[Reaper16]

Drinking a bottle of Boulevard [Smokestack Series] Collaboration No. 1 -- a historic collaboration between Boulevard and Jean-Marie Rock, the brewmaster of the Trappist monastery Orval.

I think that I'll review this beer:
750mL bottle served into a 2009 Boulevard Smokestack Series chalice

Damn, this is pretty. I expect nothing less from a Smokestack Series beer; Boulevard brewmaster Steven Pauwels has mastered the art of perfect looking beer. Collaboration No. 1 is no different. It pours a very pale lemon shade of yellow. Though super-light in color -- light enough to see the carbonation bubbles rise in pretty pillars to the top of the glass -- there is just enough cloudiness to the body to lend the bear a hazy glow when held to direct light. The stark white head is two fingers or more at its peak with fairly sticky lacing. I don't know the exact detail of the old-world brewing methods that Pauwels and Rock used but these techniques sure delivered a gorgeous beer.

The aroma strikes first with a very drying sort of band-aid phenolic thing before lending to the airy, doughy pilsner malt. As the beer warms and opens up there are frankly Orval-like Beligan pale ale aromas coming out. Lots of apple skin and lemongrass and bittering hops. Its yeasty for sure but there is a restraint holding things back. Its pretty fruity for a pils but plenty good smelling.

The fruit phenols are imminently noticeable on the tongue. Apple skin and pear flesh and squeezed lemon brighten up the malt. The pilsner malt is clean and bready and a great backbone for the yeasty flavors and the leafy, astringent hops. Brewing spice -- clove, most likely -- swirls around all of the flavors as the beer warms. This is as much a Belgian Pale as it is an old-world Pils; whatever it is it is a clean, technical, well-executed brew.

I typically prefer my pilsners to be very light in mouthfeel but there are some stronger, more yeast-centric flavors in this Imperial strength pils. Thankfully the body has been thickened to accommodate the increased flavor profile. While medium-bodied, Collaboration No. 1 doesn't sacrifice in carbonation level. The beer is at all times lively and prickly with jets of bubbles. This carbonation helps keep this refreshing, a key quality of a good pilsner. That sense of refreshment works with the flavors to make this a very drinkable beer, especially with food. This would be delightful with a grilled burger or a simple summer salad.

When this beer was announced there was some trepidation at the fact that it would be an imperial pilsner. After all, this is a monumental event for craft beer! This beer marks the first time that an American craft brewery has collaborated with the brewmaster of one of the seven Trappist breweries worldwide! Shouldn't such a huge collaboration -- one between the Brettonamyces loving brewers of Saison-Brett and Orval -- be something more daring, more innovative? Imperial Pilsner sounds boring but this beer, I assure you, is not. Pauwles and Jean-Marie Rock used long-extinct brewing methods to craft a beer that Rock has wanted for years to give to the world. This refreshing, delicious pilsner is worth buying and enjoying not only because it is a limited release, not only because it is an important collaboration, but because it is a flat-out very good beer. Don't miss out.