Boulevard Brewing Company

Chocolate Ale Update, Part 2

julie — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:51:45 +0000

Deliveries of Chocolate Ale continue today (Friday, February 3) in Greater Kansas City, though our distributor informs us that almost all of the Smokestack seasonal beer has already been received by retailers. We continue to receive numerous calls, e-mails, and postings with questions and comments about this rather unique release, so we thought it would be a good idea to try to publicly address the most frequently mentioned topics. (For background and further details, please see these previous postings: January 19 and January 31.)

Why is Kansas City not first on the list? After Chocolate Ale began showing up on store shelves outside of Kansas City, many of you began openly wondering, “Where’s ours?” As we’ve explained previously, many of our wholesalers pick up beer from our warehouse only once or twice a month. In order for them to have the beer to sell on our target release date of February 1, all of them had to get it in January, so we began shipping it shortly after the first of the year. Because our wholesalers are independent businesses, the amount of control we are able to exercise over when they deliver a particular product to retailers is limited. We will, however, be taking a long, hard look at this for 2013, and will attempt to apply some of the lessons we’ve learned this year.

Related questions have included “Why did you send Chocolate Ale outside Kansas City?” “How come other cities still have bottles?” and “Why does it cost so much?” The answers to these questions are not quite so simple. As our reputation outside of our hometown has grown, so too has demand for our beers, especially our highly regarded Smokestack Series offerings. Smokestack beers help our business a variety of ways; they allow us to invest in new equipment, hire more people, and expand opportunities for our brand in a highly competitive industry. It’s true that Smokestack beers are sold at a higher price – it’s because they cost much more to produce. In the case of Chocolate Ale, the additional ingredients make it far more expensive to brew than our popular Tank 7, although we sell both to our wholesalers at the same price, and our wholesalers in turn sell both to retailers at the same price. Neither we nor our wholesalers have any legal right to control the price charged by a retailer for any of our products, and, unfortunately, it seems that some have taken advantage of the demand to jack up their prices.

The Greater Kansas City area accounts for about 35% of our total sales, but received more than half of our entire production of Chocolate Ale. In most other markets, Chocolate Ale was not subject to the same level of demand we’ve seen in KC, so stores did not tend to establish strict limits on purchases, and in certain places, the beer may still be sitting on retail shelves. The decision to again make Chocolate Ale available in kegs as well as bottles is one that we will again carefully examine, but the intent was simple – to make the beer available to as many people as possible. Draft beer accounts for over 40% of all Boulevard sales, and most beer drinkers appreciate a great glass of beer at their favorite bar or restaurant. Our hope was to enable as many people as possible to enjoy a glass, if not a full bottle, in as many places as possible, up to and including Valentine’s Day. With the rush to try it immediately after its release, we are as sad (and surprised) as many of you to see it evaporating so quickly.

Why not make more? Some people have characterized the limited nature of Chocolate Ale as being pre-planned, or suggested that we purposely limited supply to increase demand. This is categorically false. Last fall we began another in a series of expansions of our fermentation capacity, and we have the hardhats to prove it. Initiating this project meant removing six 105-barrel tanks to make way for eight 300-barrel tanks, which will, when complete, allow us to make substantially more beer. But in the midst of this project, we were forced to cut production of many of our other beers in order to make any Chocolate Ale at all. The 20,000 gallons we produced – 3.7 times as much as we made in 2011 – was absolutely the maximum we could make at the point in time that we made it. This spring, when the expansion project is completed, we’ll be able to breathe a little easier and increase production until… well… who knows?

Who are those master marketers? While we would love to take all the credit we’ve received for being savvy marketers, we don’t deserve it. Weeks before the release of the beer, our phones began ringing with inquiries from the local media. As with all media inquiries, we provided access to our key personnel, if they were available, but intentionally tried to downplay the release and delay any reporting. But the media is tough to control – the resulting stories about Chocolate Ale were influenced by last year’s surprising demand and the anticipated demand for this year, not by anything the brewery initiated. Prior to the release, we posted updates about the beer on our social media outlets as we normally do for any upcoming release. That was it—the least expensive, least strategic marketing plan ever conceived.

