Spiced Imperial Stout Barrel-Aged
Boulevard Brewing Co.

 

2023 vintage.

Pours somewhat murky brown but appears black in the glass with minimal head, just a ring. Nose reminds me a lot of holiday spices (nutmeg, cinnamon), pepsi cola, apples. Taste does a decent job blending the flavors together from the nose and introduces some oak and char. Mouthfeel is thin-to-medium body with moderate carbonation. Finish further accentuates the holiday/pepsi vibe and adds some char notes.

Black in color with no light penetration. There’s a fingernail of brown around half of the rim. The aroma is of apple brandy and dark malt. I’m tasting sweet apple brandy and dark malt. The mouth is boozy, thick, and alcoholic.

Nose is a fascinating and complex melange of notes, from yeast phenols, to base stout notes of prune and cola, to barrel and spice influence notes of wood, cinnamon, and vanilla. Boozy.

Far less boozy on the palate. Actually drinks quite thin, and seems more of a double digit ABV brew than the massive 15%. That's both a compliment and a criticism.

The apple brandy barrel notes are there if you know to look for them, but are more prominent on the finish than anywhere else. Whatever spices they used (I'm assuming cinnamon, at a minimum) are very complementary with the barrel, base stout, and yeast profile. It all comes together very well.

This reminds me of Aardwolf's apple brandy barrel aged stouts, but much thinner and less expressive. That said, it's overall a very, very good beer.

 

 

 

 

12 ounce bottle into a snifter. Best by 8/28/25, had 1/18/24.

Pours a mostly opaque dark brown, with a one and a half inch foamy head and a good amount of foamy lacing. Aromas of cinnamon, light apple brandy- more as it warms, some chocolate and vanilla, other spices- maybe allspice and nutmeg. Similar flavors: cinnamon, malt, apple brandy- again, more as it warms, some vanilla, light chocolate and oak, other spices- allspice and clove, for two. Smooth, a very good fuller body, well carbonated.

The brandy barrels and the other add- ins are really well blended with the solid base beer. Best fully warmed. Very enjoyable.

Beautiful pour. Nice dark color. Good head.

Absolutely delicious nose. Hints of apple and cinnamon, but not too heavy.

Awesome flavor. Stout base, but not too thick. I really got the apple and cinnamon, in a great not sweet way.

Outstanding. Worth finding!

Appearance: Dark brown, ok head.

Smell: Very bright apple brandy nose, but not boozy.

Taste: Sweet, then a ton of sweetened cinnamon. Maybe a little chocolate underneath, but the cinnamon hits front and center. Maybe a bit of boozy apple later. Not super heavy or coating.

Overall: From the mixed 6 pack of barrel-aged stouts. This Spiced Imperial Stout in apple brandy barrels is definitely spiced with cinnamon. Quite sweet and a little one-note, but it's ok.

12oz bottle. Label has this dating information, 'PLEASE ENJOY BY: 28AUG2025.
Dark brown colored body, with a mahogany brown back lit edge. One finger of light brown head, but this settles quickly to bubble fed islands and a thin ring. Leaves behind a few short strings of lacing.
Aroma of sweet smelling apple brandy, baking spices, and cinnamon.
Taste is alcohol laden, and sweet. Flavors of apple brandy, chocolate, vanilla, cinnamon, and allspice. Lingering aftertaste.
Thicker mouth feel. No alcohol burn with small sips but vapors fill the nasal passages. Good carbonation.
The baking spices and the apple brandy barrel blend well. Consider this to be an amped up winter warmer.

 

Spiced Imperial Stout – from Boulevard. Mixed six-pack of three barrel-aged brews, limited release for 2023. Picked up at Franklin Beer, Franklin, PA on 08/12/23 for $23.00/six-pack (Including tax, $ 0.319/fl oz. Reviewed 21/12/23 (Review 3199). Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Stamped on label “PLEASE ENJOY BY 28AUG2025”. Stored at 34 degrees at home. Served at 57.2 degrees F in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature was 61.8 degrees F.
Appearance – 4.
First pour – Medium Amber (SRM 12), slight haze.
Body – Amber Brown (SRM 18), opaque. Under direct light, same with a few large lumps of precipitate. When rear-lit, slight light penetration at the edges, amber. There is distinct chill haze.
Head: Average (Maximum one cm, aggressive center pour), bone, high density with rocks on top, short retention, dropping to a 0.2 cm crown, and a thin, rocky island.
Lacing – Good. Wide band of near-microscopic bubbles.
Aroma – 3.5 – Weak nutmeg. No malt, no yeast, no hops, no alcohol (15 % ABV as marked on the label).
Flavor – 3 – Moderately sweet but ethanol burn overpowers any flavor. No yeast, no malt, no hops. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl. Painful gastric burning.
Palate – 4 – Medium; smooth and creamy; soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 3.75 Harsh alcohol burn cremates any flavor other than the sweetness. Let this one age a year or three, or wait to the “Enjoy by” date to drink it.

