Lagunitas Imperial Red

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

Fruity floral aroma. Citrusy sweet caramel on the palate. Nicely hopped. A very tasty beer. Very refreshing.

First off, this beer smells fantastic. Its got a very pleasant citrus with orange hints. I’m guessing amarillo aroma or dry hops, but I’ve been wrong before. Very malty and bitter, well balanced in its huge flavors. Its very similar to arrogant bastard, but less estery. This is another winner from Lagunitas as far as I’m concerned.

Bottle: Pours a slightly clear red/amber color with little head. Strawberries, apples, floral hops and a mild maltiness present in the aroma. Very fruity taste that gravitates towards in-your-face floral and piney hops as it warms. Some light malt aspects noted before the hops took them hostage. Very good brew.

Pours dark reddish amber with a fully receding light tan head. Aroma is sweet citrus, resinous west coast hops, grapefruit, and light acidity. Taste is grapefruit, toffee, and resinous pine. Mouthfeel is full bodied, lightly sticky and resinous with lush carbonation. How many beers like this can Lagunitas really brew?

12 oz. bottle. Strong, pleasant aroma that is simultaneously hoppy and malty. Pacific hops scents: pine, apricot, salt. Cookie and fruitcake malt smell. The aroma remains strong even upon drinking. Intriguing, appealing color: Dark amber, mahogany leather, or orange-tinted medium brown. Mostly clear liquid but with the slightest of haze. Some bubbling. Thick, fluffy, light tan head. Produces nice, thick, long-lasting lacing. Hops dominate the flavor at first: piney, dry, sharp, citrus-sour. Fruity maltiness makes this essentially a darker, maltier IPA. Sweet, sugary malts begin to dominate the flavor upon multiple sips. In fact, this beer would be too candy-sweet if not for the strong hopping. Alcohol evident in the taste but by no means overpowering. Nice, long, dry, bitter aftertaste. Full body. Thick, almost syrupy. Lively in the palate. Refreshing. Easy to drink, especially for such a full-bodied brew. This beer reminds me of Surly Furious in its combination of aggressive hops, assertive malts, and full body. Lagunitas Imperial Red is a surprisingly good beer. It is really, really tasty. It’s strong across the board and a pleasure to imbibe. This is my kind of beer! Note that it is better on the chilly side.

Interesting smell of cherries. Flavor is crisp hops, and a bit of cherries. I would drink it again.

12oz Stubby $10.99 6-Pack Sam’s Chicago 84.20 IBU I love big hoppy reds. Let’s see how Lagunitas’ version tastes. Pours crimson with a barely noticeable amount of haze. A two finger creamy dirty white head formed on the pour and faded to a collar leaving some thick drink line style lacing. I see no carbonation rising to the surface. Smells like my kind red ale. Big juicy lightly sugared grapefruit hit the nose first along with a strong showing of pine. A sweet caramel maltiness comes along and balances the aroma. Starts off bitter and hoppy, finishes sweet and caramelly. Flavor sports the same characteristics as the aroma. The caramel sweetness comes through upfront and the slightly sweetened grapefruit along with piney hoppiness mingle and create a nice balance of juicy flavors. A toasted graininess shows up mid-palate and disappears as quickly as it came. The sweet caramel and juicy grapefruit finish things off along with a quick alcohol spiciness. I drank three of these from this 6-pack already and this was the best one. Strange. I find a lot of Lagunitas’ beer to be too syrupy sticky for my liking. The body on this beer is done nicely. Medium bodied with a nice creaminess. The carbonation is on the low end of the spectrum and actually works nicely in this beer. This beer goes down extremely easy. Big flavor in a 7.6abv and the alcohol is just enough to let you enjoy a few in a sitting. The big hoppiness is balanced by a big maltiness and it’s all around juicy. The mouthfeel is done right which, for me, is a big hurdle in truly enjoying Lagunitas’ beer. Sampled 10/24/07

This red ale poured with a modest tan head, eliciting a floral aroma. Malty and slightly sweet at the start, with a sharp hop bite at the finish.