Waldo's Special Ale - Lagunitas Brewing Company

ThickNStout

Georgia

4.43/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On tap at Barley's (Asheville, NC). Served in a 10oz goblet. 

Pours a vibrant clear orange-gold with 1 finger pale head. Nice, abundant lacing. 

Big mango orange citrus hops, sweet bread. More pine. Really nice. 

Dank mango, garlic, pine, citrus, pepper, biscuit. Nice mix with the alcohol well hidden. 

Medium full feel. Low carbonation. Nice sticky long dank hoppy aftertaste. 

Another excellent imperial IPA from Lagunitas. Kind of a cross between Deviant Dales and Double Trouble. I'm happy that I got to try this.

Serving type: on-tap

05-12-2012 22:52:47 | More by ThickNStout

kojevergas

California

3.66/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Served on-draught into a pilsner glass last night at Sunset Beer Co. Cost was $8.00. Reviewed from notes. Expectations were high given the brewery and this beer's current ratings.

A: Pours a half finger head of beige colour, decent cream, pretty decent thickness, and awful (~10 second) retention. Body colour is a clear tropical orange-amber. No yeast particles are visible. No bubble show. An arresting attractive vibrant hue. I can't wait try it. A damned impressive appearance for the style - excluding the lack of good retention.

Sm: Tropical fruit - including juicy citrus. Evocative floral hop character. Complex and deep. Quite inviting. No yeast character or alcohol is detectable. Light oily hop character. Some grapefruit zest. A moderate strength aroma. Some subtlety. A lovely aroma overall for an (imperial) IPA.

T: Lots of juicy citrus fruit and floral hop character. Gushing fruit - mango, tangerine, clementine, bright currant. Alcohol is noticeable but it isn't hot or boozy. Just a touch imbalanced. The usual distinctive Lagunitas hop oil note is present, but a bit more tame than I expected - certainly more restrained than in Sucks or IPA. There's a lot of flavour here. Adequate pale malts provide needed countering sweetness and a strong body. Nectary and sugary. Not piney at all. I'd prefer it with more oily character. Tasty, but the lack of balance is far from ideal. Not a lot of depth or subtlety, but good complexity. I'd like to see them bring the ABV down while retaining the flavours.

Mf: Smooth and wet. Lightly oily. Clean. Crisp. Good presence on the palate. Good thickness. Good carbonation. Smacky.

Dr: I had high expectations for this one, and while it doesn't disappoint, it also doesn't impress. Quite downable even if the noticeable alcohol does bring drinkability down a bit. Another good but not great beer from Lagunitas. I'd get it again, but honestly I may prefer Lagunitas IPA just for simple easy drinking. I wouldn't want more than three of these in a single night. Not worth seeking out, but very worthwhile if you chance across it.

B

Serving type: on-tap

05-23-2013 20:49:23 | More by kojevergas

Topher78

California

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%

05-23-2013 17:49:17 | More by Topher78

jono0101

Missouri

5/5  rDev +14.7%

05-18-2013 16:24:49 | More by jono0101

slim2043

Connecticut

4.25/5  rDev -2.5%

05-17-2013 21:13:07 | More by slim2043

plinythederek

North Carolina

4/5  rDev -8.3%

05-17-2013 17:51:09 | More by plinythederek

DanE

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%

05-17-2013 02:35:40 | More by DanE

throwback

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%

05-13-2013 16:44:12 | More by throwback

shehateme

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%

05-11-2013 18:46:32 | More by shehateme

AngusOg

Maryland

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%

05-11-2013 00:20:10 | More by AngusOg

CTJman

Connecticut

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%

05-10-2013 19:25:12 | More by CTJman

MightiestBeard

Florida

4.25/5  rDev -2.5%

05-09-2013 00:53:31 | More by MightiestBeard

Pete27lax

New York

4.75/5  rDev +8.9%

05-08-2013 19:56:09 | More by Pete27lax

ncstateplaya

North Carolina

4.25/5  rDev -2.5%

05-08-2013 14:16:29 | More by ncstateplaya

scottfrie

California

4.13/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a clear bright citrus amber color with an oily off-white head that left a ton of sticky lace down the glass. I get notes of dank, herbal and citrusy hops with just a hint of malty undertone on the nose. Citrus and more dank hops follow the nose on the palate with a hint of honey and hop resin. Sweet, faintly booze, and slightly bitter finish. Medium-full body, low smooth carbonation, greasy, slick and slightly oily mouthfeel. The alcohol is hidden very well for being double digits. Solid but not their best.

