Lagunitas Brown Shugga

Brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Petaluma, California USA

Draft. Caramel brown color. Soapy, thick 1" head. Malty. Hoppy. Tart, tangy with milky smooth delivery. Like a cross between a milk stout and an IPA. No harshness on finish and leaves warm fuzzies in tummy.

Pours a robust copper color with a thin, sudsy, swiftly subsiding head. Bright aroma that includes an unexpected herbal hoppiness, metal, and also stewed fruits. Richly, and perhaps overly, carbonated. Mouthfeel is bursty but goes down gentle. Slightly smooth and slightly harsh too: the alcohol is not as well-integrated as it could be and yet the Shug remains a strongly appealing sipper.

Had at a tasting at Three Cellars. The arouma of brown "sugga" is slightly over powering. Rich Amber color, not to sweet and a strong sence of the beer.

Tasted from bottle at PP bottle shop. Amber color. microbubbles fighting to the surface. Maybe a hint of sour or oxidation. Somethings off. The brown sugar/molasses can be noticed.

This was actually much better than what I had anticipated, given the mediocrity that has traditionally come along with Lagunitas for me. Quite a hoppy brew with plenty of sweet caramel notes. Certainly covers the alcohol quite well with a luscious body and sweetness. nice.

Bottle courtesy of Unclemattie: Poured a cloudy medium brown color ale with a good size head with good retention and some minimal lacing. Aroma of sweet caramel malt with some notes of toffee. Taste is a very interesting mix between some toffee, caramel and butterscotch malt with a light hoppy finish that is well balance. Full body with limited filtration and some great carbonation with no apparent alcohol.

12oz. bottle. Poured down the middle of the snifter it has a lacy off white head and a deep ruby color. Nose is dry, slightly fruity and has a noticeable alcohol presence. Mouthfeel is malty, with a touch of dark fruit and subtle sugar cane flavor. Not nearly as sweet as its moniker would lead you to believe. The 9.9% is very well hidden as it goes down behind the malt backbone and bittering hops, but is still present in the nose. Solid offering from Lagunitas, highly quaffable and available in sixers.

Copper pour with a foamy off-white head. Smells of brown sugar, fig, orange, citrus, a hint of pine and cherry. Flavor is a nice balance of moderate, slightly sweet, dark fruit, pine and citrus.Creamy medium body with a moderate amount of carbonation.