Lagunitas Sucks Brown Shugga Substitute Ale - Lagunitas Brewing Company

weonfire

Kentucky

4.54/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

A - Opaque, golden/brown, 2 solid inches of creamy white head

S - Awesome. Sweet brown Shugga, bombing citrus hops. Lasting.

T - initial: sweet citrus hops, bitter level is a 5/10, pineapple. finish has more citrus, carmel and has some booze on the way down. Sweet hoppy bitterness lingers for a few moments.

M - Frothy, high viscosity, cream, big & full body.

O - Excellent. Love the Brown Shugga sweetness which is balanced very nicely by 68 IBUs. Booze is low but enough to taste. Froth level is the perfect amount you want for a IIPA, head also remains for entire brew. Highly recommend this to even non IPA lovers. Its certainly worth the $11.99/ 6 pack.

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2013 02:11:23 | More by weonfire

VaterRoss

North Carolina

4.28/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Serving: 12oz bottle poured into crystal hock.

Appearance: clear golden color, delicate white head.

Smell: sweet malt, alcohol. Perhaps this is just my weak nose but the smell was a bit disappointing.

Taste: first thing to hit is a fairly intense sweetness, next comes a refreshing blast of citrusy hops followed by some alcohol. This is where this brew shines.

Mouthfeel: medium weight, with fairly prominent alcohol.

Overall: although this brew starts of fairly modestly with a typical coloration and very sweet smell, by the time you start drinking you know you have something good. If I had to characterize this I would call it a Sweet IPA, but not syrupy sweet the way a Dogfish Head 90min can be. Strong enough where I probably would not drink more than one in a sitting. A very good beer that I hope will not go away.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2011 02:37:26 | More by VaterRoss

derkfromwi

Wisconsin

4.4/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a pint glass

A: Nice thick, white head that stays forever with all the carbonation, fine golden color, lots of lacing

S: Pine and citrus hops, pleasant

T: Grapefruit, pine, malts come through a little, hoppy and enjoyable

M: Good carbonation, bitter, a little more resiny/thicker than some IIPA's

O: Well above average, quality Double IPA, I'll probably go see if I can get another sixer to share some

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2012 07:02:27 | More by derkfromwi

mudbug

Oregon

4.93/5  rDev +12.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

From the hilariously labeled bottle into a standard pint glass results in a pretty slightly hazed dark yellow body topped with a half inch head that recedes fairly quickly into a thin cap that leaves lots of sticky lacing on the sides of the glass, nice.
Aroma is outstanding, pungent mango, kiwi, pineapple, all of them extremely bright and fresh,,, wow, just superb.
Taste compliments the aroma nicely, bitterness is upfront with a grapefruit rind astringency.the malt sweetness is just enough to keep things from going too bitter, but just that. Nothing shy about this beer, it's in your face bold and delicious.
While the flavors and aroma yell out DIPA in the vein of Pliny the Elder, it's just a tad thinner.
What an astoundingly good beer, If this is suckage then I'm all for it all the time, Bravo.
Edit review of on Tap at the Brewery.
Over the top excellent, Plus one in every category.

Serving type: on-tap

12-14-2011 00:14:29 | More by mudbug

distantmantra

Washington

4.83/5  rDev +10%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

12 oz. bottle poured into a Russian River tulip.

A: The beer is gold, pure gold. There is nice head of off-white foam that has very strong lacing.

S: Very strong, tangy tropical fruits along with aromatic pine hops and a hint of malt.

T: The flavor is very similar with tangy/astringent tropical fruits such as pineapple and mango. Pine bitterness also present, but the malt isn't really noticeable.

M: Very easy going medium body with a smooth mouthfeel and fantastic carbonation.

O: Lagunitas needs to screw up more. This is a fantastic Imperial IPA. Need to buy more while I still can.

Serving type: bottle

01-20-2012 06:09:02 | More by distantmantra

2xHops

Texas

3.25/5  rDev -26%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

To my surprise, I saw this being stocked at a local grocery store, so I decided to see what the hype is all about.

It looked and smelled good. I can smell the pine and the hops coming alive. The color was pretty good, with orange/amber hue to the body. What else? Let's move on.

Taste was bland for an IPA. I'm not sure how old this six-packer I got was, but I figured it must be relatively new as I didn't see this beer a week ago at the same location.

I can taste that it's an IPA, but it lacked the oomph that you expect out of a fresh IPA. I had expected the flavors to be a bit stronger. The hops is certainly there, and the malts are there as well to balance it out. Wait, did they really use malts?

