Tag Archives: Lagunitas Sucks

Boulevard Hoppy Wheat and Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale (Review)

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Last night I went to an excellent a Boulevard beer and food pairing at Farmers Gastropub in Springfield, Missouri. The food was excellent and the best pairing, by a wide margin, was Boulevard Sixth Glass with a mince meat pie. In fact, that was one of the best food and beer combinations I have ever had! The tasting ended with a pint of the Boulevard Hoppy Wheat which should hit store shelves sometime in the spring. The Hoppy Wheat was good and about what I expected, it was essentially Boulevard Unfiltered Wheat with some citrous-y hops added in. All in all a nice beer that will be provide a great deal of refreshment next summer. Farmers and Boulevard combined to create an excellent tasting and I highly recommend attending any such events hosted by Farmers or Boulevard.

Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale arrived yesterday! I always enjoyed Brown Shugga and was disappointed when I found out they were not going to brew it this year. After trying Lagunitas Sucks I do not miss it nearly as much. Lagunitas Sucks is a home run. It follows the traditional Lagunitas formula, high alcohol plus high hops. But, this beer is so much more too. It is very complex for an American IPA. I have even heard comparisons to Hop Slam (it was not nearly as extreme, but I can see where a Hop Slam deprived individual may draw that conclusion). It was more of a take on A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale without the wheat. As previously mentioned, Sucks is extremely hoppy, with a lot of pine, grapefruit and other citrous flavors. It is simply an all around fantastic beer, one of many great offerings from Lagunitas. Try out it, this beer is definitely worth your time and easily a solid 94 or better rating.

Schlafly Coffee Stout, Lagunitas Bavarian Styled Doppel Weizen and the combination (Review)

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I have waited a year for the coffee beers to arrive and the time is now! Tonight, since I have already reviewed the Mother’s Winter Grind Coffee Stout, I feel I owe it to the other large production coffee beer from Missouri. Schlafly Coffee stout is made with St. Louis roasted coffee beans from Kaldi’s Coffee. I remember it as a solid moderately priced staple from previous years and I think it will be that once again even though I am a little disappointed. The nose is as one might expect, very strong on the coffee and little else. This year, I think it is a little watery. There is some pretty intense coffee in there, but the mouth feel is just not right and like the Mother’s it is pretty simple. It is basically, cold coffee with alcohol and some carbonation. I also find it to be exceptionally bitter even for a coffee stout. Still, it is not bad and I will not have a problem drinking the rest of the six pack. Still, it is not what I remember drinking last year nor is it exactly what I was hoping for. Luckily there are many great coffee beers out there, which I have mentioned several times already on this blog. I will probably end up drinking this again this season as the price is right and being as it is so heavy on the coffee, it is always a good beer to wake up to!

I was very excited to see the Lagunitas Bavarian Styled Doppel Weizen as they historically have not produced many beers that are not obsessively hopped (not that I am complaining either). The Bavarian Styled Doppel Weizen does not disappoint. On the nose I got a lot of banana, clove, yeast and bubblegum flavors. The color is a bright, hazy, honey color, with a quickly disappearing head. The taste is much like the aroma, banana and some booze. Perhaps, it is because I know the Lagunitas Brewing Company’s affinity for high alcohol, but I did not forget for a second that I was drinking a 9% beer. It is still very good and about what I expected, essentially an imperial hefeweizen.

I am not very familiar with blending, in fact, my beer blending experience is limited to dares and “brilliant” drunken ideas. But these two beers seemed like an interesting combination. I was thinking, that a “dirty banana” type blend would be created. I was mistaken. While the mixture was not undrinkable, both beers were far better on their own. On the nose the coffee reigned supreme while on the pallet the weizen won out. Oddly enough, the mixture did improve the coffee stout’s weak mouth feel. Ultimately, it is an interesting mix, but not something I plan to repeat.

Since several people have suggested that I actually assign a numerical value to my reviews. I will….Introducing “Tim’s Tasty Scale”!
Schlafly Coffee Stout (2011 version) earns a 78
Lagunitas Bavarian Styled Doppel Weizen earns an 86
Take it for what its worth, enjoy your Sunday and Go Chiefs!

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Speaking of Lagunitas, they will not be making the Brown Shugga this year. While I am very disappointed, the brewmaster’s response is flat out awesome and hilarious (if it is real). http://beernews.org/2011/09/lagunitas-brewing-cancels-brown-shugga-for-2011/. I look forward to drinking a lot of “Lagunitas Sucks” in the next few months. I am also giving Tony Magee my vote for the brewer I would most like to drink with!