What is so special about Chocolate Ale? The media attention—sometimes referred to as hype—created a mystique for this beer that few brewers, let alone businesses, are privileged to witness. Normally our Smokestack Seasonal or even Limited Release beers appeal to a relatively small but growing group of beer drinkers on the lookout for special or unique offerings. None of our other beers have ever received the attention that has been showered on Chocolate Ale, or have captured the imagination of so many people. We like to think it is because our talented brewmaster collaborated with the equally talented Christopher Elbow, a Kansas City icon and highly respected chocolatier, on a remarkable new beer. A more likely answer, and one we may have underestimated: Kansas Citians really love products made in Kansas City.

Timing also plays a role in the response to Chocolate Ale, appearing as it does just before Valentine’s Day. Releasing it as our Spring Seasonal in late January/early February was a decision based simply on the style and the occasion. For consumers unfamiliar with craft brewers propensity to produce seasonal, special, or limited releases, there are many examples of other high-demand, smaller batch beers that are worth noting. These beers also create quite a stir for their brewers, sometimes resulting in special one-day-only events, lottery systems, and strict bottle limits that serve to further heighten interest and demand. To our knowledge, however, few of these beers have received the amount of attention and city-wide interest that we’ve seen with Chocolate Ale.

Thank you for reading. We apologize to our loyal fans who were not able to find Chocolate Ale, and we promise to learn as much as we can from this experience. To everyone who has taken the time and energy to write, we sincerely appreciate your comments and suggestions. While it saddens us to think that misinformation and misunderstanding over Chocolate Ale might lead some folks to stop purchasing our beers altogether, we take heart from the many loyal Boulevard drinkers who have expressed their support. Your comments are deeply appreciated by the 100 hardworking and dedicated employees who do their best, day in and day out, to make Kansas City proud.

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Chocolate Ale Update

julie — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 23:04:03 +0000

When we first introduced Chocolate Ale in February 2011, we were, um, surprised by the response. While originally intended as a one-time, one-off beer, like our other Smokestack collaborations, we decided to bring it back in 2012 as a Smokestack seasonal release. We’ve been flooded with calls, emails, and postings with questions about this year’s release. We hope this posting provides some insight about the beer.

Supply: For 2012, we figured we’d better make more – lots more. In the end, we produced over three and a half times as much Chocolate Ale as in 2011, more than we’ve ever made of any Smokestack seasonal beer, and all that our production capacity would allow us to make.

Distribution/Retail/Pricing: By law, we sell our beer to independent distributors, who in turn sell to retailers, who sell to consumers. Our price to distributors, and our distributors’ price to retailers, is precisely the same for Chocolate Ale as it is for all of our year-round and seasonal Smokestack offerings. By law, we have no control over the price charged by retailers for any of our products, including Chocolate Ale. Nor do we have control over which retailers receive our beer, when they receive it, or how or when they sell it.

Our Kansas City distributor tells us that their deliveries of Chocolate Ale to local retailers – including hundreds of kegs to be served at area bars and restaurants – will be complete by Tuesday, February 7th.

Marketing: The media interest and coverage surrounding this year’s batch of Chocolate Ale was due to last year’s demand. We’ve responded to reporter inquiries and done our best to provide them with the correct information to relay to their readers/listeners/viewers.

To our loyal customers who have tried without success to find a bottle of Boulevard Chocolate Ale, we sincerely apologize. We did not seek to create or encourage this phenomenon, but we pledge to try to learn from it, and to look for ways to improve and enhance our planning, our communication, and, ultimately, our production of this unprecedented beer. Let us know if you have additional questions. We’re happy to provide you with as much information as possible.