Pours black with two fingers of khaki foam. Oily legs cling to the glass, foreshadowing a heavy, boozy beer. Aroma is nutmeg, cinnamon, and sharp spice preceding roasty and toasty malts. Apple brandy underneath adds some alcoholic heat, and additional sweetness. Flavor profile is spices out front again, with chocolate just behind. Transition feels a little weird, but not off-putting. Roasty and toasty malts sandwich apple brandy. Spices and apple brandy are less potent than the nose. Mouth feel is thick. Very light, uneven silty texture. Overall, apple brandy and spices are the star. Some of the stout notes feel a little wonky paired with the spices, but otherwise it's solid. Possibly the best part of this one is the balance is just good enough to mask the 15% ABV, though it still is evident this one is boozy from first whiff to last sip.

Served in a 12oz snifter from a 12oz bottle. Reviewed from notes.

Bottle pour - got the dark body with short mocha head leaving minimal lacing. Nose is on par with spiced cider with an appely overtone. Taste kicks up the spice level and the sweetness. A festive quaff for the season.

Nice flavor; a bit too effervescent for a big stout. Aroma and taste improved considerably as it warmed from the fridge to room temperature.

Another of the Limited Release Brewers Choice series whose serious following has reviewed this plenty in less than 2 months. Perhaps I've been missing something. But, maybe not. At my advanced age, high-ABV brews are two or three night affairs and that requires long attention spans that, just so you know, I consider work. There also is the added disincentive that I prefer to eat my dessert instead of drink it. (But I admit, it is easier to buy a high ABV bottle that find a good dessert.) Snark aside, aspects of this Boulevard brew are masterful.

Looks are inviting: generous initial foam followed by hazel/pecan highlights on a dark body. Smells are full fruit with apple prominent, but the ABV belies problems within. Suffering the same ABV excess, Tastes try to be balanced but struggle to succeed... yet ultimately they do, mostly because the spicing reminds us that this is the season to be merry. The alcohol keeps me from Feeling this brew with my palate and instead my head Feels it.

I'm a big fan of how D-M smartly encourages its subsidiaries to grow and serve their specific niches. Compared to my D-M favorites Ommegang and A'Chouffe, I've paid too little attention to Boulevard. Yet they also are mostly Belgian-inspired; but Boulevard's barrel line proves their excellence also is diverse. All this praise explains my high Overall Hugs.

12/2/23 Had the middle nightcap of three and this second was somewhat less assertive. I've edited the review above, but didn't change the rating as the high ABV still interferes and seems like more of a thrill master than the true brewmaster I consider Boulevard to be. I got two Spiced IS in Boulevard's BA 6-pack (along with 2 other Boulevard BA creations.) I gave the second copy of Spiced IS to my nephew for helping with holiday decorations. I should have told him to let this brew mellow for two years. On the other hand, that advice would have fallen deaf on the kid's ears. But if you ever get one copy of Spiced IS, let it mellow. Cheers !

12/3/23 My report on the third and final nightcap is that it is slightly more mellower, but is losing some character as an ale. So best to let this creation mellow itself out.

Another impressive barrel-aged offering from Boulevard; pours dark brown and sits black in the glass with a small khaki head. The brandy barrel is apparent on the nose and palate, along with a complimentary smattering of spices...boozy notes of apple and oak, chocolate and vanilla, strong and rich but hiding the 15% abv as well as it can.

Poured from bottle into tulip, massive 2+ finger dark tan head, great retention and lacing. Jet black in the glass, no light passes thru. Roasted malt, apple and cinnamon on the nose. Taste follows the nose, big apple brandy on the front mixing with chocolate and roasted malt, the chocolate carries thru to the middle with a nice shot of cinnamon. Residual cinnamon and chocolate on the palate. Nice job, roast is there but carries a back seat and lets the apple brandy, chocolate notes and cinnamon shine. Hides its 15% quite well