Collaboration No. 6 - Barrel Aged Blend
Boulevard Brewing Co.

tide from California

4.72/5  rDev +16%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

It’s dark brown in color, almost black. Foam is fine and rich, no lacing. It smells boozy and oaky, shows dried plum, caramel, vanilla, lilac floral, bourbon barrels, grape juice, banana split, molasses smells. That’s a solid and charming smell. The beer starts with a strong ester profile, which is like banana split with caramelized sugar, the it infused with bourbon and oaky barrel aromas, and then a cherry and plum aroma surface up. It’s not a heavy and dull stout, it’s shows a complex quadruple’s character infused with Cherry and bourbon whiskey aromas. There’s smoky, coffee and dark chocolate aromas from the Velvet Merkin. The ending is boozy and hoppy, it’s like Amarillo hops character to me. Aroma wise, it shows hint dried fig, dried dates, dried plum, real soybean sauce (with salty funky umami flavor), seaweed salad, smoked Gouda cheese, maple syrup, caramel, malt vinegar, chocolate coated cherry, sweet balsamic sauce, BBQ sauce, mango chutney sauce, cocoa nibs, vanilla extract, licorice candy (star anise) , pecan and clove, that’s really a orchestral sensation! I drink it pretty warm, and I love it this way, it’s really complex. The tart Cherry spears into the heart of this dark beer, and it definitely lights it up. I can feel the body red tart Cherry bumps in the vein of the beer. The boozy and oaky aroma added some wine character to the beer too. The omnibus experience combines Quad, Stout, sour fruit and complex barrel blending together. I think this bottle is at its peak, the aroma is vibrant and strong, ester, phenol and spices are clear, it has enough alcohol power to seduce you too.

Apr 10, 2021

MonDak_Joe1953 from Minnesota

4.16/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle. Caged and corked. Bottling date coded as '092116' (Best by '21SEP2018').
Amber brown colored body. One finger of tan head, which sticks around as a thin cap. Leaves behind scattered spots of lacing.
Aroma of oak barrel, fig, and date. Some chocolate and woody notes.
Taste is blend rich. Chocolate, dark fruit, caramel, cherry and barrel. Slightly sweet.
Medium mouth feel, with some syrup qualities. Good carbonation.
Well crafted blend, with varying experiences that bring out the sweet, the woody, the chocolate, and the dark fruit. This is the first time drinking this, so I don't know what this would have tasted like two years ago.

Oct 10, 2020

ryan1788a5 from Massachusetts

3.85/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

750ml bottle poured into a snifter. 2018 vintage.

A: Very dark brown in color. Spotty and wispy lacing. Beige head settles shortly.

S: Tootsie rolls, fudge, and woody roast right up front. Repeated whiffs bring molasses, bread crust, baking spices, nuttiness, and taste cherry. Faint oak and whiskey too.

T: Hits in the opposite order of the nose. Belgian character up front. Extra crust bread, molasses, plenty of baking spices, and a spike of cloves/medicinal phenols. Sticky molasses and toffee on the mid palate. Woody and roasty flavors open up, then transition to fudge and tootsie rolls. Caramel. Faint cherry tartness buried deeply. Oak and whiskey are more assertive than expected, and close out a drying finish.

M: Medium-Full body. Rich and somewhat sticky malt textures are blasted away by very aggressive, fine-bubbled carbonation. Really gentle brush of wood tannin.

O: It’s ok. The quad accounts for the majority of the blend, and that’s very apparent. In texture it’s Belgian dominated, and in flavor the expressive Belgian yeast hogs the spotlight too. The phenols in particular come on a bit strong and the medicinal flavors are a bit too front and center. Personally I think they should’ve played up the merkin thread a bit more.

Aug 31, 2020

StoutElk_92 from Massachusetts

4.71/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Pours dark red maroon brown with a dense khaki colored foam head. Smells rich and malty, dark and roasty with some bright cherry, whiskey, bourbon barrel, oak, char, chocolate, dark caramel, maple, molasses, toffee, toasted bread, red grapes, figs, plum, dark fruit, with floral earthy herbal pine. Tastes like fresh tart cherry, char, fudgy dark chocolate, roasted malts, mild whiskey bourbon barrel, oak, dark caramel, molasses, toffee, toasted bread, maple, red grapes, fig, plum, dark fruit, with floral earthy herbal pine. Feels medium fuller bodied, creamy with moderate carbonation. Overall a really nice barrel-aged blend.

