Lagunitas B3K

Brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Petaluma, California USA

Cloudy light brown with a very small off-white head. Overflow of creamy roasted caramelized malt. Barley-ish wine-ish. Soft carbonation. Alcohol presence feels less than 11.3%. Overall a very good beer except for a little weird fruitiness that just didn’t sit right (could it be the B3K bug?). Small sampling at the end of a long tasting session. Need re-try to formulate better opinion.

B32K Murky amber/ coppery color. Frothy ivory head. Sweet caramel aroma. Caramel and toffee flavors with some bourbon. Tastes like a light barley wine.

Deep dark reddish brown with a thin off white head. A smooth hops and caramel, with light treacle aroma. In mouth, a sweet figuy malt with light floral hops, caramel and spices. Medium bodied. Enjoyed with the Mtl Crew Sept. 9, 2006.

Any first impressions?
-A veil of foam covers the gleaming burgundy.
-Caramel-covered dates and slowly roasting blackberries form a tame aroma.
-Black grapes and dates dipped in soil coalesce with wooden hops and caramel sweetness.
-Body is well-fed, and is clearly demonstrated by the smooth carbonation.

What if you dig deeper?
-Yeast hugs the leafy, tea-like lingering hoppiness.
-The round maltiness even produces some chocolatey notes.
-Roastiness builds with every sip.
-Yet another competent strong ale from Lagunitas which doesn’t follow any specific style, and that’s the way un-huh, un-huh I like it.

Bottle; no date.

A beautiful tawny color like that of rich, dark wood with a moch-colored head that sustains nicely and laces the glass well. The aroma is dense, fruity and deep with traces of what appears to be concentrated fruit juice added and a touch of caramel and milk. Unique. Flavor and aroma are one with the addition of some burnt caramel and a solid sweetness on the palate.

Dark burgundy, mostly clear, slowly fading off-white foam. Malt focused nose brings out sweet toasty flavors reminiscent of biscuit, toffee, sweet apples and soft orangey hops. Oxidation notes peak through considerably, letting moisture, tartish bread and metallic component take more and more room as the beer warms. Raisin bread developments could be said to hint at a vague fruitiness, but the texture remains more sugary than juicy. Incredibly well masked 11.3%, I would have guessed 7-8! Nutty, earthy, finish where the hops fail to uplift the tired maltiness.

On tap, brought out by the Lagunitas folks at Concordia Ale house (!!).. Snifter. Pours rich mahogany red amber, with a thick, almond-tan head, and good lacing.. Aroma is very complex, with estery maple, caramel, toffee, wet cardboard, and some herbal hops in there for good measure.. Initial sip is amazingly complex, with toffee, honey-maple, with ripe cherries/apple, that gives way to some herbal hop notes, finishing deadly smoooooooth, with the rich toffee sweetness balancing with the hop bittering.. HOWEVER.. as the galss warms, the thick sickly sweetness of diacetal (sp?)creeps up :( and continues to become more and more prominent, making the beer nearly undrinkable towards the end- hence the unusual scoring..

Deep mahoganey. Light tan creamy full head with good lacing. Sweet slightly roasty aroma. Grape jelly. Creamy, sweet, roasted malt, slightly aged hops, caramel, light molasses. Good beer, would have liked to have had some a year ago.