Lagunitas Sonoma Farmhouse Hop Stoopid

Brewed by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Petaluma, California USA

Bright, light amber colour. The aroma when first poured is breezy with an almost English hop...ha ha that doesn’t last much. The more it warms the bigger, bolder the hop aroma gets until it becomes seriously ambrosial in citrusy depths (grapefruit, kumquat, calamansi) along with a very powdery, slightly resiny sense of sticking your head in a bag of hops. Finally, the malts start to show through, and the aroma fades from that apex.

In true Californian tradition, the malts are quite chewy, somewhat unexpected for such a pale beer. This crystal-forward and icing sugar sweet maltiness has never been a favourite of mine, though it is more restrained here than in many Californian examples. Overtop of this is a resiny grapefruit hop character with a splash of Simcoey orange notes. Bitterness seems moderate. It’s my sense that the malts do a great job of balancing the bitterness off but unfortunately stand out a bit too much for the good of the beer. In other words, close but not perfect.

The other aspect I wanted to touch upon is the rusticity, both in the hop character (very farm-fresh with the powdery aroma) and the subtle yeastiness. If not truly rustic in the Wallonian or pays du Nord sense of the word, it certainly is by Lagunitas’ standards. Reminds me of Elliott Bay’s Hop von Boorian...Belgian-accented IPA must be the trend this year. Good call.

Bomber from BevMo, La Mesa. Crystal clear copper color upon pouring. Strong skunk bud aromas. Very bitter. The aroma is huge 2IPA all the way. Hoppy and bitter all the way. A little sweetness as well. Almost syrupy hoppiness. Nice impy.

Pours a hazy orange-gold color with a medium fluffy off-white head that dissipates slowly. Grassy hops aroma with some malt and citrus underneath. Medium body with flavors of resiny hops, orange peel and malt. The finish is thoroughly hoppy and has some malt backbone. The citrus hops stick around for a bit. Good all around.

Orange pour, small white head...Citrus hop aroma...Full body...Citrus hop flavors with a good malty backbone...Hop finish with a hint of bitterness that lingers...Orange citrus aftertaste...Good stuff...

Fresh on tap at EBF. Damn this beer is fresh and a smack in the face with amarillo hops. Pours a light hazy golden with a massive fluffy head and great lace. Aroma is intense dank weed, and amarillo hops combined- tons of tropical fruits, some citrus and a moderate cat-pee. Flavor is resinous tacky hop bittering- more amarillo- possibly simcoe, and some light pine- very bitter yet pleasant finish. I really liked this one.

My Bottom Line:
The tropical fruit grove in which these resinous hops grow titillates both nose and tastebuds, making you forget there is anything else going on in this wondrous Double IPA. Quite drinkable for its size, this must be simply gorgeous fresh on tap.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A ring of foam circles the misty light bronze.
-This is one of the most attractive IPA perfumes I’ve ever had the chance to smell. Resinous, citrusy and mango fruitiness, sandy Simcoe-like notes, wooden background, etc. Redolent of 3F Dreadnaught even.
-The flavor profile is not as complex as the aroma, but toasted and honeyed malts do make an appearance, attempting balance.
-Carbonation is smooth and the body is silky, creating optimal drinking conditions (for a strong ale).

Bottles.

Draught. Copper, with medium white head. Aroma is very hoppy, soap, band aid, grapefruit, pine. Flavor is similar, very strong juniper in the middle. Crisp finish, little alcohol in aftertaste.

22 ounce bomber. Poured a nice straw color with a thin bubbly head that had nice lacing. Aroma was rich with pine notes, some citrus and a nice soap smell. Great hops flavor and a perfect balance with malt notes. Smooth, rich and it never seemed heavy. All around a a great beer.