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When will Chocolate Ale hit Kansas City shelves???

julie — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 16:38:28 +0000

That’s a question we’ve been hearing a lot these days. The voices in our hometown have grown louder as the press has taken note of the impending release and – as some local consumers have recently learned – the beer has begun to appear in a few markets outside of KC. We hope this post will answer some of the questions and provide a bit of insight into the process of releasing a limited or seasonal beer.

The beer business is, by law, a “three-tier” system. Breweries make beer, which is sold to independent distributors, who in turn sell to retail outlets such as bars and restaurants (on-premise) or liquor and grocery stores (off-premise). While the majority of Boulevard beer is consumed within Greater Kansas City and the Midwest region, our products are sold to more than 100 distributors in 21 states throughout the country.

Each of these distributors was allocated a specific quantity of Chocolate Ale, in the same manner in which they receive allocations of all of our seasonal and limited release Smokestack Series beers. We recommended that they begin selling the beer to retailers in their respective markets on or about February 1.

Chocolate Ale was approved for release by our QA department and tasting panel just after the first of the year. Because some distributors pick up only once a month, the beer began to be placed on the trucks of certain distributors beginning on January 4th. While we can suggest to distributors when to release a given beer, our distributors are – again, by law – independent, unrelated businesses, and we cannot control when they choose to begin selling a particular beer, any more than we can control the price at which they choose to sell it.

Our Kansas City distributor will pick up its allocation at the end of the month, and plans to begin delivering the beer to bars, restaurants, liquor and grocery stores throughout the city on January 31st. All of the beer should be out of their warehouse and delivered by February 7th. If you’re going to be looking for Chocolate Ale, Sarah Gish of INK Magazine wrote a nice piece that could provide you some pointers. You can read it here.

Even a year later, we’re trying to get our arms around the excitement generated by Chocolate Ale. While this particular brew has captured the imagination of many, if you ask us, all our beers are delightful and worthy of attention. You shouldn’t love one child more than another, right?

Cheers.

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Sharing Recipes Among Brewers

julie — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 19:20:48 +0000

Pancho has been an avid homebrewer for more than 18 years.

Recently we posed the question: How does recipe sharing happen between brewers and homebrewers? Below, one of our long-time tour guides, Pancho Luna, who is also a homebrewer, and Boulevard brewer, Jeremy Danner, responds.

From the Homebrewer:

When I started home brewing I wasn’t like my friends, I drank Beck’s Dark, Turbo Dog and sometimes I’d even sneak in a Guinness. I was a beer aficionado! Now, more than 18 years later of brewing on the kitchen stove, turkey fryers and now my brewing rig, I still find it to be one of the best hobbies I’ve ever engaged in.

My first homebrew was a brown ale. I got the recipe from the local “homebrew shop/garden center.” No one there really knew anything about brewing besides the line, the “stuff was back there”. The recipe came out of a bin. It had the list of items you needed to purchase along with all the instructions for making a brown beer. If I remember correctly, it turned out well. Since then I’ve purchased dozens of books with extract/all grain/mini-mash recipes for beers from all over the world. All in all, they’ve turned out well.

I pretty much brew whatever catches my eye (or taste buds). I go to the liquor store, try other brewers’ beers and get inspired. If it’s a commercially available beer, I look up as much as I can online. Sometimes I’ll find a recipe and brew it. Other times I’ll just try to figure out what ingredients are being used in the brew and formulate a recipe from that information. And yes, there are some instances where I email or call the brewery (gasp!).

All the professional brewers I’ve had the pleasure to speak with are so enthusiastic about beer. They have a fanatical outlook on beer and the process’ they employ to get the beer they enjoy. They (we) all do the same things: talk about the last great beer they drank, discuss the one in their hand, the yeast/grain/hop or water profile they used and what it did to the last batch they brewed, what they should do next time, etc.

