Review Date 8/8/2007 Last Updated 3/23/2017
Try?
Re-buy?
What's more, August isn’t really a great month to be drinking Imperial Stouts, either. Imperials, after all, are the biggest, baddest, boldest stouts going, loaded with character, flavor, body, and alcohol. Not really the stuff to cool you off during those miserable, sweltering, dog days of August. Did I tell you I really hate August?
Still, if you must drink an Imperial Stout in August, you might want to make it a Lagunitas Imperial Stout. That’s because, as Imperial Stouts go, this one is sort of like Imperial Stout Light, no matter what time of year you drink it. This came pretty much as a surprise to me, since I’ve been, on the whole, very impressed with the brews from Lagunitas.
A quick glance at the label (something I didn’t do before buying the stuff), shows the reason why: the original gravity of this brew is only 1.082, a mere pittance for an Imperial Stout, though still far higher than that of most beers. But for an Imperial I expect something higher, around 1.1 or so.
Pouring the beer into my glass, I immediately knew something was wrong.
That’s because I saw light passing through the liquid. A really great
Imperial Stout will be opaque, not diaphanous, so this was not a good sign.
A rather thin tan head formed atop my pour, and a quick whiff revealed
roasted barley and licorice. A sip produced a disappointingly thin body. While my tongue should have been treated to a silky smooth, oily texture, I got a more watery mouthfeel instead. On the plus side, there is some roasted barley flavor to be found here, along with deep dark chocolate, espresso, and licorice. But in the finish the beer thins out again, which detracts from the overall experience. A little roasty and hop bitterness does come through, but not much alcohol, though this one is strong (but not as the style goes) at 8.2% by volume.
Overall, I find Lagunitas Imperial Stout a disappointment. Our own Mark Stevens wrote an excellent review of this beer a few years ago and had similar complaints. It’s fair to say that Lagunitas hasn’t made any improvements since. Given the quality of most of their line, I guess Lagunitas is entitled to the occasional miss. Still, it bothers me how average this one is. Beer geeks likely will not be happy with, and novices, well, novices rarely drink Imperial Stouts.
Better to stick with an Old Rasputin (which tastes like a bigger beer than it really is), Victory Storm King , or Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout instead. In fact, I wish I had one of those right now. This really must be August…..
Update
3/23/2017: It's been almost 10 years (how time flies) since I panned
Lagunitas Imperial Stout. I am a big fan of Lagunitas and drink a lot of
their other beers, so when Taco Mac had Lagunitas Imperial Stout on tap I
figured it was time to give it another chance. I'm glad I did. The beer is
much fuller in body than previously remarked upon, with a rich roasty nose,
licorice and chocolate in the full smooth palate, and a big roasty finish
with warming alcohol. It's stronger, too at 9.9% by volume. Although it came
in an 11-ounce glass, the $4.50 price softened the blow. It's a steal at
$4.99 for bomber bottles. I'm changing from not a rebuy to a rebuy and from
3 to 4 1/2 stars considering the price. Yowza!
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft
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