Friday 2/2 BLOG!

In honor of Valentine's Day, Clark Dooley and I have decided to do some candy flavored beer research so Clark bought a bottle of Boulevard Chocolate Ale and I picked up two bottles of Chocolate Stout. We decided to drink the Boulevard Chocolate Ale first.

Brewer: Boulevard Brewing Company, Kansas City
Beer: Boulevard Smokestack Series Chocolate Ale
Style: Ale albeit 9.1% alcohol
Price: $12.99 for a pint bottle- not cheap

Clark claims that all of his KC homies are going crazy for this so he had to try it. Here are the ratings:

Appearance: Amber Caramely Smoky- not clear at all.

Mouthfeel: Kind of prickly, very bubbly.

Smell: surprisingly weak- can't really smell anything. Clark smells malt but it is not strong.

Taste: Definitely malty; the label says it is a malt beverage so I guess that makes sense. As for the chocolate, it is very apparent at the beginning of the drink but disappears quickly. I am not a fan to be honest; especially for $13 a pint. Not a real good start. Amy said it was like McEwans with sugar. John says that the four pale ales may have dulled his taste buds but he wants to know where the chocolate is. Clark says his homies can keep it in KC.

Overall rating: I say a 2.5 Clark says a 1.75. Not a stellar start.

Sidenote: Michelle is putting lip gloss on right now. Watch out TP holders. By the way, if you ever invite Michelle over, hide the wine.

On to the second!!!

Brewer: Rogue Brewery (usually a solid brewer- haven't had a bad one yet)
Beer Name: Rogue Chocolate Stout
Beer Style: Chocolate Stout
Price: $6.99 if memory serves correctly

Appearance: Looks like beer. Very dark. Almost black. Slight head; good lacing on the glass.

Mouthfeel: Very smooth but substanial. A nice feel.

Smell: Again, not a very strong smell. I'm starting to wonder if I have a cold. What I can smell is a slight chocolate smell with a hint of some kind of nuts.

Taste: Ummmmmmmmmmm. Now we have a beer. This is good stuff. Definitely more chocolaty and beery. Very smooth and the chocolate starts strong and fades into a slightly bitter aftertaste. The stout taste is smooth and not too bitter. It is a balanced beer which tastes good from start to finish. I recommend it highly for your Valentine's Day drinking. Clark says very choclatey, not cocoaey... Good beer.

Overall Rating: I say 3.5, Clark says 3.5 also. Good stuff.

And the last Chocolate beer for the night...

Brewer: Wells and Youngs Brewery, England
Beer Name: Young's Double Chocolate Stout
Beer Style: Chocolate Stout
Price: Want to say $5.99 but not for sure.

Appearance: Dark, choclatey, can't see through it at all.

Mouthfeel: Tingly, somewhat flat feel to it.

Smell: Smells like black licorice to me; sort of an anise smell.

Taste: Very smooth as well here. This is a professionally made beer as well. A little more bitter then the Rogue and slightly more malty. Clark doesn't care for the malt. We both agree that it is good but not quite as good as the Rogue.

SIDENOTE: Manchester United beat Chelsea in the 94 FA Cup final. Cantona scored twice from the spot. Programming note: United beats Chelsea Sunday AM on Fox. Better then the Super Bowl. Tune in.

BONUS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My bro in law, Erick has decided to brew his own beer. He gave me a sample beer of each kind tonight and I told him I would review both on the blog tonight. Here goes!!!!

BREWER: Erick Todd brewing company
BEER NAME: Bo Pellini sucks nuts brown ale
Beer Style: Nut brown ale
Price: Ask Erick

Appearance: Ummm brown, cloudy, very bubbly

Mouthfeel: Smooth with a bubbly undertone, kind of champagney

Smell: Somewhat sweet in a mixed vegetableish way; can't say I've ever smelled this smell before- not necessarily bad- just very different

Taste: Very smooth- somewhat bland but we have been drinking chocolate stout for the last two hours as well so anything beneath paint thinner is going to be bland at this time. I think this would make Bo Pellini proud; if he wasn't a walking vagina... which he is. Go Penn State! And Michigan, Ohio St., Minnesota, Northwestern etc. Clark says go Illinois and Wisconsin and anyone we forgot.

Overall rating: Not bad. I'm going to have to shorten the name of the beer to retain blog space. From here on out, we are referring to it simply as "Bo Pellini sucks nuts". I give the "Bo Pellini Sucks Nuts" a 3.0. A good effort for a first time brewer. Gives me hope for future offerings. Clark says a good Newcastle feel; 3.2 overall.

BREWER: Erick Todd Brewery
BEER NAME: Erick's Wheatholer Ale
BEER STYLE: Wheat Ale
PRICE: Ask Erick (less then the Boulevard chocolate- that Clark can gaurantee)

SIDENOTE: CLark and I love to say Peter "SCHMIECHEL" Say it a few times-"SCHMIECHEL, SCHMIECHEL, SCHMIECHEL" See, I told you. And try to sound German. Makes it even funner.

Appearance: Light golden and very clear. Looks like a very summery beer.

Mouthfeel: Clark says slightly resembles alka seltzer. I think it is bubbly also. But only up front. Smooths out as it goes down. A good feel to it overall.

Smell: Clark says enticing. Very fruity. I say bubblegummy with a hint of baby poop. Or bananas; whichever.

Tatse: Clark says OOOhhh, ummm, and nothing else. Waiting... waiting... nothing. Clark says it tastes bubbly. Maybe the four pale ales have gotten him after all. Oh wait, he says it needs to sit a couple, two years. After a few drinks, I am pleasantly surprised. This doesn't taste like it smells. It is good. I could drink this all summer long. Has a hint of Belgium in it; especially the aftertaste. A very complex wheat beer that is light enough to please most palates but complex enough to keep your interest. File this away under "keeper" (unlike Taylor Martinez to the NFL scouts).

Overall rating: I'm going 3.5 with the potential to increase given a 6 pack in the driveway at a later date. Clark says the Stroh's factory farted out a 3 for this one. Obviously, I'm not making that up...

Good job Erick. Looking forward to the new one that you are brewing tonight. Hope you have as much fun making it as I had drinking these. And listening to Clark's pearls of alcohol wisdom...

Until next time, thanks for reading. Two oatmeal stouts coming next unless I finish the Scotch Ale blog I started last weekend. I LOVE SCOTCH ALE...