Apr 17, 2020

Tony210 from New Jersey

4.31/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours fairly dark and thin. Big aroma: cherries, boozy. Malty flavor, def taste the tart cherry. Medium bodied, carbonation adds to a creamy feel. Overall a very good beer, aged nicely.

1/27/20
Draft at Tommy’s
4.25 rating

Jan 28, 2020

socon67 from New York

3.83/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Nice collab with FW, and awesome I had all 3 base beers. A bit of sweetness and acetyl initially, that gives way to a candied fruit finish. Nice to have tried.

Feb 04, 2019

ctbeergeek from California

3.88/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

This is an interesting beer with a lot going on. Pours a rich, dark brown with very little head that dissipated very quickly. A bit of boozy barrel with dark fruit sweetness and a bit of coffee roast in the aroma. The flavor really opens up as this warms (I recommend letting it come to room temp to get the most out of it). A lot of flavors come through with some boozy, sweet cherry followed by a bit of roast and molasses in there as well. Overall a good beer where the quad characters really dominate, but supported well by the other beers in the blend.

Dec 14, 2018

Bluerabbitbell from Pennsylvania

3.99/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Interesting sweet and tart together. How it was ever conceived is a wonderment to behold, but good job for being inventive! Caliente Pizza and draft house with Leah on date night!

Nov 24, 2018

SHODriver from North Carolina

4.25/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

A: Poured into a snifter to a deep mahogany brown topped by a finger of dense light tan head which fades slowly to a collar around the edge of the glass with minimal lacing
S: Smells of dark fruits and cherries with a hint of roasted malts, chocolate, oak, and vanilla
T: Taste is roasted malts and dark chocolate up front with dark fruits and cherries, slight spicy yeast notes, hint of coffee, oak, caramel and vanilla. the fruity notes are quite prominent throughout. Swallow is more dark fruits and cherries with some more chocolate and roasted malts with some spicy yeast and dry oak in the finish.
M: This beer is fairly full in body with a silky feel on the palate. Carbonation is effervescent and not prickly while the beer has a drying finish.
O: Overall this one is pretty impressive. It has a ton of stuff going on and all the flavors are well integrated and play well together. This beer does seem to be greater than the sum of its parts. I'd like for this one to come back as it is very unique and interesting.

Jul 15, 2018

polloenfuego from Canada (ON)

3.87/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured a deep chestnut/ruby brown with about a pinky of head. The head broke slowly, leaving an island of wisp in its wake. Decent lacing.

Smell was quite interesting. I picked up barrel, cherry, coffee, chocolate and molasses. I found it a little confusing as you don't typically find some of these smells together in the same beer.

Taste was led by a decent amount of barrel, then I picked up some cherry in the mid palate, then coffee, chocolate and molasses on the tail end. Again, a very busy beer.

Feel is full with a decent backing carbonation. There is a slickness to the beer and the sweet finish is nice. ABV can be felt, though it is not overpowering.

This beer was quite nice, but very confusing at the same time. I found the flavor profile very busy, and it seems that the blends in this one did not help it find its identity. Still that being said, it was an enjoyable sipper that was full of flavor, albeit perhaps too many.

Mar 27, 2018

Samlover55 from New York

4.08/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

.750ml bottle into Libbey Tulip
BB 9/21/18
L- a dark auburn with thin off-white head
S- the aroma is amazing, cherries, vanilla, bourbon, of course dark fruit
T- very quad-like sweet dark fruits with hints of cherries and vanilla
F- medium-bodied, syrupy, highly carbonated
Overall the beer was good, posibly even great......However, i couldn't detect any notes from either stout, and it felt like a blended quad

Jan 21, 2018

Eamonn-Cummings3 from New York

4.25/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Poured from a 750ml bottle into a BA glass.

Look is a dark brown with red highlights and little to no head.

Aroma is dark fruits and tart cherry with a light roast character.

