Lagunitas Decimator

Formerly brewed at Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Petaluma, California USA

Serve in Snifter, Trappist glass

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Name: Decimator 10th Anniversary
Date: 06/14/2006
Mode: Bottle
Source: Tasting

dark amber, whispy white head, strong sweet malt aroma with lots of floral hops, big malt flavor, mostly dry with a light tartness, well balanced, touch of carmel sweetness, nice hop bitterness,

Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 6/10; Flavor: 7/10; Palate: 5/10; Overall: 15/20
Rating: 3.5/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **4

Bottle sampled in June 2006: Pours a slightly hazy copper with a thin, lightly-lacing white head. Aroma of slightly aged sweet caramel malt and some faint piny hops. Body starts with nicely sweet caramel maltiness and balanced with some earthy, lightly citrusy hops. Finishes bittersweet and viscous hiding its alcohol well. A nice American strong ale.

22oz bottle. Sweet malty sharp nose with some light spices and a tinny brown sugar note. Tastes pretty much the same: some light alcohol, a bit strong, which surprised me, but overall it has a nice, crisp but heavy brown sugar, wood and Irish whiskey.

Head is initially small, frothy, white, mostly diminishing. Body is hazy dark yellow, bottle conditioned. Aroma is lightly malty (toasted grain), moderately hoppy (lemon, grapefruit, resin), lightly yeasty (cobwebs). Flavor is moderately sweet, moderately acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly sweet, moderately sweet, moderately bitter. Medium body, watery texture, lively carbonation, lightly alcoholic. Nice enough, but not that interesting.

Bottle shared with TAR: Slightly hazy golden hue with small frothy head and good lace. The aroma has notes of light pine, grapefruit, herbal, grassy, toasted malt biscuit, some phenols, and musty. This smells like an old ale. The taste has a basic malt and hop balance with some earthy and chalky tones (ringwood yeast?). The feel is fizzy and chalky, bland on the finish. Just an average beer. A hybrid style between English and American strong ales. Thanks for the bottle Joe.

Orange gold color. Large foamy head. Aroma is fruity (orange and grapefruit), spicy and sweet. A big full-bodied Strong Ale. Lot of flavors. Malts are nutty, fruity, big and bold. Hops are grapefruity and spicy. Flavors are way over the top, but the bitterness of the hops is nicely balanced by the malt fruitiness and sweetness. There is a touch of alcohol in the taste, but its harshness mellows as the beer warms. Mellow and smooth, sort of cognac like. NICE beer. A little bottle aging will really make this beer excellent. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is smooth and a touch dry. Aftertaste is slightly bitter.

Bottle. Great hoppy aroma on top of an orange beer. The first taste is a huge presence of hops, but there's enough body to stand up to it and leave a slightly sweet presence that again fades to hops and a high alcohol presence. It does have a slight sharpness, but otherwise a bit of grapefruit and pine. A fantastic strong IPA.

Tasted at the RBSG. Clear amber color with no head. Sweet malty pine aroma. Kick ass smooth malty taste; quite good.

Poured a slightly hazed golden amber with a thin off-white head. Sweet fruity malt aroma. Light aged notes. Some citrus hops. Fruity malt flavor. Light alcohol notes. Sweet on the finish witha medium body.

Pale yellow-orange hue. Body was much thinner than I anticipated. Malts had crackers, multi-grained bread, and caramel. Hops were kind of drying, with elements of pine, citrus ... orange and a little grapefruit. Overall, not bad by any means, but it was underwhelming ... and not as exciting as I expected.