Beer Review: Boulevard Brewing Company Lunar Ale

A friend selected Boulevard Brewing’s Lunar Ale one night when he and his lovely wife (and young’uns) were at our house for a cook out, so I decided to review it for this blog. Thanks Chad!

According to the Boulevard Brewing Web site, this is an unfiltered brown ale. Here is more information:

Brewed using a unique aromatic yeast, this refreshing variety is best described as a cloudy brown ale with a complex, malty aroma and flavor, and a crisp, dry finish.

SENSORY DESCRIPTION: Very versatile beer. Light sweetness complements light foods and malty/smoky flavor can stand up to some spicier dishes. Flavor hooks: fruit, cloves, roasted malt

PAIRINGS: Lightly caramelized flavors from grilling chicken or seafood, roasted chicken or pork, stews, sausages, salads, and desserts including walnuts or almonds.

Let’s get on to the tasting…

The Pour
This poured with a two-finger head consisting of small, tight bubbles that gave the head a somewhat fluffy or pillowy texture. The color seems to be that of a too weak coffee. The beer is somewhat cloudy from the yeast and appears quite carbonated.

The Nose
Wheat is the strongest scent I picked up. It’s almost the only note, as a matter of fact. There are some spice notes. It really smells like a typical wheat beer.

The Taste
The head is rich and creamy. This is medium-light bodied, not heavily carbonated and pretty smooth. This is kind of a one-note beer. You get a wheat beer flavor profile with slight teases of hop bitterness here and there. 

Overall
Before cracking this open, I had no idea it was a wheat beer. Then after taking my tasting notes, I see on their Web site that it’s a brown ale, though it does have wheat in it. There’s really nothing exceptional about this beer to make me say, “Go try this today!” but there’s nothing wrong with it either. Overall, a drinkable wheaty beer.

Recommended: I’m not really going either way on this. Try it and see if you like it, but I won’t push this as a really good selection.

Price: Unknown

ABV: 5.1%

Beer Review: Samuel Adams Winter Lager

I purchased this beer to celebrate my passing an important test, allowing me to take upper level engineering courses. I have had Samuel Adams beers before, and generally like them fine, but I had never had their Winter Lager, so I thought I’d give it a shot.

According to the 6-pack packaging…

This rich and hearty lager is brewed with flavorful spices such as cinnamon, orange zest and fresh ginger. The character and complexity of Winter Lager add warmth to a winter evening, and is a welcome complement to any holiday table.

I didn’t notice until after I had finished at least my first bottle that the bottle refers to this as a “dark wheat lager brewed with winter spices”. Here goes the review.

The Pour
This pours to an orange-tinted maple syrup color. A very light tan head appears, about 1 1/2 fingers high, and leaves good lacing as it dissipates. This is a  very clear brew and looks to be at least somewhat crisp. 

The Nose
This smells tasty. The nose doesn’t come right out with any strong aromas to me, which makes me feel better about purchasing this beer. That probably means it won’t be overspiced. I can pick up hints of cinnamon and possibly the ginger. There is some maltiness and an ever so slight roasted scent.

The Taste
The first thing I noticed in the taste was the ginger. Not that it’s overpowering because it’s not at all. This has a medium-full body with an interesting mouthfeel. It seems to be creamy and round but it crisps a bit on the edges. I can taste hints of the cinnamon and orange mentioned on the packaging. There is almost a maple syrupy hint in the nose and taste that becomes noticeable as it warms, and it gets a little stronger by the end of the bottle.

Overall
This is a very smooth and rich brew. It’s creamy and carries a sweetness but is not at all cloying or overly sweet. The flavor profile is complex and interesting. I was a bit surprised to see it’s a wheat lager. I think this is a very tasty and enjoyable winter beer!

Recommended: Yes, without hesitation. It’s very well suited to the winter season without being heavy.

Price: $8.79 per six-pack

ABV: Beer Advocate says 5.8%

Spreading the beer blog love: Nashville Beer Geek

So I’m sitting here checking out my blog stats, which have suffered due to my neglect of the blog, and I clicked on the link to Nashville Beer Geek’s blog.

I forget that I have the links to other blogs on my blog, and I’m always busy, so I don’t visit their blogs as often as I’d like. So I decided to check out Smitty’s Nashville Beer Geek blog.

Every time I visit his blog, I realize his every post is a quality post and he really does have a great site over there. It also makes me feel mine is lacking and inspires me to want to improve it. 

So please go visit Smitty at http://nashvillebeergeek.blogspot.com/. Bookmark his blog and come back to it often. It’s very well done and a great beer read, but if you’re local to the Nashville area, it’s also a great way to find out what beers are new to the area and what can be expected soon.

Cheers
The Beer Snob