Boulevard Lunar Ale

I'm not going to lie to you - I've always been a bit of a fanboy of local breweries. Call it tradition. A brewery was often the cornerstone for towns and cities. The Germans do it. The Czech do it. The English definitely do.

In the middle ages, breweries were often the center of town for a number of reasons. First and foremost, beer was far safer than water, as the water was boiled during the brewing process. It can, in fact, be argued that beer is the primary reason people began to settle down into villages in the first place.

"...beer was the driving force that led nomadic mankind into village life...It was this appetite for beer-making material that led to crop cultivation, permanent settlement and agriculture."
    
  - Alan Eames

So in doing the best I can to continue the tradition of supporting local breweries, I'm going to begin a review stint with the breweries that are within an arm's length of me (Kansas City/Lawrence area). With that said, when people associate beer with Kansas City, Boulevard Brewing Co. most often comes to mind. So they're going to be review number one.

Yes, I know - I already reviewed Boulevard's excellent Pale Ale in an earlier glance at the country's 10th largest regional microbrewery. What you may not know is that Boulevard offers a total of six beers at any given time. Nutcracker Ale is their current seasonal - a classic spiced winter brew. They offer five all-season beers, including their flagship Pale Ale, their Unfiltered Wheat (which makes for 73% of their sales), the Dry Stout, the excellent Bully! Porter, and their Dunkelweizen (dark wheat, auf Deutsch) Lunar Ale, released just last March, of which we'll be taking a look at this time.

A couple friends and I always make it a point to take the Boulevard tour a couple times a year. We've started a bit of a tradition - we'll take the tour, enjoy the free beer at the end, and then head to one of dozens of excellent mexican restaurants in the immediate vicinity. It's always a blast, and usually nets me quite the headache the next morning.

It was last December that we were on a tour, and Jeffrey, my partner in crime, spotted some label art for the not-yet-released Lunar ale.
"WHAT is LUNAR ALE!?" he flipped out as he pointed to the obviously Boulevard-esque artwork.

Our tour guide told us it was a new year-round beer that Boulevard would soon release - the first since Dry Stout appeared in the mid 90's. "Think of it as our Unfiltered Wheat, but dark..." he began to explain. The collective "ooooh" of our tour group was as if we were witnessing the discovery of a new planet. Or the unveiling of the moon. Or something. Needless to say, I was a bit stoked to try Boulevard's new heavenly

With the recent surge in popularity of wheat beers in this country, it's surprising to me to see such a lack of Dunkelweizen, or dark wheat beers that are easily found. Part of the problem is most certainly the aversion to 'dark beer' by the general public. The concept of the Dunkelweizen is simple: make a malty sweet beer that is balanced with the body of the wheat adjunct, and top it with a touch of citrus.

Pretty different from a stout or a porter, but people don't seem to understand that quite yet. It's my job to change this gross misconception.

Lunar is a project by Boulevard that seems geared toward getting people more interested in darker-colored beers. It's a bit of a cloudy, murky brown with a slight deep amber touch that gives it some depth, and keeps it away from the 'river water' designation. Hints of sweet malt and orange peel shine through, with other citrus notes typical of a hefeweizen.

They call these wheat beers 'fruit loop' beers, but I'm not sure this one necessarily falls into that category. The fruit is balanced out by the malt, more so than in a normal hefeweizen. And that would make perfect sense, because this one isn't normal.

I'm mixed on this beer. The first time I tried it, I was hoping to see God. The idea of a beautiful mesh between rich, sweet malt, wheat as an adjunct to the malt, and the citrus subtleties sounded like the ultimate beer.

Well, that didn't happen. It tasted plain. Dull. Almost lifeless. The yin overtones that I expected were cancelled out by the yang. They didn't exactly work together. All the nuances that come from rich malt and other traditional wheat beers were just not there. And then I realized something - Boulevard wasn't TRYING to create a crazy complex and beautiful beer. That quality is reserved for other things - namely their smokestack series, and on occasion, their seasonal beers. What they were trying to do is create a darker beer that more inexperienced drinkers would really enjoy.

Look at Boulevard's Wheat - it's a good beer by any standard. Certainly not the best I've had, no. But it encompasses nearly three quarters of Boulevard's overall sales. People like it. When someone asks for a "Boulevard" at the bar at which I work, my first instinct is to ask 'well, which one?' It's the wheat that brings people into the world of good beer. It's not busy. It's easy to drink. It's beautiful in its own right. Boulevard, I believe, is trying to do the same with Lunar and dark beer. And I support them 100%.

