Lagunitas Pale Ale

Lagunitas Little Sumpin' Wild

Little Sumpin' Wild poured a clear, golden yellow color with a two fingered width, off white head.  The aroma is amazing,  a little wheat but dominated by a fruity sweetness that reminds me of a stick of juicy fruit gum.  A perfect balance between a weak aroma and an overbearing one. 

The body is smooth, with a wheat base, and a little sugar from some faint fruit.  There is a little alcohol warmth on the backend before a finish that has a little bitterness that increases as the beer wears on. 

Overall, this is another very good beer from Lagunitas.  A dangerously easy drinking 7.5% ABV beer, Lagunitas has become very good at making style stretching beers. 

Lagunitas Brown Shugga'

Lagunitas brown poured a clear, reddish brown color with a thumb width, tan head. The aroma is malty with clean hops giving off an earthy, herby, almost spice like aroma. The body is smooth with a decent amount of carbonation. The first sip is malty and abrupt before moving right to a nice helping of hops on the backend. The hops here give off similiar flavors to the aroma without the huge bitterness overwhelming the chocolatey malt from the first sip. This transitions to a wonderful lingering, dry finish. The beer left some hanging lace on the glass.

Overall, a very nice beer. Brown Shugga is diverse and balanced, one of those beers that you just drink too quickly and end up looking at the bottom of your glass wishing you had more. The complimentary finish is really enjoyable, probably the best part of the beer.

Lagunitas Undercover Investigation Shutdown Ale

Undercover Shutdown poured a clear, dark amber color with a pen width, off white head. The nose is big, lots of malts up front followed by a bounty of hoppy aromas. The body is big, layered and complex, with a sturdy malt backbone, a little sugary malt, and chocolate notes. The finish is great, big and dry, lingering just long enough. The beer left coated rings of hanging lace down the glass.

Overall, this is a beautiful beer. It drinks really big, yet somehow manages to hide it's 9.7% ABV and stays perfectly balanced. I have grown to expect a lot when drinking a Lagunitas beer and this did not disappoint. This is a must buy for anyone who enjoys good beer.

Lagunitas Wilco Tango Foxtrot

The bottle of Wilco Tango Foxtrot that I tasted for this review sat in my temperature controlled wine fridge for about three months. While I have not tasted it fresh, there were certain parts of the beer that I could tell were vastly different then what a fresh "WTF' would taste like.

Wilco Tango Foxtrot poured a clear, reddish brown color with a two fingered width, off white head. There were tons of small sediment floating around in the body of the beer.

The aroma has a hoppy edge to it, with some malt in there. There is a slight offness to it which might be the only negative thing that came from aging the beer.

The body was smooth, malt based with a little sweetness. There is a little chocolate on the backend before a flood of hops hit the palate. The finish is dry and lingers for a bit, working perfectly with the malty body. The beer left plenty of ringed, hanging lace on the glass.

Overall, this was a beer that I absolutely loved. It is layered, balanced, and very drinkable at the same time. While not aged for a long time, I can tell that the malt base had rounded out and it tasted more like a rich brown ale rather than an imperial brown ale. The chocolate was still there and was a wonderful touch. It is flat out just a fantastic beer from start to finish.

Lagunitas Lucky 13 Cask

The first Friday of every month is cask beer night at Aroma Thyme Bistro, in Ellenville, NY. This month's beer was Lucky 13 from the Lagunitas Brewing Company. Lucky 13 was first brewed in 2006 to commemorate the brewery's 13th anniversary. The beer was so well received that Lagunitas decided to keep it around.

Lucky 13 poured a cloudy apple cider color with absolutely no head. The nose was clean, big hop aroma with some underlying malt. The body was smooth, with almost no carbonation. There is a big malt backbone, a noticeable sweetness and notes of beef jerkey, and a large amount of hops on the backend. The finish is loaded with hops, a sharp bitterness, and a nice lingering dryness.

Overall, this is a nice, well made beer. It is a monster that should be sipped or paired with rich, gamey meat. This would be a great beer to buy and lay down in the cellar for a year or so.