There is something undeniably alluring about a stout.  The pitch black liquid that blocks all light, the tan head, the visible visible silky smoothness of the liquid, and the smokey malt aroma make this style of beer a favorite among many.  Of course, within the style are sub styles, as has been discussed before on this site.  One such style of stout is the dry stout, or Irish dry stout, made popular by Guinness.  Typically, this style lacks much of the sweet characteristics in other stout varieties, and thus is often offensive to many a beer drinker.

So on a recent trip to Kansas City, I found myself at a bar with my wife.  Her friend, who is waitress at the bar, offerred discounted drinks on tap.  The selection wasn’t great, so I settled upon Boulevard Brewing Company’s Dry Stout.  It had been six years or so since I had sampled the beer, and had completely forgotten the nuances.

As the beer was set down at the table, the appearance alone piqued my anticipation.  The undulationg service made the think tan head look incredibly smooth.  I picked up the brew and indulged my nostrils.  Yes I was in the mood for this beer.  The crisply dry and smoky  aroma of dark malts, bitter chocolate and espresso were just what I was expecting.

I put the liquid into my mouth.  Well, it was a tad thinner than I had expected, but the smooth mouth feel was exceptional for a dry stout.  The flavor was a bit weaker than I had expected, and tad unbalanced.  Perhaps a little bit malt was necessary.  Nonetheless, the typical flavors were there–a fresh bitter flavor from the bittering hops, rich roasted malt, and very mildly sweet baking cocoa flavor.

But as the liquid engulfed every taste bud and then slid down my throat, there was a sickening twist…elmers glue.  It tasted exaclty like Elmer’s Glue smells.  I sipped again.  The flavor was undeniable.  The more I sipped, the more I realized this beer was bad.  In fact, horrible.

Now, I am sure many will disgree, as perhaps they should!  Many may say that I just don’t know my stouts:  on the contrary I have enjoyed many in the same style within the past few months (Moylan’s Dragoon for example).  And I can’t rule out that perhaps this batch was tainted.  Maybe the bar needed to service their lines, or I was the first to order the beer that evening and the line had not been run first.

But the more I sipped, the more this peculiar/disturbing flavor reared its ugly head, and the more I disliked the beer.  And as a former Missouri resident and fan of Boulevard, I was saddened!  I hope next time I am in Missouri (they don’t distribute to Northwest Ohio) I hope to try a bottle, and prove myself wrong!

Nate’s Rating:

Overall Satisfaction:  

Among other Irish Dry Stouts:  

Here are some other posts on Missouri beers.

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