Collaboration 7
Collaboration 7 - Oak-aged lager with peach, lemon zest, and riesling grape juice - 6% ABV
Boulevard Brewing Co. (Kansas City, Missouri), Creature Comforts (Athens, Georgia) and Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co. (Gilbert, Arizona)
Lager
What I say:
This is a nice twist on a lager. It's a very light beer with a strong citrus smell, bright and slightly cloudy orange-gold color and a light head, and light lacing on the glass that sticks around as you finish your beer. The citrus tones overwhelm the peach in this beer, with the peach coming in as a slight moderator that tones down the sharper lemon flavor. I don't get any woody tones that I would expect from something claiming to be "oak-aged," and while I'm sure someone could find the reisling grape juice in this, I'm not getting that.
This is a good beer, and probably a decent lager, but lagers are typically too bland for me. The long description and fact that this was a collaboration beer gave me higher hopes than I would with a typical lager, so I ended up being disappointed. I'd probably drink this again, but only if someone else was buying and they just introduced it as a lager.
Overall rating: 3/5
What others say:
Most reviewers gave this beer between a 3.7 to 4.5 on Beer Advocate. Some noted that this is sweeter than most lagers, which I'd have to agree with. The sweetness gives it a better taste, so it doesn't feel like flavored water while you drink it. They noted more bready or honey tones, though, which I did not get as I drank the beer. One reviewer said the oak was not as strong as they would have hoped, and I'd have to agree with that — if you're going to advertise as an oak-aged lager, give me a little oak. While some said the beer was underrated on the site, others said it did not have the complexity that the name boasts. Once again, I'd have to agree.
The reviews on BA can be found here.
My fiance grabbed this beer while at the store, with one selling factor being that Creature Comforts was involved. I'm a fan of collaborations, and even though this one fell a little short, the details behind the beer make for an interesting read. You can find a full description of the collaboration here.