Lagunitas Imperial Stout

Brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
Petaluma, California USA

Pours near pitch black with a ruby hue and a fully receding tan head. Aroma of toffee, brown sugar, alcohol, and roasted fruits. A bit thinner than I had hoped for, it tasted of sweet burnt chocolate, light roast, and smoke with a peppery wine note as well. Mouthfeel is medium to heavy bodied, and a bit oily. Moderate, but lush carbonation. Enjoyable, but needs more malt to make this truly decadent.

Deep brown hue with a small and frothy light tan head. The aroma is not huge by imperial stout standards, but offers a bouquet of pleasant aromas. Raisins and brown sugar, chocolate and light roast coffee, dried cherries and a hint of saltiness all play well together. Throughout, the flavor is drier than expected, with a thin caramel and chocolate sweetness up front and a long and soft roasty finish. A decided lack of strong acidity allows the lighter flavors to have more impact. Of course, the body is fairly light as well, yet still managing a creamy texture along with soft carbonation. While not a world-beater for complexity or boldness, the straight-forward drinkability of this beer is worth the purchase price.

Grassy chocolate aroma. Really deep reddish brown color with a finely bubbled tan head. Starts with chocolate, moving through some sweetness to tar. Ok, smoky toasted malt. Something of sweet creosote. I’ve never tasted creosote, but I’ve worked with it. The mouthfeel is thinnish. The expected dark fruit is hard to find. Very drinkable.

This “Unlimited Release” of Lagunitas Imperial Stout came home in a 22 oz. bomber. As I was pouring it in an oversized wine glass, I immediately noticed how clear and light the body was. When held up to the light, this was a far cry from the opaque and forbidding body that many other beers from this style exhibit. Instead, this was translucent reddish brown. The head was a little too small as well. While not an unattractive pour, I had to take a full point off the appearance score for being so light.



The smell of the beer was light as well, with grassy and spicy hops, and sweet toffee. Not much roasted coffee or chocolate on the nose. The taste was clean, sweet, and lightly roasty, with tinge of acidity. In other words, it was near dead on for a Baltic Porter, and way too light to be a Stout. Thin and sticky mouthfeel was Porter-ish too, and the slight but noticeable hop bitterness wiped the palette clean after each sip. This was a remarkably easy to drink beer, considering the 8.2% ABV. Not the Imperial Stout to go for, when you are in the mood for a heavy nightcap.

22 oz bottle. Average head that leaves quickly. Almost black in color. Aroma of sweet cream plums, toffee, chocolate. Flavors of roasted malts, caramel, toffee. Semi-dry fizzy finish. Bitter cocoa, prunes, and some hops in the aftertaste. Body is a bit light. More like an overhopped porter than an Imperial Stout? Lots of carbonation. Not great, but an ok Imperial Stout. Nowhere near Samual Smith’s league, but a nice try.

Really pale for an imperial stout, this one has a bit of chocalate, but comes across really thin. Not the best I’ve had, which is sad, because I’ve liked the other Lagunitas offerings.

Pours a dark red/brown with a thin head. Looks a little thin going into the glass; definitely not as opaque as I was expecting. Rich aroma of dried cherries, vanilla, a touch of hops and others. Unfortunately, the flavor doesn’t live up to the richness of the aroma. All the components are there, but the taste is weak and watery. Finish is slightly bitter. Overall, a decent beer to drink, but not up to the best.

22 oz bottle into a 2 oz Snifter glass. Pours a thick black color with a slightly frothy and foamy tannish head. The aroma is very malty sweet with chocolate and coffee hints intertwined with roastedness. The onset of the flavor is very much in the roasted barley, and coffee department, which slowly glides into a sweeter chocolately malt department. A tiny alcoholic note comes through in the finish, but is also hidden very well at 8.2% ABV. Not the best of the best Imp. Stouts, but another seriously great brew from Lagunitas.