When Boulevard Brewing Company was founded back in 1989, craft beer in the United States was forgotten about, and homogenous, unremarkable American beers were much more of an industry. John McDonald, founder of Boulevard, wanted to bring passionate Belgian brewing to his hometown of Kansas City, it is now the pride of the craft beer community. Part of Boulevard’s Smokestack Series, this is a Belgian Quadrupel Ale. In Europe, quads are Trappist beers that are traditionally brewed in monasteries. Quadrupel Ales are strong beers with an abv. of 10% or more. This is a deep, dark and mysterious tribute to authentic Belgian beer, meant for mature connoisseurs who search for and enjoy complexity. It is an enigma in a bottle that reaches back into your memory, reminiscent of tastes you haven’t experienced since you were a child, or ones that you have yet to encounter. Chill to 10-12C.
This quadruple ale pours slick and syrupy. It’s a nicely carbonated beer that produces a big inch and a half of cream foam head. Sitting in its glass, the beer is sight for sore eyes. It’s a gorgeous ruby red color with a medium body and excellent mouth feel.
The process in which a quad is brewed as well as the open fermentation creates a tremendously complex aroma. Notes of sweet bread, milk chocolate, honey, strawberries, candied rum, oak, rye whisky, over ripe plums, and cracked black pepper come to mind, yet a multilayered beer like this will produce different smells for different drinkers.
The palate of a quad is brazen and hard to pinpoint, but can be best compared to a maibock, a doppelbock or a helles. These are malt heavy beers with traces of honeycomb, licorice, caramel, cloves and toffee. Some distinct fruit tastes such as dried figs, raisins, prunes and a slight hint of banana can also be tasted. All of these varying flavors work to hide the alcohol of the beer, so be careful; it can sneak up on your experience.
A quad is a rich and eloquent beer, with a rich and acquired taste. A beer like it is best served with other rich foods. Roasted, rotisserie, sous-vide or Peking duck is an excellent choice to eat with a quad, as the beer really brings forth a lot of the dark herbs and spices associated with the meat. Strong cheeses like aged gouda and traditional deserts like bread pudding are other great pairings.