Brewed By: Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri
Purchased: Single 12oz bottle (w/ best by: 10/25/12) from a 6-pack bought at Meijer in Urbana, IL; 2012
Style/ABV: American Pale Ale, 5.4%
Reported IBUs: 30
Obviously this is a Strong Below-Average. I mean what the fuck did you expect? BUT...this experiment hasn't been for nothing. For a 2-year old Pale Ale, I think this beer has held up well. This is not a beer intended to be aged, but there are still some hop notes lingering around two years later. That gives me some hope for my aging Celebration Ale...which I will get to reviewing soon. It's another beer that people love to age for some unknown reason, when in reality it has no business spending time in your cellar.
Random Thought: This gives me hope. The Walking Dead has frequently shown people drinking beer (I think), and they seem to be enjoying those beers well enough. So sleep peacefully, neckbeards and zombie nerds. If the zombie apocalypse does happen, you'll have at least a 2-year window to enjoy aging shelf turds until you can gather up the tools necessary to home brew your own post-apocalyptic brews. And if you stumble upon a batch of Barleywines, those will last you even longer.
But seriously, don't age Pale Ales, you twat.
You're probably wondering why.
Why? Why, Jon. Why would you go and cellar a Pale Ale for two years? Don't you see the bottle? It clearly says "Best by 10/25/2012."
I know...I know...I'm a sucker and a masochist.
But hear me out. Back in June of 2012, I reviewed this lovely American-style Pale Ale from Boulevard. And back then, I was stupid. I'm still stupid. Naive and young (and stupid), I took interest in the fact that Boulevard advertises this beer as being bottle-conditioned. In fact, this beer goes as far as to say (on the label) that, "The yeast, which settles naturally to the bottom of the bottle, encourages further maturation and contributes to the ale's complex flavor."
It happens that lots of beers are bottle conditioned for further maturation...some by choice, and some not so much. It's often done to extend a beer's shelf life, carbonate it, or to provide stylistic nuances. I'm not sure how common conditioning a Pale Ale is, but I imagine it is common enough. I still think it's weird that Boulevard emphasized the fact, so for science I'm going to taking tasting notes on a shitty, oxidized, 2-year old beer...and then eye bleach my palate with something that doesn't taste like ass. Science...about Boulevard:
Why? Why, Jon. Why would you go and cellar a Pale Ale for two years? Don't you see the bottle? It clearly says "Best by 10/25/2012."
I know...I know...I'm a sucker and a masochist.
But hear me out. Back in June of 2012, I reviewed this lovely American-style Pale Ale from Boulevard. And back then, I was stupid. I'm still stupid. Naive and young (and stupid), I took interest in the fact that Boulevard advertises this beer as being bottle-conditioned. In fact, this beer goes as far as to say (on the label) that, "The yeast, which settles naturally to the bottom of the bottle, encourages further maturation and contributes to the ale's complex flavor."
It happens that lots of beers are bottle conditioned for further maturation...some by choice, and some not so much. It's often done to extend a beer's shelf life, carbonate it, or to provide stylistic nuances. I'm not sure how common conditioning a Pale Ale is, but I imagine it is common enough. I still think it's weird that Boulevard emphasized the fact, so for science I'm going to taking tasting notes on a shitty, oxidized, 2-year old beer...and then eye bleach my palate with something that doesn't taste like ass. Science...about Boulevard:
Boulevard Brewing Company hails out of Kansas City, Missouri. They have a very nice website that is cleanly formatted, informative, and is not loaded with Java and Flash scripts. The company was founded officially in 1989, but began in 1988 when founder John McDonald began construction of the brewery. In 2006 the brewery had a major expansion, which allowed for additional brewing capacity. You can find more info on the brewery's history HERE. According to Wikipedia, Boulevard is the largest craft brewer in Missouri, and the 10th largest craft brewery in the United States.
If you needed a refresher...the Boulevard Pale Ale is an American classic, like Sierra Nevada's Pale Ale or Blue Moon or Boston Lager. Brewed with Pale Malt, Munich, Cara 50, and Cara 120 malts, this one features Zeus, Magnum, Simcoe, Styrian Golding, and Cascade hops. At 5.4% and 30 IBUs, this is a lighter beer...and the bottle conditioning doesn't really say anything conclusive about anything.