Overall, it's okay, but I'm unimpressed. I don't know what to think, and whether it's an actual good sample of the beer? That remains to be seen.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2011 02:56:56 | More by 2xHops

HOPPYKC

Kansas

4.2/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Really don't think this is an imperial. Just had to get this of the bat. Now on with the review. This is an amazing brew. Nice color and carbonation. Crystal clear. Lots of carbonation. Fresh. Smell is nice; fruit, pineapple, orange, lemon, pine, a little close to most of the little sumpin' ales. Easy drinker. A great seasonal but overall with the release being winter the brown sugga' has a fuller and warmer feel. I would be happy to have this on the line up all year long. Great beer. But brown sugga' is better with the colder weather.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2011 07:18:29 | More by HOPPYKC

MCain04

Illinois

4.66/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Re-reviewing because I find I can't stop drinking this stuff, and it deserves a better rating than I gave it initially.

Poured into a 16 oz Hopleaf Tulip. Unsure of the date of freshness, but drinking it 2 days after buying, and it just showed up in the store.

Appearance: Clear, copper color, and off-white head of about 2 finger thickness. Fantastic retention and lacing.

Smell: Very nice on the nose. Orange peel, mango, citrus, pine, floral, and honey.

Taste: Not sure if the first batch I had was old, but this one is exploding with flavor. Hops galore on the taste. Tropical citrus, mango, and pineapple dominate. The grassy, floral notes are present but take a backseat. Strong malt backbone. This is made with a "cereal" of malts including barley, rye, wheat and oats. Can't understand who would need more malt out of a DIPA. Mild bitterness on the back end.

Mouthfeel: Medium carbonation, a touch of acidity. Smooth, sticky on the finish. Not overly dry.

Overall: I've come full circle on this beer now. I loved its first release in 2011. The first time I had this year's batch I was surprised at how malty it was, given how everyone kept calling it a DIPA. That, combined with the fact that I picked up on less hops than I do now, made me think of this as more of a strong ale, so it took away points for the lack of sticking to the style. However, I keep drinking it and now I can't stop. I dont care if I get a heavy malty stickyness from that cereal medley of malt, it tastes really good. Call it what you will, but I'm in favor of a beer that just tastes great, even if it doesn't fit squarely into one style. For $9/6 pack, I can't imagine I will drink much else while this is available.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2013 00:24:04 | More by MCain04

rodkin

Missouri

4/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25

Pours a mostly clear golden amber, with a large fluffy off-white head. Spotty lacing.

Smell is piney, grass, a bit of tropical fruit, some cereal grains. Pretty even and balanced.

Taste is tropical fruity, citrus, grains, pine, grass. It's surprisingly not very bitter, but the hop flavor still comes through. No alcohol presence to speak of.

Mouthfeel is medium thick, moderate carbonation.

Drinkability is very high. Very sessionable, tasty, bright. Just wish it had a bit more hop punch.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2013 17:24:28 | More by rodkin

Aiptasia

Florida

3.48/5  rDev -20.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I had one of these tonight in a 12 oz. pint glass. I was looking forward to trying this one after sorely missing Brown Shugga all winter long. Our local Total Wine & More finally got their supply in stock.

A: Pours a frothy crisp clean amber. Very respectable head with good retention that lingers for a good 10 minutes. Not a lot of lacing while being consumed, but what there is, is as white as snow.

S: Smells like a grapefruit mugged a pine tree. Overwhelming citrus and grass notes on the nose. Big citrus pine aromas.

T: This being a Lagunitas seasonal offering, I was really expecting more out of the taste. Hops, hops and did I mention the hops? I finished this beer fifteen minutes ago and my tongue is still bitter. It's liquid citrus rind flavor is out of balance with the malts. The alcohol is lost in there somewhere.

M: It drinks easily enough but it's a one note pony with the citrus hops. Carbonation is fine. Not overly alcoholic and finishes dry and hoppy.

O: You could easily call this Lagunitas Winter DIPA (which is what it really is). Being a seasonal christmas beer, I was expecting something really special. Instead, it's just another DIPA. Terrible? No. Disappointing? Yes.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2011 01:27:16 | More by Aiptasia

raynmoon

California

4.58/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

looks above average. Very golden in color, not orange or amber to be found. Nice lacing and legs though. Looks nice.

Smells like Lagunitas, that nice house profile. Smells just like their IPA and their SUMPIN SUMPIN as well. It's that perfect balance between pine needle and citrus.

Incredibly smooth, just as a I remember. This is one of those beers where, one time it tastes very PINY and the next day it tastes very citrusy. It's just very balanced. A touch of rye bitterness on the back end, but it somehow compliments the beer very well. It lingers nicely!