Jan 01, 2018

Zythophile from District of Columbia

4.13/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bottle Date: best by 10/7/18
Palate Contaminants: none

Appearance is dark brown, not letting any light through. There's also a surprising amount of carbonation, but not much head.

If a maple cola existed, this is about what it would smell like. There's some sweet rum in the background, but maple and cola are pretty strong.

The taste is far different, with the principals being charred barrel and molasses. It's still sweet, but that's dialed back. Slightly bitter. Moderate amount of anise. There's alcohol, but it's not via the usual burn. If I'd relate it to anything, I'll say cask-strength bourbon, but with scotch peat. So, if you like smokiness, this is for you. Concentrated cherry flavor as it warms up. I'm so-so on the taste for the type. The individual parts are greater than the sum.

Carbonation is a bit foamy, but not excessive. The sharpness in the charred barrel taste is less in the aftertaste. Anise hangs around, too. Weight is moderate.

Dec 10, 2017

Harrison8 from Missouri

4.05/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Pours a deep-dark brown-black with a finger of off-white head. Head retention is okay with no lacing left behind. Aroma is dark, toasted, roasted, and nutted malts. Light notes of plum, dark fruits, and cherries. Flavor profile is toasted, roasted, and nutted malts with cherries, plum, and dark fruits. Almost like a dark imperial stout meets a dark fruit quadruple. Mouth feel is medium in thickness with a creamy, but slightly grainy texture. Overall, a unique blend of a dark stout with a Belgian quadruple. Savory, and tangy with a dark and hearty core.

Served in a 12oz snifter from a 750mL bottle.

Nov 25, 2017

mschrei from Illinois

4.31/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Part of me wishes I had this one fresher, but I worried that it might have been too hot at the time, and I heard it was a muddled mess. It still kind of is, but it's a rather easy sipping beer. Pours a mid level brown with tannish edging, plenty of foam with some lacing. Sweet toasty notes on the smell, minimal barrel presence. Taste is toasty, bourbony, sweet with a mild cherry flavor. Feel is fun-starts with a punch but then slides down, may I say it, velvetly. Bit of an alcohol burn, but it's milder than I would expect for close to 13%. Could have been an amazing beer, but I wouldn't say it isn't pretty good.

Aug 29, 2017

IvoryFoxhole from Virginia

4.35/5  rDev +6.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

750 mL bottle from 2016. Collaboration with Firestone, which sounds good to me. Poured into Behind the Veil glass.

L: Shiny jet black (no other way to describe). 2F off-white head, leaving a little bit of lacing and a ring.

S: Caramel malts, roasted malts, bourbon barrel, cherry. Everything except the Velvet Merkin has a place in the nose. I'll bet you can find it in the taste.

T: Caramel malts, roasted malts, flaked oats (there it is!), a bit of chocolate, cherry, bourbon and bourbon barrel. A lot going on and it tastes quite good. A little bit of alcohol heat on finish. Sweetness does not run away at all.

F: Surprisingly medium-bodied and drinkable, but does pack a huge punch. Little carbonation to speak of. Very solid construction and balance. Only a little bit of alcohol heat.

O: With great respect, you guys are grading this too low. This is good, good stuff. Doesn't need aging (in fact, says drink by 9/18), but I do wonder if that extra year might make it even better.

Jul 23, 2017

Mdaniel723 from Missouri

4.34/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Had a pour from a 750ml bottle. Pours a thick brown with a 2 finger head. The nose is some smoke and caramel malt. Taste is great with roasted malt and some boozy barrel character. Great beer!

Jul 03, 2017

Ciocanelu from Romania

4.3/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Slightly hazy dark amber color with beige head. Aroma has fruity quad notes, caramel, burnt sugar and light tart balsamic vinegar. Taste is quite "belgian", like a slightly tart quad. There are some caramel and butterscotch notes in the background with a lingering bourbon aftertaste. Medium to full bodied, quite well carbonated. Overall it's a nice, quad style blend with a smooth bourbon flavor.