Also...I would totally compare this to a fresh bottle, but (1) I'm lazy, (2) this is so old it probably doesn't matter, (3) #YOLO.
Opening the beer results in a chimney of rising head...this would have gushed over had I not poured it out. Compared to what this beer looks like fresh (semi-transparent, gold/bronze), there is quite the contrast. The aged Boulevard Pale Ale pours into a dark amber/orange body, that is completely hazy. Even when held to a bright light, the beer is a hazy, dark orange color. There's a ton of carbonation rising up in my 2-year old beer, and a finger of off-white head is hanging around. There's lacing, and head retention.
The aroma: I'm surprised that this beer still has an aroma after two years. I'm getting a lot of pale/wheat-esque and clean malt backing; it reminds me of a Cream Ale. There is definitely oxidation, with brown paper bag and newspaper. But I'm also getting some spicy hops, wet leaves, iced tea, and some aged American Barleywine character. It's completely bad, but amazing how the hops have held up after such a long time.
This tastes...off. It's not right, and you know it. There's some autolysis and oxidation. I'm getting papery hops, watered down iced tea, faded wet leaves...and almost no malt character because it's a Pale Ale (duh). What's impressive is that after two years this still doesn't taste awful. Like, you can still drink this despite the glaring faults. There is still some hop character, namely that iced tea character, with wet leaves and even some pine. And I'm getting a touch of malt sweetness on the way back...so it's not like the beer is sewage. It's not. It's just a hoppy, expired Pale Ale.
Not much has changed in terms of the medium-light mouthfeel. This beer is still even well-carbonated. Gone are the vibrant hop nuances, leaving a one-dimensional note of past-due hops and iced tea. It's refreshing in some regards and underwhelming in others. I'm almost happy that I don't have a fresh bottle to compare this to.
Rating: Below-Average (2.0/5.0 Untappd)Also...I would totally compare this to a fresh bottle, but (1) I'm lazy, (2) this is so old it probably doesn't matter, (3) #YOLO.
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| Boulevard Pale Ale (Vintage 2012) |
Opening the beer results in a chimney of rising head...this would have gushed over had I not poured it out. Compared to what this beer looks like fresh (semi-transparent, gold/bronze), there is quite the contrast. The aged Boulevard Pale Ale pours into a dark amber/orange body, that is completely hazy. Even when held to a bright light, the beer is a hazy, dark orange color. There's a ton of carbonation rising up in my 2-year old beer, and a finger of off-white head is hanging around. There's lacing, and head retention.
The aroma: I'm surprised that this beer still has an aroma after two years. I'm getting a lot of pale/wheat-esque and clean malt backing; it reminds me of a Cream Ale. There is definitely oxidation, with brown paper bag and newspaper. But I'm also getting some spicy hops, wet leaves, iced tea, and some aged American Barleywine character. It's completely bad, but amazing how the hops have held up after such a long time.
This tastes...off. It's not right, and you know it. There's some autolysis and oxidation. I'm getting papery hops, watered down iced tea, faded wet leaves...and almost no malt character because it's a Pale Ale (duh). What's impressive is that after two years this still doesn't taste awful. Like, you can still drink this despite the glaring faults. There is still some hop character, namely that iced tea character, with wet leaves and even some pine. And I'm getting a touch of malt sweetness on the way back...so it's not like the beer is sewage. It's not. It's just a hoppy, expired Pale Ale.
Not much has changed in terms of the medium-light mouthfeel. This beer is still even well-carbonated. Gone are the vibrant hop nuances, leaving a one-dimensional note of past-due hops and iced tea. It's refreshing in some regards and underwhelming in others. I'm almost happy that I don't have a fresh bottle to compare this to.
Obviously this is a Strong Below-Average. I mean what the fuck did you expect? BUT...this experiment hasn't been for nothing. For a 2-year old Pale Ale, I think this beer has held up well. This is not a beer intended to be aged, but there are still some hop notes lingering around two years later. That gives me some hope for my aging Celebration Ale...which I will get to reviewing soon. It's another beer that people love to age for some unknown reason, when in reality it has no business spending time in your cellar.
But seriously, don't age Pale Ales, you twat.
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