I think I liked this one better last year, but I did get a whole case. Let's see how my taste buds react next time.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2013 07:04:40 | More by raynmoon

julian89

Georgia

4.11/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

This is the first beer I have rated in quite a while. Providedby my buddy Scudder.
Appearance
A hazy wheat yellow color, touch of light red. Nice simple white head that dissipated fairly slowly with a wonderful lacing. An ideal IPA.
Smell
A bright citrus fruity hop aroma. Very crisp.
Taste
Great caramel malt base, light citrusy fruity backing. Pine like hops
Mouthfeel
Light feel, medium body
Drinkability
Decent ipa, very crisp, simple overall

Serving type: bottle

01-17-2013 02:56:39 | More by julian89

brewtus

Ohio

4.3/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured this hilarious bottle into a tulip glass. Light orange with a single finger white head. Smells are lots of pine, earthy, sweet bread, citrus of course. Taste starts off with carmel and blends into citrus and rosemary, mango, and has a nice thickness to it, very smooth, if this is a substitute, keep messing up because this is amazing. It's a pretty consistent Dipa, doesn't change too much from start to finish,

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2013 03:02:13 | More by brewtus

Manoftyr

New York

4.38/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into tulip

Appearance-Pours your standard IPA yellow-amber into the glass, small head rises, good ring of lacing. Nice looking.

Aroma-Very tropical hoppiness, I get a lot of mango and pineapple in the nose. Some slight undercurrent of pale sugarcookie-lke crystal malt but this is predominantly a hop show; as it should be.

Taste-Follows the aroma with the same tropical-fruity hoppiness, juicy and lip-smackingly bitter but not without balance; very crisp. As I sip more hop notes come out ranging from pine to citric peel; real west-coast hop showcase here.

Mouthfeel-Slick and resiny, almost syrupy but without being too thick; great feel.

Overall/Drinkability-Screw Brown Shugga, make this the winter seasonal! Goes down smooth and easy and keeps me wanting more; a class IPA.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2011 08:47:48 | More by Manoftyr

aficionado

New Jersey

4.38/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Brilliantly clear light gold body with 2 finger soapy white head. Loads of lacing.

Fruit bomb on the nose. Lots of fresh hops, citrus rinds, sweet pineapple candy, unripe watermelon, fresh mango, and ripe peach.

The taste is much like the nose, albiet a tad less intense. Big floral notes of tropical fruit and sweet sticky candy. Similiar to a hopped up West Coast IPA that I brewed recently with more of a rich, sweet cereal-esque malt backbone full of barley, rye, wheat, and oats.

A lot of people use resinous as a descriptor for this beer, but I get more floral, fruitiness with Lagunitas brews whereas Russian River and Alpine produce more resinous hop forward beers.

Medium body. Easy drinking yet full of flavor. This should be a year round brew. By far my favorite from Lagunitas, even topping Hop Stoopid. You can definitely sense dryhopping at its finest here.

Serving type: bottle

12-01-2011 01:47:13 | More by aficionado

Beerandboards

New Mexico

4.35/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Both straight from the bottle and also out of a pint glass

A - the classic golden, honey type color. Quite a bit of white foam, leaves plenty of lacing

S - subtle orange peel, lemon juice, some pine, a little bit of the malt in the background

T - hop forward but not overly bitter. Actually really balanced and drinkable. Easy drinking citrus notes with some tropical flavors in there as well. Not as in your face as hop stoopid or something like that. Could easily session a few, but for the 8% ABV.

M - nice oily hop presentation, not overly dry or quick on the finish.

O - killer smooth IPA. My favorite lagunitas by far. It's not as good as the hype, but its definitely in the neighborhood.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2013 05:20:27 | More by Beerandboards

rmcnealy

Illinois

4/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Received from a great MW BA'er - Many thanks!

I had this one a couple months back and remember it being amazing. I think it fell off just a bit, but is still very good.

Poured medium golden amber than was partially translucent and appeared to be totally filtered. Produced a small white head that fleeted to an inconsistent lacey ring around the glass. Slight hints of citrusy hop are present. I believe they were much more robust the first time around. A very good crisp bitter bite coincides with the hoppy aroma. Malts aren't very noticeable. The 7.85% abv seems about right while a IBUs of 63.21 seem awefully low. A great brew that I hope is produced again and will jump on it fresh!

Enjoy!

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2012 01:03:04 | More by rmcnealy

jman892

Massachusetts

4.43/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Have heard a lot about this beer, and am excited to try it. Lagunitas is already one of my favorite breweries

A - Pours a crystal clear golden straw color, with a decent 1 finger white head. Mild to moderate lacing

S - Great smell on this one. Citrus fruits, mango, pineapple. Nice and inviting.

T - Follows the nose, with a little bit of pine mixed in. Very fruit forward, with some earthy pine bite to balance it off, so I still know I am drinking beer.

M - Nice and smooth, easy drinking, alcohol is well hidden

O - Very good DIPA, very juicy, but perfectly balanced. Hope they continue making this and it does not end up as just a one-off. Definitely lives up to the hype

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2011 18:20:11 | More by jman892

DrewV

New York

4.66/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Does Lagunitas brew any IPA that DOESN'T rock??

