Lagunitas Fusion VIII

Brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: Black IPA
Petaluma, California USA

Serve in Shaker, Tulip

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A - Nice black color. Decent lacing with 2 finger head

S - Smells like a single hop IPA. Citrus notes

T - Orange and tangerine taste. Pine resin comes through half way through. Not a lot in malts on this one. Some nuttiness.

M - Lots of carbonation, light body. Bitter grassy finish. not too extreme.

Draft at Jerry’s. Black with good, creamy, beige head / Bright nose of weed, hops, chocolate, and coffee / Light to medium body, acidic and a touch watery, with very bitter finish / Somewhat weak, simple flavors of burnt coffee with notes of weed and chocolate / Probably my least favorite beer ever by Lagunitas.

On tap at Lunar Brewing Co., and shaker served with good clarity to the mahogany highlighted, dark brown color. Displayed some silky, light tan head foam that gradually diminished to a thin but solid film & ring, with impressive, lasting sheet-like lacing. The nose was citrusy hop, and smooth, creamy malt, with a toasted, almost roasted nature. Medium+ bodied and soft+ carbonation, the flavor presented a moderate but lingering hop bitterness, light sweetness, light creaminess to the mouthfeel, and some mild dryness & acridity to the hoppy finish. A Brown Pale Ale does seem to be the best style description.

Brown color with creamy foam. Nice lacing. Aroma is a little citrus hops and malt. Flavor is well balanced. Dark malt and hops but no chocolate. Nice finish. A little sweetness in the middle. Palate is mild but noticeable carbonation. Very nice beer. A little different that some other Black IPAs. Not as dark. Easy drinking & enjoyable. More beer please...

UPDATED: AUG 2, 2012 One of a series of beers brewed by winners of Lagunitas’ Homebrew Contest. The Chicago entry is by Steve Kamp of Beecher, IL. This was debuted Monday at Murphy’s Bleachers. The winning recipe was a "Chocolate Rye with Sorachi Ace hops," but those specialty things are not easy to get, apparently, so they just experimented with various tweaks, including a dry hop with Simcoe, Mosaic, Amarillo and Citra. So instead of the Specialty Grain I labeled it as here, it’s more of a Black IPA profile. Certainly smells like an American Pale Ale, with lots of fresh northwest hops. A little piny, maybe with some English hop note to it as well. Brownish-black malt with a nice tan head. Taste is a big hit of IPA hops, not as malty as the color suggests, more of a brown ale profile, with some caramel and toast to help set up the flavor. (Edited with corrections 7/28/2012).