Jun 28, 2017

Treyliff from West Virginia

4.29/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

750ml bottle poured into a snifter

A- pours a deep brown with one-finger creamy khaki head that has great retention

S- plum, fig and raisin up front, caramel and toffee, oaky barrel, undertones of chocolate

T- sweet and malty up front with tons of fig, raisin & prune, followed by toffee and caramel. Mid-palate brings out some barrel notes of oak and vanilla, the finish gives more dark fruit with chocolate, sweet linger

M- medium-heavy body with moderate carbonation leads to a creamy mouthfeel and finish

O- sweet and malty throughout, delicious

Jun 21, 2017

SD-Alefan from South Dakota

4.2/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Pours an opaque dark brown with a foamy tan head that leaves sheets of lace.
Aroma is chocolate, roast with some tart notes and some dark cherry.
Flavor is dark chocolate, roast, cherry, boozy, slightly funky and some sweet milk chocolate notes.
Mouthfeel is smooth and very creamy.
Really good but I'm not sure it's greater than the sum of its parts.

Jun 09, 2017

Pencible from Virginia

3.66/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: This poured an opaque dark mahogany with some light tan head.
S: It smelled like alcohol, with some tart cherry and a little dark chocolate and earthy toffee and nutty malt and fig.
T: It tasted like earthy caramel and nutty toffee, with some tart cherry and dark chocolate and fig. It had a clean bittersweet aftertaste with alcohol warming.
M: It was oily with lots of fine natural carbonation. Nice slick body.
D: This was a complex brew with decent scent and taste, but not as delicious as I hoped. The body was great, but the finish was really hot, so it must be sipped. Age would really help this mellow and gel. Fresh is a bit of a hot mess.

Jun 06, 2017

stortore from Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

750 ml bottle into a chalice. Bottled 10/7/16, had 12/30/16.

The appearance is an opaque, darker amber, a little garnet in the light, with a one inch foamy head and a good amount of foamy lacing. Smells of malt, dates, figs, sour cherries, maple, light bourbon, light whiskey, some chocolate, toffee. The flavor leans toward malt forward, then more cherries than the nose, dates, figs, oak, bourbon- more as it warms, caramel, some whiskey, a little chocolate. Smooth, well carbonated, the body could be a little fuller, but it's certainly not thin.

Okay, as of this writing, I'm rating this well above the average, but I still have to ask: shouldn't this have turned out better? The Stickee Monkee doesn't seem to have the presence it could have. But, it's still pretty darn good, and maybe I should have grabbed another bottle to age. If you still see it around, it's well worth a purchase.

Jun 01, 2017

brentk56 from North Carolina

3.98/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Appearance: Pours chestnut brown with a frothy ecru head; average retention with considerable, leggy lacing left behind

Smell: Vanilla, fig, plum and Bourbon-infused bread pudding; hint of tart cherry

Taste: The Bourbon tones dominate, with vanilla, oak and Bourbon forward; underneath, there is chocolate, fig, plum and tart cherry developing; after the swallow, heat from the high ABV arrives and the tart cherry becomes more pronounced and the Bourbon and tart cherry flavors linger

Mouthfeel: Medium to full body with low to moderate carbonation; considerable heat in the gullet

Overall: Sometimes the sum of the parts is less than the parts and that, unfortunately, is the case here; too much Bourbon overwhelms the other elements

May 26, 2017

shleepy from California

4.3/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Big head, quite dark. Surprisingly dry, almost sour. Very chocolatey, a little fruity (lots of plum). Oak is noticeable but not overwhelming. Good stuff!

May 16, 2017

arizcards from North Carolina

4.04/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Picked up a 750ml bottle from BevMo Happy Valley on 11-30-16 for $14.99. Best before 07OCT2018.

Beer poured reddish-brown with a very nice off white head upon initial pour.

Nose is very sweet up front, cherry forward with a very light trace of whiskey.

Taste is alcohol warming with the first sip; very sweet with cherry very prevalent. Light roasted malts play in with a very light trace of whiskey in the finish. Been waiting for a hop balancing act but am not getting it. Would have loved to have Parabola in the mix instead of Stickee Monkee and Boulevard regular imperial stout instead of the Tart Cherry variant.

Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied and very smooth.

Overall this was an enjoyable beer that left me wanting more in that the two breweries left their best brews out of the mix. It is spendy but give it a shot if you can afford the splurge!

Apr 30, 2017