The Sixth Glass Quadruple Ale (Schlafly)

***Note from the editor: Sixth Glass is a Boulevard Product, not Schlafly. The writer of this blog is a drunkard and a fool. Boulevard is a mighty fine brewery, and we apologize profusely for screwing this review up.****


Before I get started I just want to admit one thing: I Love Saint Louis. Why? Well for starters St Louis is the home to the world headquarters of the American Mustache Institute. I bet you didn't know that? Further, St Louis has White Castles. If you have never had a slyder, I feel very, very sorry for you. If you are a fan of those little grease balls, I dare you to close your eyes and think of one right now. DO IT! DO IT NOW! Can't you just taste the steamed bun, those little dessicated onion, the hearty flavor that can best be described as the essence of umami. St Louis also has several Trader Joes locations. If you love moldy bread and tons of inexpensive wine then you will love TJs. St Louis also has a world class botanical garden, FREE ZOO, Forest Park, a kick-butt City Museum, the Rams, and the Anheuser-Busch headquarters. But most importantly St Louis is home of Schlafly's.


Schlafly's is one of my favorite regional breweries. They have a solid line of beers, two great resteraunt locations (The Taproom and The Bottleworks) and host a slew of beer tastings and festivals throughout the year. HOP in the City is their early fall festival where they pull out all the stops and serve 40+ beer varieties, pretty much their entire line plus seasonal brews. Did I mention that the price of admission also gets you a cute little beer tasting cup?



Today I am reviewing the The Sixth Glass Quadruple Ale. It comes in the Belgian style, packaged in a champagne bottle. At $8 a bottle, this is not a cheap beer. And at 10% ABV it sure as heck ain't for the weak of heart. Is it worth price tag and brain cells? It surely is. Would I drink it every day? If I could afford to I would!





I pulled out a couple of my 6 oz tasting glasses and poured a few drinks for myself and my lovely wife. I immediately noticed that the beer was a gorgeous red color with a solid white head. (It looks black in the photo, but thats the flash screwing the color up.) Upon tasting, you are distracted a little bit by citrusy-piney flavor of the hops. But not in a bad way, not at all. And while the hop character is heavy, its not oppressively in your face like an ESB or IPA. Once the surprise of the hops wear off you notice that the malt level is just rigggght. Its not heavy and burnt tasting, nor is it too light and wimpy like the aforementioned ESBs and IPAs.


With the 10% ABV the hop and malt character have to be perfect, otherwise you are stuck with a boozy disgusting mess. Think malt liquor. Think high gravity grossness like Steel Reserve, or Colt 45. Now, there are times when I feel like embracing my inner white trash. So those HGLs have a time and a place. This quadruple from Schlafly holds up so well that it can be enjoyed any time.


In short: Good job Schlafly. Once again a sucessful and tasty brew from an outstanding regional brewey. Keep it flowing and I will keep it puring!