original hails from Edinburgh, Scotland, brewed by the wood aging experts at Innes & Gunn. This stuff is, according to the label, aged for 77 days over oak. It's sold in clear 330mL bottles and contains a fairly substantial 6.6& alcohol. It pours a very attractive warm golden colour, topped with a thick, off-white head. It's clear and has little carbonation.

Fraternal Twins--Original on the Right

The Original has an extremely sweet, malty aroma that has elements of honey and cognac. The beer is quite sweet. It has malt-driven flavour and very smooth mouthfeel. Like the aroma, the taste has a honeyed, almost syrupy sweetness. Additionally, there is a cognac-like warmth to this brew. This stuff is gentle and subtle--quite complex. There is very little to speak about on the bitter side of things. It has a nice body, though, truth be told, I find it too sweet for my tastes.

If you like sweet, woody ales with considerable character and a bit of warmth, Innis & Gunn original ought to float your boat. For me, given the sweetness and the fact that I bought them during a July heatwave, it took me a while to get through my sixer.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.