Imperial Stout X: Coconut
Boulevard Brewing Co.

 

A: Poured into a snifter to a deep black beer topped by a dense and rocky two finger light tan head which recedes slowly to a collar around the edge of the glass with minimal lacing
S: Smells of intense chocolate, roasted malts, coffee, and coconut
T: Taste is a nice chocolate followed by some coconut, a little charred wood and burnt sugar with just a hint of wet cardboard from oxidation. Really nice coconut flavor with a lot of sweet chocolatey stout notes remaining though. hints of coffee as well on the palate. On the swallow there's more coconut, chocolate, roasted malts, burnt sugar, creme brulee, and some coffee
M: This beer has a fairly thick and chewy body that's also a little on the silky side. Carbonation is a bit higher than normal but is still acceptable while the beer has a drying finish due to the abv.
O: Overall this one gets better with every sip. The coconut is really the star of the show on this one but the base beer does provide a nice amount of complexity which makes this one a pleasure to drink. I'd like to see this one come around again.

"Best by 10/2017"; bottled 10/16/15, drank 3/5/16 @ the Yarchives.

Brown/black appearance.

HUGE dark tan head (careful pouring!); frothy lace.

Milk chocolate, coconut & faint cinnamon notes in the nose.

Medium mouthfeel.

Coconut & milk chocolate flavors up front; a cinnamon bite to the lips on the finish.

Thin but flavorful; I'd have another.

Pitch black and completely opaque without a trace of lighter color. Three finger frothy beige head that very slowly settles into thick, lasting cap/ring that takes a while to settle. Sporadic streaks of soapy lacing left clinging to glass.

Intense yet inviting aroma with coconut standing up to bold, deeply roasted malt bill. Slight sun tan lotion character but there's a nice balance of sweet tropical coconut oil/milk and toasted coconut flake. There's a desert like quality with Samoa cookie, macaroon, almond joy/mounds bar. Also, some gooey fudge, and flourless chocolate cake countered by slightly charred malt notes of coffee, burnt toast and oatmeal.

Medium body with a bit more carb than expected. Very faint infection coming in with oxidization and subtle cardboard. Hurts enjoyment and drinkability but doesn't mask other flavors too much. Similar to nose with a bit more roast. Charred toast, burnt coffee grinds, oatmeal and light smoke countered by chocolate sweetness, caramel and coconut. Subtle mounds bar/Samoa cookie flavor coming in that gets stronger as it warns. Sweet chocolate cake and molten fudge but needs a bit more sweetness to balance out heavy roast. Slightly burnt/acrid and a bit harsh but surprisingly easy to drink at 11%. Decent but mouthfeel is a bit off overall flavor profile s unbalanced.

Pours very dark, two fingers of mocha head that quickly fades. Aroma is old coconut oil. Pronounced coconut flavor, a little old and artificial tasting. Definitely past it's prime - should have drank it sooner. Still drinkable, though.

8/8/18
Bomber, 2015 vintage
4 rating

 

 

 

Boulevard Brewing Co. "Imperial Stout X: Coconut"
750 ml brown glass bottle, corked and caged, "BATCH NUMBER/BEST BY DATE: L101415-1 10-2017" and sampled on 28 JAN 2018
$12.99 @ Total Wine & More, Cherry Hill, NJ

Look: Opaque black body beneath a short head of creamy dark tan foam. Average head retention and lacing for a beer of its strength.

Smell: Soft, chocolatey dark malt and coconut with a whiff of alcohol.

Taste: Fuller than the aroma suggests but not bold, at least not overblown, let's just say solidly flavored. Notes of chocolate, cocoa powder, molasses, brown sugar, coconut, and just a hint of dark skinned fruits. It's very nicely rounded with all of the notes supporting each other and working together. The alcohol found in the nose remains but doesn't really stand out, at least not more than expected for a beer of 11% abv. If it wasn't there I think it might appear to be missing something. It's not that bitter, and it finishes soft and smooth with some lingering milk chocolate and coconut.

Feel: Medium bodied with some dextrinous character, and quite supple and smooth with a very fine-bubbled, seemingly natural (but probably not), moderate carbonation.

Overall: Impressive in the way that it offers so much while seeming at first glance to be less than it is. More importantly, the coconut addition melds perfectly, offering enough that it clearly shows while not standing out too far from the rest of the beer. Very nicely balanced, rounded, and polished. Accessible and easy to drink yet strong. A great beer to sit down and relax with, or perfect for a group as an after dinner drink before, during, or after dessert.

~ I should also note, this beer is not barrel aged. If it was I think it might be too much, and the coconut would certainly be forced aside a bit. It's pretty perfect as it is, and I'm certainly going to search out another bottle or two before it's gone.

Poured into a Duvel tulip.

The beer is stereotypical “dirty motor oil black” with a huge dark khaki sea foam head that dissipates to a thick frothy layer of film. Lacing is pretty much non-existent. The aroma opens up immediately with a sweet bourbon barrel wood note that soon smoothly glides into decadent aromas of rich chocolate and toasted coconut. It really smells delicious. The taste is whiskey-barrel dominant but rich, dark chocolate, dark malt roast, and ultimately a toasted coconut flavor emerges. The mouthfeel is surprisingly medium bodied and smooth.

Overall, as the beer warms the 11% ABV gets a bit warm on the throat. The bourbon/whiskey notes are a bit thick but otherwise excellent use of coconut.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A nice spin on the normal Imperial Stout. Lovely coconut aromas an flavors, with a toasty, nutty note underlying the coconut and typical imperial stout flavors. A bit greasy in the mouth, but still a hit.