I’ve found that brewers, amateur or professional are always willing and happy to share information, including recipes! I’ve asked for recipes from breweries and have never been denied. In fact, I’ve only had two questions asked to me in return: 1) When you brew it, can I get some?; 2) Why do you want our recipe? You can make so much more as a homebrewer! Just drink ours while you’re brewing. Homebrewers are the same way.

Others have asked me if I’m afraid someone will take my recipe and claim it as their own or make a batch that wins a contest. I say, “Do it!” but I always ask…. when you brew it, can I get some?

From a Boulevard brewer:

As a brewer for Boulevard I often get requests from homebrewers for advice on how to improve their beers or requests for actual recipes of our beers. The beer industry is unique in that we really don’t have brewing secrets. We openly share with other breweries that outsiders would perceive as “the competition.” The mentality of most brewers in the industry is that we’re all in this together. We share recipes and process details to help others improve their libations so that we can all make better beers. If we’re all making great ales and lagers, we’re exposing the general public to a high quality, delicious product. The same is true when sharing with homebrewers. Other industries might fear that if someone can duplicate their products at home, they’ll lose business. In brewing, this couldn’t be further from the truth. The beauty of beer is that even if someone brews the exact same recipe, using the exact same raw materials, they’re invariably going to end up with a slightly different beer. Will it be similar or very close to the original? Absolutely, but it will still have it’s own uniqueness.

Homebrewers are a vital part of beer culture as craft beer continues to grow. They’re the “first church of craft beer” if you will. Often times the uninitiated will have their first taste of craft beer in someone’s tricked out garage or basement brewery. Encouraging quality and growth at the homebrewing level helps to improve the entire scene. If homebrewers are making fantastic, high quality beer, it becomes easier to get that friend to try a commercially brewed craft beer. For this reason, I share as much information about the production of our beers as I can. I never send off a complete recipe because a recipe for a 150-barrel batch of beer is useless and overwhelming to a homebrewer looking to brewer five or ten gallons. We provide malt and hop bills in the form of percentages of total grist and IBU’s gained from hop varieties. I’ll also provide mash program, yeast strain, and fermentation temperature information. I’ve even gone so far as to provide chemical and sensory analysis results to advanced homebrewers.

As professional brewers we feel a strong connection to the homebrewing community whether or not we started out as home brewers. Personally, I’ve never brewed a batch of beer smaller than 217 gallons (seven barrels), but I’m fascinated and amazed with the quality of beers I’ve had that were made in a five gallon plastic bucket. Anything we, as professional brewers, can do to encourage the growth and quality of the homebrew culture translates directly to the growth of commercial craft beer. Many folks brewing in converted kegs in their driveway today will be future commercial craft brewery owners and I want them to make awesome beer for me to drink!

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The Great American Beer Fest

julie — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 20:35:16 +0000

The Boulevard crew: Neil Witte, John McDonald, Steven Pauwels, Nathan Perry and Dustin Jamison pose with Brewers Association's Charlie Papazian while receiving a medal at GABF

Recently, we were one of 466 breweries to participate at the 30th Great American Beer Festival (GABF). The annual event, put on by the Brewers Association, housed 49,000 attendees over four sessions at the Colorado Convention Center in Denver.

Thursday night’s session kicked off the fest with amazing energy. We poured Saison-Brett, Single-Wide I.P.A., dry hopped Double-Wide I.P.A., Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale, Unfiltered Wheat Beer, Pale Ale, The Sixth Glass and Bully! Porter. There was a steady line at our booth for most of the evening, and we spotted several attendees sporting Boulevard tees, which was cool to see. John McDonald, founder of Boulevard, and Steven Pauwels, Boulevard’s brewmaster, both had many admirers and industry friends chatting them up throughout the evening. Attendees seemed to gravitate towards Tank 7 and Saison-Brett, so we had reserve pitchers ready to pour constantly.

