Lagunitas IPA - Lagunitas Brewing Company

Fatehunter

Oregon

3.69/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A nice big two and half fingers of head on a medium straw colored body.
The aroma is a bold lemon.
The taste is lemon, grapefruit and pine bitterness all bundled up in a great way.
The texture is crisp with moderate carbonation and medium body.
Here's a great IPA that drinks almost too easily.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2013 06:23:56 | More by Fatehunter

Reguydrate

3.85/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Served from a bottle into frosty Mug.

A: Bold orange, decent head.

S: hoppy notes, slight orange peel

T: Full of hops, slight malt.

M: Very crisp and refreshing for an IPA.

O: A very enjoyable IPA, full of hops and aromas. Very refreshing, would buy again.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2013 03:38:31 | More by Reguydrate

IPA4LIFE

United Kingdom (England)

3.91/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.75

A- Beautiful golden orange in color with a big, bold fluffy white head that rose up to about two fingers, and dropped slowly, leaving a good amount of lacing behind. The head is beautiful, and the beer is nice and clear. Great looking IPA!

S- Big, bold citrus hop aromas. Big heavy notes of mango, pineapple, and strong grapefruit zest. A slight hint of pine, but definitely much more citrus-oriented.

T- Almost all-hop. Very little malt noticed, with the predominant flavors being orange and a bit of zest and a moderate hint of tropical fruit. Moderate bitterness emerges at the mid-palate, and moves into a solid bitter finish with just a faint hint of booze.

M- Medium-light bodied. A touch dry at the end. Not bad.

O- Maybe it is the fact that we have long been spoiled with such an abundance of hops, but this just isn't a premier American IPA for me. The flavors are good, to be sure, but it isn't quite on-par with some of the others I have had in my life. It I wasn't judging within it's category, this would be scored much higher, but the competition is steep in the American IPA category, so this is only a little above average.

Serving type: bottle

01-24-2013 20:47:26 | More by IPA4LIFE

MacHeadBeer

California

4.28/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

This has become my everyday beer. It has a great nose and start to the drink. Wish so much flavor I'm surprised how clear it is (totally clear golden color). Like most IPAs it has a slightly bitter finish.

Of my beer drinking friends who aren't big fans of IPAs, this beer is very drinkable by them. And as I really enjoy it as well this is a great beer to keep on hand.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2013 05:14:33 | More by MacHeadBeer

dertyd

California

4.73/5  rDev +21.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75

12oz bottle to a pint glass

A:orange coper with a head that lingers and a nice laceing

S:grape fruit,grassy hops,citris fruit

T:sweet citris,grapefruit with a bitter finish

M;crisp but dry realy pleasing

Overall: a realy good ipa one of my favorites well ballanced beer with a good hop presence

Serving type: bottle

01-19-2013 08:47:04 | More by dertyd

Jimmys

Pennsylvania

3.61/5  rDev -7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

12 oz bottle. cant seem to make any sense of the coding on it.

A: pale, very blond. bright white head is spritely. retention is good, not great.

S: a lot of pine and some citrus. not much grain, piney hop aroma is definitely the key player here.

T: seems slightly medicinal at first. however that quickly vanishes. similar to the nose, very pine flavored focused. bitter, but nothing cloying. piney, but not resinous.

M: pretty middle of the road as far as carb. certainly on the lighter side of AIPA bodies.

D: a lot of "middle ground" flavors/aromas. good, just nothing mind-blowing. lagunitas makes better brews than this, so worth trying if you are a ticker, but if looking for the best of the best I say keep it moving along.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2013 05:19:05 | More by Jimmys

M_C_Hampton

Georgia

4.45/5  rDev +14.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

A: poured from a 12 oz bottle into a pint glass, orange amber colored with a short but tight white head that lingers leaving good lacing, clear

S: orange, tangerine, grapefruit, very citrus nose with a hint of pine

T: immediate flavor of grapefruit up front that mellows quickly so as not to be over powering, bitter hops at the end, middle is a little flat without depth and complexity of flavors, malt is there but you have to look for it

M: has a smooth almost creamy quality not often found in IPAs, lively carbonation with a good aftertaste

O: a well made IPA that is quite refreshing, not overly complicated, distinct flavors are well represented

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2013 22:52:48 | More by M_C_Hampton

BierStein711

Illinois

4.45/5  rDev +14.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

24 oz bottle poured into pint

Two finger off white head, fine retention alongside mild carbonation.