Body: (19) - This baby has quite the mouth feel. It's full and rich - there's a lot to it. I'm not referring to the complexity, but the viscosity. It's not too much - you don't feel like you're drinking heavy cream. But you're not drinking water, either. Call it 'Goldilocks' style, for being just right.

Nose: (16) - I smell malt. Lots of it. Sweet malt. It's nice, but some people will most certainly raise their eyebrows.

Character: (12) - This is where Lunar falls on its face. Despite Boulevard's assumed goal of creating a dark beer that more inexperienced drinkers can cope with, I'm flat-out disappointed.

Originality: (19) - A Dunkelweizen. I dig the idea. Now let's hope some of the other bigger microbrews catch onto the idea.

Versatility: (18) - There's no reason this beer can't be drank year-round. Boulevard apparently thought the same. Goes fantastically with a dish along the lines of a citrus and pepper chicken.

Total: 84 out of 100. Give it a shot.

Beer: Boulevard Lunar Ale
Style: Dunkelweizen
ABV: 4.5%
Brewed By: Boulevard Brewing Co. - Kansas City, Missouri
Reviewed By: Jameson Huckaba

Sierra Nevada's Anniversary Ale

2007 Anniversary Ale from Sierra Nevada Brewery in Chico, California

How I choose which beer I review next is like a game to me. I get a mixed six-pack from a local liquor store (Jensen’s or Mass Street Beverage in Lawrence or Lucas Liquors in Overland Park, are some of the ones I go to) and I randomly assign numbers to the beers. I have Jameson pick a number and I drink and review the beer that corresponds. I wish I had a cooler way of figuring out which beer got reviewed next, like Johnny 5 in “Short Circuit” prints out a slip with a beer’s name on it. But I digress…

This past year Sierra Nevada produced its 27th incarnation of their autumn seasonal, the Anniversary Ale, and finally bottled it to bring it to the consumer. Before this year, this gem of a beer was only available at their brewpub. In a press release, Sierra Nevada Brewery was surprised that some people had driven 3 hours from San Francisco to taste this beer. Imagine if Jameson and myself made the day-long-plus trek from Lawrence, Kansas to Chico, California, where the brewery is located, just to taste it…

Sierra Nevada is the second largest craft microbrewery in the United States, second only to Sam Adams of Boston. They have won numerous gold medals and first place awards for their four-year-round beers (Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada Porter, Sierra Nevada Wheat, and Sierra Nevada Stout) as well as for their two other regular seasonal beers (Summer’s Summerfest Ale and Winter’s Celebration Ale) and their limited supply beers (Bigfoot Ale, a barleywine ale, and Harvest Ale, a fresh hop ale, of which is also available for the first time in the brewery’s history in 24-oz. bottles).


Body: 17. The Anniversary Ale is a light and bright American India Pale Ale that opens itself up tremendously after a few minutes.

Nose: 17. I picked up grassy and earthy undertones as well as a slight citrus aroma. This is primarily due to the Chinook hop varietals used to bitter it and the Cascade hop varietals to finish and dry hop it.

Character: 18. This American IPA did not have that sharp, bitter first taste that I was expecting. Instead, it left you with that quandary of whether or not it truly was an IPA and left you with the desire to take yet another sip. With that being said, it was a nice balance of hop bitterness to malt sweetness.

Originality: 20. So this is the first time (granted it is only my second review) I will have bestowed the prestigious score of “20”, but Sierra Nevada deserves it. For 27 years, beer enthusiasts and connoisseurs would have a difficult time getting this beer. It was only available in their restaurant. The only unfortunate thing is that since this beer is one of their seasonals, so it may not be available by the time you read this. This may not be the best American-style IPA I have had but it certainly ranks in the top 10.

Versatility: 16. IPAs tend to busier on the tongue and have a bitter mouth-feel, but the Anniversary Ale is subtle in its appearance and taste, which could make it more appealing to the average consumer. Sierra Nevada recommends pairing this with something spicy, like Southeast Asian or Indian cuisine.

Overall: 88/100. This beer was a great adaptation of the India Pale Ale process. Its availability is limited so pick one or a six pack up if you see it.

Beer: Sierra Nevada Anniversary Ale
Style: American India Pale Ale
ABV: 5.9%
Brewer: Sierra Nevada Brewery (Chico, CA)
Reviewed by: Jeffrey Ward