Friday afternoon we poured one of our test beers, Love Child #1, at the Denver Rare Beer Tasting. In only two hours, we went through the entire 1/6 barrel of sour ale, and then headed back for the second round of the GABF. We had a chance to not only greet thousands of thirsty beer drinkers, but also catch up with a few industry reporters to talk about craft beer trends. The volunteers at our booth were amazing as they cranked out samples non-stop for the line of guests eager to try one of our brews.

During the Saturday afternoon session, the Brewers Association announced awards from the annual beer competition. Bronze, silver and gold medals were handed out in 83 different beer categories to brews receiving the highest praise from judges. Of the 3,390 beers submitted and 248 medals given, Boulevard was honored with four: Pale Ale and Saison-Brett both received gold and ZŌN and Collaboration No. 2 received bronze medals. John and Steven were thrilled and both expressed how gratifying it is to receive such praise from fellow industry peers.

Before the start of the last session, the Tank 7 keg had blown, and the last of our dry hopped Double-Wide I.P.A. was consumed halfway through the final night. Luckily we had just enough of our other beers to keep festival goers coming back for more.

The entire weekend was exciting and certainly had those of us from the brewery who were lucky enough to go, amped up and ready to keep pushing the envelope when it comes to making fine ales and lagers and continuing to elevate Boulevard’s presence throughout the industry.

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Collaboration No. 2 Hits the Shelves

julie — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 15:37:48 +0000

Collaboration No. 2, a beer we brewed with our friends at Deschutes Brewery, will hit liquor store shelves and bar taps starting this week. Not long after that, it will make it’s way onto your tastebuds. Before you get to that point, we wanted to share some more information about this very special ale. This beer traces its roots back to a friendship between our Belgian Brewmaster Steven Pauwels and Deschutes Brewmaster Larry Sidor. Both are arguably tops in their field when it comes to respecting and expressing raw materials. Steven has placed Boulevard on the artisanal craft beer map with his homeland inspired Belgian-style beers and Larry masterfully showcases the myriad of aromas and flavors hops can contribute to a beer. Talk began of partnering on a beer over the course of spending time together at beer festivals, conferences, and chance encounters in airport terminals. Rather than viewing each other as competitors, both Steven and Larry have tremendous respect for the others’ breweries and the beers they make. Why not produce a beer, no, create an entire style that would showcase each Brewmaster’s brewing teams strengths. In this spirit, we’ve created a unique “White I.P.A.”

At Boulevard, we view ourselves not as brewers who “brew to style,” but instead who “brew to flavor.” With Collaboration No. 2, you can expect distinct, fruity Belgian yeast overtones married with big, fruity American hop flavors. We wanted these somewhat contradictory flavors to exist in harmony in the glass rather than tasting as though a Belgian Wit had been mixed with an American I.P.A. To do this we carefully selected sage and lemongrass to serve as an herbal bridge between the two styles of beer we’d combined. Due to the nature of adding large amounts of fresh herbs to beer, you might experience some sediment in bottles. As with any of our bottle conditioned beers, we suggest carefully pouring as to not disturb the sediment that naturally forms in the bottom of the bottle. If you’re adventurous, like we are from time to time, swirl the bottle a bit and pour into another glass to taste. Expect to be greeted with bright hoppy overtones in the aroma balanced by the sage, lemongrass, and almost bubble gum fruitiness the Belgian yeast strain used for fermentation contributes. The mouthfeel of this beer will be medium bodied, but carried quickly by near effervescent carbonation. Collaboration No. 2 will finish fairly dry, but with a lingering hop flavor and bitterness reminiscent of Deschutes’ fantastic pale ales.

We couldn’t be more proud to have partnered with a Brewmaster and brewery all of us at Boulevard respect so much. This is a beer to be shared, savored, but not locked away in a cellar. As with any hop forward beer, hop flavor and aroma are the best and brightest the day you take the bottle home. Share this beer with friends knowing that it was brewed by friends as well!