Golden amber color

Smells of pine, resin, hemp, and hop

Tastes: Citrus, resin, pine, hemp, and excellent grapefruit hop bite!

Mouthfeel: Dry, sharp, and refreshing!

Overall, I'd commit to a six pack without reservation or hesitation. Try this beer.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2013 18:10:15 | More by BierStein711

Jparker37

Wisconsin

3.88/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

12oz bottle poured into an Imperial pint glass.

A - Golden in color with great clarity. Being rocky head from an intense pour is holding a solid two fingers. Plenty of lacing left on the glass.

S - Bright citrus orange peel. Background of pine and leafy green hops. Some biscuity malts are subtle.

T - Malt holds on tight in the initial taste before hops show their face. The hops give a unique melon-like flavor and some traditional citrus tones. Bitterness is right on for the style as to not be overbearing. Pretty dry finish with a moderately lasting hop flavor.

M - Just short of dry, medium to medium-light body, moderate carbonation.

O - Great beer, unique in many senses from color to flavor yet traditional in smell and feel. I thought it was a little light on body and a touch too sweet but well within style. All in all an offering that I would recommend and purchase again.

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2013 01:05:50 | More by Jparker37

NilocRellim

Minnesota

3.24/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Poured from the bottle.

Orange/gold in colour with a lingering frothy head. Citrus-hops nose, pretty strong. The taste was much lighter than expected, less intense hop-taste than the smell lead on. Clean finish, not much bitterness to the aftertaste, unlike most IPAs.

Would I buy it again? Yes.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 20:45:37 | More by NilocRellim

mick303

Ontario (Canada)

4.03/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a shaker pint, had pretty respectable retention, white fluffy head, really solid lacing. Colour is an amber straw gold.

Smell has a herbally citrus hopiness that is quite assertive. Some floral character, this is quite an intense bitter nose, pretty balanced and interesting.

Taste has strong hop character come through - juicy and fruity, a subtle malt sweetness, with lots of pine resin and grapefruit notes on the end. Malt body is pretty good, bit overshadowed but balances out decently well.

Mouthfeel has a strong bite initially, with a good level of carbonation, moderate body with a nice refreshing lightness. Good drinkability, pretty sessionable as far as the west-coast ipa's go.

A nice solid offering, definitely hop forward, but remains pretty well balanced throughout. Quite good, though at times feels a bit stale or leaning towards the heavier sappy flavours. Worth trying, a pretty well-made assertive IPA.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2013 02:10:59 | More by mick303

CommanderOfAwesome

California

3.53/5  rDev -9.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12 oz bottle into a snifter. No freshness date that I can find.

A: Pours a caramel amber color, can easily see through it. About a 2 finger head which dissipated quickly. Tons of sticky lacing and carbonation bubbles.

S: Smell is reminiscent of Lagunitas Sucks which makes sense. Dankness, citrus pine.

T: Bitter at first, crisp clean flavor. Malt sweetness, pine and citrus hop flavor. Refreshing and sessionable.

M: Bit thin, but not distractingly so. Moderate carbonation with a dry clean finish.

O: Very solid offering, tastey and refreshing though does little to elevate itself above the crowd. Nothing wrong with that, good solid beer.

Serving type: bottle

01-04-2013 03:39:09 | More by CommanderOfAwesome

match1112

Illinois

3.98/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

a: clear light copper body. two fingers of thick lumpy rocky head shows good staying power while leaving some sticky spiderweb lacing.

s: pine malt with a touch of citrus

t: malty body with an equally balanced piney hop body.

m: tad thin, good carbonation, oily feel, dry finish

o: really good year round ipa, don't know why it doesn't score higher.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2013 03:00:47 | More by match1112

Sark

Montana

3.65/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Appearance- medium copper glow, head dissipates quickly even with semi-rough pour

Smell- light malt sweetness with a few floral notes but not too much hop for an IPA

Taste- rich sweet tip do the tounge with more than a hint of toffee, hop character comes as an afterthought

Mouthfeel- medium bodied smoothness but still drinks like an ale, don't confuse it with a lager

Overall- a session IPA and what introduced me to future IPA styles

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2013 04:56:15 | More by Sark

mpyle

Maryland

4.33/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

App - Deep gold color, brilliantly clear. Pours whitish head, creamy and with moderate retention.

