Boulevard Brewing Company – Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale

I write this review with a heavy heart.  Upon leaving the Bearden Beer Market last Friday I learned that Boulevard Brewing Company will no longer sell its Beer in TN due to lack of sales.  I have recently become quite the fan of this Midwestern Brewery, as I have extended family in Kansas.  Locally, you could find their Sampler Pack and Unfiltered Wheat in Food City and Earthfare.  Now I guess you can count on me to bring back some tasty choices when I visit the family. 

If you didn’t know it already, you are going to miss out.  Boulevard makes some excellent beer, from their regulars like Unfiltered Wheat and Singlewide IPA to their Smokestack Series of High Gravity Beers.  Last year I smuggled home a few Doublewide IPS’s in the man-sized bottles.  Much to my delight, this year I ran across 4-packs of several of the Smokestack beers in 12 oz bottles, a treat indeed.

First up is the Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale.  The name comes from a finicky fermenting tank that happened upon a great combination of flavors in this Belgian Style Ale.  What luck this beer truly is.  I am not a big Belgian/Wheat beer fan.  Typically the sweetness overwhelms me and I can’t finish one.  It’s like Blush to a Pinot Noir fan.  In any case, I can’t say enough good things about this one, much to my own suprise.  I am mad at myself for only grabbing one (4) pack while in KS.  Beersnobs Rob and Don each got one and two stayed in my fridge, until now at least. 

The Ale poured amber, creamy and unfiltered with tons of head…a good inch and a half even with a slow pour.  You can see from the picture that I enjoyed it in a Boulevard Pint.  I realize this isn’t SOP for this style beer, but it barely had time to get to know the glass anyway.  The beer comes loaded with carbonation and it was very welcome.  It was aromatic with floral and citrus notes, and so damn good I finished it inside of 3 minutes.  The initial taste is crisp and bold, very reminiscent of a favorite, Bell’s Two Hearted Ale.  The follow through is subtly sweet and combined with the 8% ABV and slamming carbonation, an easy drink. 

Final Snobs:  Awesome beer, with crisp, complex taste.  Subtly sweet and highly aromatic.  It bridges a gap from crisp, hoppy beers to the Belgian Style.  IPA and Wheat Beer fans would both find interest in this beer.