Click here to see photos from the day of brewing Collaboration No. 2 with Boulevard brewers and Larry Sidor of Deschutes.

Blog submitted by Boulevard brewer, Jeremy Danner.

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Collaboration No. 2

julie — Wed, 25 May 2011 21:29:17 +0000

Larry Sidor, Deschutes brewmaster, unloads malted barley with John McDonald, founder and president of Boulevard, and Steven Pauwels, Boulevard brewmaster

Collaborations between craft breweries reinforce all aspects that make our industry unique. We can’t think of another industry where two or more seemingly competitive companies come together to create a singular product. While there is shelf space and tap handles to compete for in retail, most behind-the-scenes elements of our industry (such as brewing and lab analysis) are friendly among breweries. Making collaboration beers is about brewers that have great respect for each other coming together to create something that showcases each other’s strengths in a unified beer. Our second of this effort, Collaboration No. 2 which hits markets this July, showcases Deschutes’ great knowledge of hops and our expertise in brewing Belgian-style beers.

In the case of Boulevard’s prior collaboration with Jean-Marie Rock, famed Brewmaster for Orval, we recreated an old recipe that Jean-Marie brewed near the beginning of his career. We gave him a chance to step away from his busy production schedule of producing Orval to create something near and dear to him. Our collaboration with Deschutes is different. The two breweries have come together to create a new style of beer, a White I.P.A. The intention with this style is to marry Belgian Wit beer characteristics with American I.P.A. qualities. We’ve chosen a special Belgian yeast strain for fermentation and have hopped with large amounts of bold, American hops.

With Jean-Marie’s beer we brewed just two batches of it and both were blended to create the final product, but for Collaboration No 2, we’ve both brewed several test batches with a multitude of recipe and ingredient changes. We’ve held several tasting sessions to tweak each malt, hop, herb, and spice to be just the way we want it. Deschutes has served test batches from their brewpubs to get the input of the drinking public. We’ve taken a lot of time and care at every step of the process through recipe development, brewing, and fermentation to make sure the exact beer is created that we all have in mind. With Collaboration No. 2, every brewer from Deschutes and Boulevard has had his or her chance to help shape the final product. Excitement filled the brewery a few weeks back when Larry Sidor, brewmaster for Deschutes, came to Kansas City to brew with us. It was an honor to brew with someone whose beers we enjoy so much.

As passionate craft brewers, it is our genuine hope that people enjoy this beer we’ve created together, and even more so, we hope the influence of each brewery is apparent in the glass. Cheers!

Click here to see photos from the day of brewing Collaboration No. 2 with Boulevard brewers and Larry Sidor of Deschutes.

Blog submitted by Boulevard brewer, Jeremy Danner.

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Looking Out for Mother Nature

julie — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 16:54:07 +0000

Boulevard Solar Panels
One of the best contributions seen throughout the craft beer industry, including Boulevard, is the commitment to produce beer and operate facilities in ways that are eco-friendly. Within the last six months, our brewery has transitioned into a zero-landfill facility, pinpointed spots for water reduction in the brewing and production processes and most recently, installed solar panels on our green roof and an electric vehicle (EV) charging station. (Whew!)

The new solar panels produce enough electricity to power three average homes per day and decrease carbon emissions by 55,000 pounds a year. The panels reside on our green roof, which already reduces our heating and air condition loads and absorbs rainwater, reducing runoff while sustaining a variety of roof plant life.

Our EV charging station might seem a bit out of place now (it is one of five stations throughout the greater Kansas City area), but by 2015, the federal government has a goal of having one million EVs on the road and research indicates that by 2020, 25% of light passenger vehicle sales will be electric.

Ripple Glass continues to be one of our proudest achievements. With more than 80 bins located throughout the greater Kansas City area, thousands of tons of glass are given a second life. Not only are consumers a part of the movement, but now area businesses (primarily restaurants) are on board, recycling glass waste which would have been put in the dumpster before. Become a friend of Ripple on Facebook to stay up to date with their latest initiatives and bin placement efforts.