Aroma - Pine rich solventy hop aroma dominates. Slightly sweet malty aroma very secondary.

Taste - sweet malt dances with strong pine hop flavor. Assertive but not overpowering hop bitterness. Hop flavor and bitterness carry into finish. Classic IPA flavor profile.

MF - Moderate body and carbonation. No astringency or warming (a nice aspect of a modest strength IPA).

Overall - A nice hoppy IPA that is bitter but not harsh - easy to drink more than one of these if enjoy hops.

Serving type: bottle

12-29-2012 19:56:33 | More by mpyle

rlee1390

Indiana

3.93/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A-Clear yellow two finger fluffy head that lasts, not much carbonation and some lacing.

S-Starts with hops, citrus and grass. A lot of hops.

T-A step down from the nose, less hops more malt. More malt than I'd like. Citrus note. Ends with a slight bitterness.

M-Light, not quite watery, not much carbonation either.

O-A nice IPA but a tad too much malt for my liking.

Serving type: bottle

12-20-2012 20:27:56 | More by rlee1390

bnes09

Illinois

4.13/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Light copper color with great clarity. Pours two fingers off egg-shell colored head which recedes to a milky froth and coats the glass in lacing.

Rich malty aroma with caramel and rye bread. Balanced well with a non-specific hop spiciness in the nose.

Solid bready biscuit malt backbone with lots of rye bread flavor. Assertive hop character of pine needles, grapefruit and lemon. Just a hint of juicy tropical fruits to balance the bitterness. Touch of honey sweetness adds a nice contrast to the hop character. Exceptional balance and wonderful bouquet of flavors.

Medium bodied, well carbonated, grainy texture mid-drink ends with a dry finish.

Solid IPA. Every brewery seen to have one these days but its nice to find one with some malt character to it. Really hits the spot.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2012 05:42:06 | More by bnes09

Ethanol4one

New York

4.55/5  rDev +16.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Langunitas IPA. Full fatted finger head off the tap, followed by a clean, sharp cantaloop, cucumber melon family aroma, and a bitter Hoppy taste, not creamy, but medium body, not light and all dimed out like old girl after the third shift at Mustang Ranch by teh fermentations. Like that description in mixed company, it's not at all what that one might expect from something near the color around de Meh-iller time. There is a sweetness, but well balanced like fresh melon, which is sort of diabolical. Even now I'm humming "Cantaloop," from the 90's.

Now, I'm not sure it's a GTO 420 big block flavor, as the billboard suggests, but I'd sure go again.

Serving type: on-tap

12-15-2012 19:14:34 | More by Ethanol4one

Weli

Wisconsin

3.98/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A-Golden copper hue, crystal clear with a 1/2" white head subsiding to a thin white lacing

S-Quite caramely, lots of malty sweetness with a background of dank, resinous Am. hops

T-Very strong malt sweetness, with some toasty biscuit quality. Subdued hops for an IPA Slight bitter finish, some citrus character'

M- Full bodied, medium carbonation, slightly sweet, but not cloying

O-Definitely a more malt balanced IPA. Lagunitas beers tend to be rather sweet, and this is no exception. I feel like some of their other beers are more balanced, this one seems a bit lacking, really needs more hop character and bitterness to balance the malt

Serving type: bottle

12-15-2012 02:43:13 | More by Weli

RyanLigeia

Massachusetts

3.78/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Before getting into the review on this one I'd like to note that it's been aged (properly) for about a year. I'm aware that you're generally not supposed to age IPA's but I'm a fan of more malty IPA's and with the 6.2% abv on top of the fact they they claim this beer has "imperial malt qualities" I figured I'd give it a shot. So, here goes...