Serving type: on-tap

05-08-2013 02:33:42 | More by scottfrie

Rau71

California

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%

05-05-2013 17:07:13 | More by Rau71

UCLABrewN84

California

3.99/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

On tap at Verdugo Bar in Los Angeles, CA.

Pours a clear orange with a foamy orange-tan head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, citrus fruit, citrus zest, and tropical fruit aromas. Taste is much the same with citrus zest and pine flavors on the finish. There is a medium amount of hop bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that is tasty but pretty strong.

Serving type: on-tap

05-05-2013 06:18:18 | More by UCLABrewN84

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

This poured out as a really nice amber color with a very minimal head on top. No lacing or retention. The smell of the beer is loaded with hops and sweet malts. The taste is very piney, some citrus and earthy caramel malts. The mouthfeel is slick, low carbonation and resiny. Overall this is a good beer, need to try it fresh on tap or bottled to get this a proper review. Still very good.

Serving type: growler

05-04-2013 23:43:01 | More by Knapp85

djtomain

Florida

4.75/5  rDev +8.9%

05-03-2013 23:45:52 | More by djtomain

inlimbo77

Delaware

4.21/5  rDev -3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

64oz growler
Filled, 4/23/13. Drank, 5/2/13

A: Pours out a hazy orange/amber color. Darker than I was expecting. Full finger of lacing. Leaving some sheeting. Still good carbonation. Pretty beer.

S: Dank hops, earthy hops, orange, some citrus. Some vegetal character here, more than the fruit for sure. Some sweet malts. Actually do get some booze on the nose, but it's 10.5% so to be expected.

T: Thick syrupy hop bitterness right off the bat. Smacks you in the face. Again, it's not the fruity tropical fruits of most West Coast IPAs. Certainly more of the earthy hops. Really nice balance from the malts that obviously aided in the darker color. Almost a slight nuttiness from them toward the back of the palate. Finish is dry and lots of lingering hop bitterness. The booze is there, but mostly comes at you after sipping on this a while.

M: Big medium here. This beer has some weight.

Serving type: growler

05-03-2013 14:57:18 | More by inlimbo77

xnicknj

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev -2.5%

05-02-2013 22:43:54 | More by xnicknj

jzeilinger

Pennsylvania

4.36/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

A - Pours a medium to dark amber color with ridiculous dark lacing that sticks to the glass like cotton candy, light carbonation.

S - A very interesting vegetable-like dank spice, one of the most unique beers considering the nose.

T - Onion, garlic, vegetable dank, and an interesting combo between hops and malts that's hard to describe, but it really works! Ends with a grapefruit and sweet vegetable dankness that lingers on the palate.

M - Thick and viscous with an amazingly smooth, velvet-like mouthfeel.

O - This is a very unique beer that doesn't taste like most big IPA's, it's balanced, and it's not...it just works.

Serving type: on-tap

05-01-2013 03:17:10 | More by jzeilinger

LarryK

New York

3.03/5  rDev -30.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Was excited to try this given its placement among the Top 50 DIPAs as well as its very-limited-edition status – I didn’t think it left the state of California -- and managed to have a pour last week at The Blind Tiger.

Appearance: Very dark for a double IPA, more of an amber hue than one would expect.

Smell: Malty, sweet, barleywine-esque.

Taste: This is a barleywine masquerading as a DIPA. While it certainly has a robust, full, malty flavor, almost none of the characteristics I look for in a DIPA are present, and the sweetness of the malt totally dominates any hop flavors that might be present.

Mouthfeel: Again, this is a heavy beer, highly carbonated and very much drinks like a 10.5% beer.

Overall: This might be the first beer I’ve ever had from Lagunitas that didn’t blow me away. I’ve also mellowed on barleywines some, and so some bias may be present, but given that this beer is being called a DIPA it definitely missed the mark for me.

Serving type: on-tap

04-30-2013 14:41:55 | More by LarryK

Phillyz

Pennsylvania

4.75/5  rDev +8.9%

04-29-2013 22:39:31 | More by Phillyz

bepps

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev -2.5%

04-28-2013 02:43:55 | More by bepps