The practice of sustainability is an everyday event at Boulevard. We’ll keep finding new ways to push the envelope of environmental excellence, while continuing to make the tasty beers we all love.

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Sizing Up Imperial Stout

julie — Tue, 15 Mar 2011 14:27:45 +0000

Imperial Stout was previously released in fall of 2009
The 2011 edition of our Limited Release Imperial Stout hits retailer shelves this week, just in time to raise a glass and say, “Sláinte!” to our favorite patron saint of Ireland.

Imperial Stout is one of our barrel-aged beers, which means the brew’s characteristics can vary based on the previous use of the barrels, the blending process executed, the length of time dedicated for maturing, and the overall climate conditions during the aging process. Approximately half of the beer made for this year’s release was aged in oak whiskey barrels anywhere from six months to two years. The other half was fresh Imperial Stout brewed in late 2010. The beers were then blended together and bottled in our 750mL Smokestack Series bottles.

Our 2011 version of Imperial Stout is perfectly black and opaque with a tan head. It has an earthy aroma with hints of toffee, vanilla, oak and bourbon. Roasted coffee flavors with hints of chocolate and molasses are balanced with a slight hop bitterness. The full body of the beer is velvety and warming.

Our sensory panel also picked up “Brett-character” in some of the bottles from this years’ edition. Brett is otherwise known as Brettanomyces—a wild yeast that produces distinctive flavors and aromas. While it is not a desirable characteristic for most wines, craft beer connoisseurs tend to embrace its presence for adding complexity and a touch of distinction to the brew. Our Limited Release Saison-Brett, for example, is a beer that contains this yeast for the specific purpose of imparting these qualities. The wild yeast is not harmful, but beer fans will recognize that it could change the characteristics of the beer as it ages.

If you enjoyed the 2009 Imperial Stout, we hope you will savor the 2011 release just as much. It’s rapidly becoming a springtime favorite for the brewery. For more information on this release, please visit this page.

Please Note: There’s no reason to wait. This beer has already been aged so pop the cork and enjoy.

Cases produced: 1,396
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To Cellar or Not To Cellar…

julie — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 22:01:43 +0000

Boulevard Brewmaster, Steven Pauwels
With more and more eclectic beers hitting the market, cellaring these bottles for a year or two to see how the beer’s characteristics mature over time has become a popular trend. While some beers age quite nicely, other brews including our just-released Chocolate Ale and the 21st Anniversary Fresh Hop Pale Ale from last fall, truly should be enjoyed soon after purchasing.

For most Boulevard beers, brewmaster Steven Pauwels, recommends enjoying them before the date displayed on the bottle. He feels most of our 12-ounce regular bottle conditioned brands are best between one and four months after bottling and that our regular Smokestack brands are best between three and nine months. This is not to say that you can’t consume them after that time period, but you could experience a diminished aroma or flavor.

The whiskey and bourbon barrel-aged beers are already cellared for a time at the brewery to get the perfect blend between wood, bourbon/whiskey flavoring and aging characteristics. By further maturing the beer in the bottle, you will no longer extract wood or the whiskey/bourbon characteristics. The beer will not change dramatically in the first years, but some of the sharper touches such as oak will mild over time.

Delicate aromas from hops and fruit also disappear as beer ages. Fruit beers will lose their characters quicker. Beers made with fresh hops will see aromas and flavor fade over time. While yeast from bottle-conditioning removes oxygen during storage, it only does that for a certain period.

Steven divided out some qualities to consider before you cellar a beer below.
Positive characteristics for cellaring:
Dark color
Higher ABV
Brewed with Belgian yeast
Use of mixed culture
Bottle-conditioned

Beers that won’t improve with age:
Lighter color
Lower ABV
Lager brews
Fruit beers
Fresh-hopped beer
Non bottle-conditioned

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