Pours a beautifully hazy, dense looking orange/yellow color. Not a whole lot of visible carbonation in the glass. Sort of reminds me of my girlfriend...looks delicious but definitely could have yielded a little more head.

The scent is mostly dominated by a wonderful caramel maltyness. After that I'm getting hints of citrusy hops and a tinge of alcohol.

Taste is similar to the smell in the sense that it is malt forward, which was expected and its definitely not a bad thing. A nice smooth caramel maltyness followed by a slightly bitter grapefruit hoppyness. Alcohol is well hidden. Delicious.

Mouthfeel is pretty smooth, especially for a westcoast IPA. Goes down VERY easily. Low carb level with a lighter side of medium body.

Overall, interesting enough, this beer aged pretty well. If you're into experimenting with your cellar I'd recommend throwing one or 2 of these down there for 6-12 months. This beer is also great fresh but it was a cool idea that didn't turn out to be a failure.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2012 21:21:19 | More by RyanLigeia

gleemonger

California

4.58/5  rDev +17.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Mostly clear, yellowish orange with a small white head that dissapates rather quickly and leaves a strong lacing. Very inviting looking IPA for sure.

Hit with a huge aroma of pine, citrus, grapefruit hops, followed by some light malts. A little lopsided towards the piney malt equation, which I love, but still could use a tad more depth.

Almost smack on to the aroma, with the piney and citrusy hops, with just a slight, sweet, caramel malt background. Nothing really over the top here, just has the basic American IPA elements in a very well balanced, tasty way. Bitterness lingers a tad more than anything else.

Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Crisp and refreshing with a little body - perfect.

Yes, I know this one is just about everywhere you go in California, but I'm totally fine with that, because I think this is a benchmark. Just a really great, basic IPA leaning towards the piney, hoppy side of things, like many CA IPA's do. There are definitely more exciting IPA's out there, but this one is a solid staple.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2012 19:55:24 | More by gleemonger

jkrich

Indiana

4.23/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from an undated 12 oz. bottle: deep, clear golden to bronze with a sustained white head.

Upon opening the bottle, there was a strong piney aroma that quickly dissipated. Poured into the glass, the aroma never attains that huge aroma; it is faintly piney and floral with a sweet maltiness.

This is an extremely refreshing and drinkable ale. The flavor has a nice bitterness followed by a pleasant and faint vanilla maltiness. The ale is very balanced, though the hoppiness returns to linger on the palate.

Light in body with a refreshing, spritzy carbonation. The soft maltiness battles the hop bitters on the palate before a satisfying bitterness wins out.

The label states this is a "special homicidally hoppy ale". To me it is a hoppy, American pale ale. Either way, it is a very good ale that I highly recommend.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2012 00:10:39 | More by jkrich

chinchill

South Carolina

3.5/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle poured clear amber with a small head that leaves ample lacing. A woody, earthy hop aroma is followed by a flavor that is a bit more fruity and a lot more piney in tasting.  Moderately bitter, with a suitable hop/malt balance.  Good carbonation level. Disappointing for Lagunitas in general and for the brewer of Hop Stoopid in particular.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2012 03:57:30 | More by chinchill

TrappistJohnMD

Mississippi

3.48/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours golden with minimal white head in tulip. No age found on bottle.

Smell is malty with musty hops. Not unpleasant but old and lackluster.

Taste is sweet malts. Mild bitterness. Nothing earth shattering.

Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied.

Overall this is good.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2012 22:26:19 | More by TrappistJohnMD

JamesMN

Minnesota

3.08/5  rDev -21%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Appearance: Clear golden color with a thin frothy off-white head.

Aroma: Sweet candy-like profile. Some grain. Nothing really sticks out.

Taste: Like taking a bite of cheap gummy candy. The candy sweetness of the hops does not bode well and the light caramel malt isn't able to save this one. I've tasted this flavor profile in other IPAs and I'm not a fan. Low bitterness and only very slightly dry finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied and average drinkability.

Final Thoughts: Not what I was expecting based on my enjoyment of both Lagunitas Hop Stoopid and DayTime IPA. Would I drink it again? No.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2012 05:13:27 | More by JamesMN