IPA Week: Boulevard Double-Wide

The Boulevard Brewing Company in Kansas City, Missouri has released a number of special-edition beers called the Smokestack Series. Tonight I will try the Double-Wide India Pale Ale. This is the bigger brother of their Single-Wide that I reviewed a little while back.

Double-Wide IPAThe Double-Wide pours a lusciously hazy deep caramel copper color with a thick, frothy tan head. The nose is full of hop complexity: pine and a rough floral aroma dominate, with significant notes of herbs and citrus. The grapefruit character of Pacific Northwest hops is assertive. A rich malty aroma matches the hops, manifesting as caramel and toast as well as raisins and prunes. There is but a hint of the sharp alcohol, but it’s hard to notice for the pine.

On the tongue the Double-Wide is slow to attack. First I notice a bit of caramel followed quickly by grapefruit and other citric hop flavor. Later the herbal and piney hops come, bringing along a significant but not overpowering bitterness. The citrus and herbs circle the caramel and raisins while the bitterness grows softer and eventually fades.

This beer is serious yet playful, strong yet drinkable. As much as I love their Single-Wide, Boulevard has worked a miracle with the Double-Wide.

++Boulevard Double-Wide IPA

4.2 (5-9-7-4-17)

Tags: , , ,

3 Responses to “IPA Week: Boulevard Double-Wide”

  1. Steve Davis says:

    Hooray for IPA week!

    I’ve got to agree with Dan that a number of the American-style Double IPAs seem to be getting closer to a more traditional English IPA, but just not the same (promise to myself: go have a Mean Time tonight).

    Have you had Odell’s IPA offering? It something that they claim is basically a traditional English IPA that they “Americanized.” It’s the closest to an English IPA that I’ve seen in the US.

    http://www.odellbrewing.com/beers/classics/ipa.aspx

  2. Mr. Izzle says:

    Yet only .2 higher rating.

  3. couchand says:

    Mr. I: More salient is the jump from one thumb to two.

    Dan’s comment referenced by Mr. D. is the following:
    “I’ve been comparing Double Wide to the Mean Time IPA for some time now, but I fear I may be off in my comparison.

    “I suppose the basic reasoning is we have a powerful west coast IPA with a well balanced malty compromise…bringing in that subdued English approach. I guess I just have to do a side by side now…sigh..

    “The hop profile, though, has got to be completely different. Maybe it just serves as a true English-inspired, yet American style IPA (or Double IPA etc etc). Lots of American Doubles seem to be digging their own niche into the market…. Read More

    “Anyway…I can ponder this later when I don’t have two glasses of whiskey coursing through my circulatory system.”

    Mr. D: Yes I’ve had Odell’s but not for quite a while. What really makes this one stand out as American is the abundance of citric hop character, especially the grapefruit that only comes from Pacific Northwest grown C-hops (cascade, centennial, etc). But I would agree that the balance is much more like Meantime than Pliny. It also reminds me of Brew Dog’s Punk IPA in that way. I haven’t had Meantime IPA in a while either, perhaps I should try that again.

Leave a Reply