Another winner out of Petaluma. Bright, flavorful hops up front with a restrained malt body and no alcohol bite whatsoever. The first sip opens up with some tangerine, pineapple, and light lemon flavors. Sweetness from the malts backs up the hops and tones down the bitterness. Just a well-balanced beer overall, perhaps leaning a bit more on the bitter side compared to Brown Shugga. This is something I would expect to be released during the dog days of summer.

A bit more malt backbone and higher ABV and this would be 5's across the board for me. As it is, it's still phenomenal, but not quite 100.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2013 01:48:11 | More by DrewV

nc41

North Carolina

4.33/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 3 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a bit thin, not much foam, lacing, but the head dies quick, no big deal really. The SMELL, nice, fruity grapefruit, pineapple, ranks near the top on nose alone. The taste almost follows, but a bit thin compared to what I smell. Decent finish but falls off a little ,no real boom on the backside. Really a well done brew, I hope it goes regular. I've heard comparisons to Pliny, well, no, but don't let that stop you from trying. I also like they didn't go the ultra sweet route and malt this one to death looking for depth.

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2011 01:49:06 | More by nc41

Jules11788

California

4.43/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a pale golden color; thumb-width head, medium lacing, good retention

S: Smells of sweet, sticky, tropical sugary hops. The aroma just blasts you in the face with delicious fruity hoppiness.

T: Just like the nose: lightly bitter hops with big floral notes of tropical fruit and sweet sticky candy. Delicious!

M: Medium-light viscosity with a good helping of tingly carbonation; no hint of booze at all.

O: Another score for Lagunitas. I was very disappointed when I heard that they weren't releasing Brown Shugga, but this definitely makes up for it. Hop heads rejoice, this brew is brimming with big floral/fruity hops!

Serving type: bottle

11-07-2011 05:57:32 | More by Jules11788

hdelavega

Florida

4.3/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a crystal clear golden yellow that shot up a good two finger head that is leaving some very nice lacing. Lots of visible carbonation.
Aroma is full of aromatic hops. Defiantly more on the tropical fruit side. I get plenty of pineapple, tangerine and citrus rind.
The hops really come out in the flavor. I get the same pineapple and tangerine from the nose. Really nice medium body, very smooth and super drinkable.
Nice beer. It reminds me of little something wild with a little more of that tangy simco hop flavor to it. I will defiantly do this one again.

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2011 22:02:24 | More by hdelavega

scootpolute

Washington

3.95/5  rDev -10%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

This one is great!! I’m impressed indeed, YUM!!! The last couple of Lagunitas I’ve had have been less than desirable compared the NW rivals, espacially the growing WA beers!!! Appearance is OK, pretty clean, good lacing... Much lighter than the typical DIPA... I think what make this beer so good is the fine line of not over-doing ’it’ in any particular area (hops, fruity-flavor, pine/spice, carbonation, and last but not least, alcohol level). VERY refreshing and will get again and...…Goin’ to look for a tap ASAP!!!

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2013 20:37:46 | More by scootpolute

mattbk

New York

4.71/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75

A: Clear, slightly darker than golden, not very carbonated, lazy bubbles.
S: Amazing smell. Rich hop oily aromas. Tangerine, mango. Wonderful.
T: Like the smell. Hop oils, tangerine is best food relation I can make. Some pineyness too. Super dank. Some nice maltiness behind the flavor too makes it a bit sticky sweet, in a good way. Not much bitterness out of this beer - the label says "63.21 IBUs" - I don't believe this number - but it is low in bitterness comparitively. This beer is amazing.
M: Not very, very dry - some mouthfeel to this, which I am enjoying.
O: Really, really like this beer. Of IPAs I've tried, I'd put this only below Heady as my favorite.

Serving type: bottle

02-03-2013 04:18:37 | More by mattbk

CommanderOfAwesome

California

4.53/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

2012 12 oz bottle poured into a snifter.

A: Pours an orangey/pineapple juicy color. Hardly see through it, even though its light in color. Fluffy white head, with very nice lacing. Its a unique looking beer.

S: Holy shit, dank citrusy pine smell. Most citrus smelling beer I have come across. Touch of lemon zest in there as well. Really shines onthe aroma.

T: MMmmm. Zesty pine, citrus taste coming in strong. Strong bitter finish. Biscuty bread feel as well. Almost can snap this one.

M: Resin sticky dry finish. Medium bodied and perfect amount of carbonation.

O: Lagunitas nailed it. While I don't really love their standard IPA, Maximus and Sucks stand out to me. They shine on the shelf full of IPAs. Do yourself a favor and try this beer, it's excellent.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2013 03:34:24 | More by CommanderOfAwesome