Extra Special Pepper
Lazy Magnolia Brewing Company

I tried Lazy Magnolia’s whimsical Extra Special Pepper (ESP, of course) at a little Mexican place in Gulfport a couple months back and enjoyed it but eating a couple bowls of salsa first meant all the pepper was lost on me, so while it may have paired well, you can gather the pepper wasn't overwhelming. I wanted to give it another chance.

The beer was bright and pale, half a finger of head. You could make out a bit of pepper in the aroma. The taste was clean and fresh and light on the palate. Went down real easy. Not a lot of pepper, but you could get some spiciness for sure. It’s in the aftertaste that it catches up to you. Not overwhelming by any stretch, but you could taste plenty of pepper on the back end. My lips were slightly tingling.

Overall a fun beer. Actually an easy drinking session beer, with the pepper novelty for kick.

Butch

This pint was poured at Mockingbird Cafe in Bay St. Louis, MS...into a fresh, newly-purchased logo glass no less... Earlier today, the brewer told me this batch was kegged in mid-November, so it's a bit under 2 months old...

A: Color is a fair yellow-orange, maybe a weak amber. Almost clear, but a very faint hazy fuzz; just a few random, slowly-rising carbonation bubbles. Capped with 1/2-finger of fine, close-to-creamy, nearly-white head. Good retention and nice lacing in clumpy bands.

S: Sadly, almost aroma-less...a little pale malt and just a few flecks of pepper (almost like dry black pepper, rather than the habanero with which this is made).

T: Starts out like a fairly simple pale ale, malty graininess, a hint of caramel. It takes 3-5 seconds before the peppery warmth reveals itself, and when it does, it's a lovely kick of fresh pepper heat, without being to caustic. That spicy/smoky tingle sneaks up rather quickly, zesty and saliva-causing but not burning.

M: Body is medium-light, despite the spicy flair. Once the heat subsides, mouthfeel is rather clean, just a zesty tingle lingering on the back of the tongue and warming the throat (where the lasting heat holds the longest...). Carbonation is light.

D: This is one of those niche styles that's usually enjoyable as a sample, even a half-pint but is a fairly tough one to finish a full glass of. However, I liked this enough to have little trouble with the pint and probably could have had another. Likable pepperiness paired really well with a turkey, swiss and red onion-laden sandwich and does fine on it's own. A good 'chile beer', worth trying.

This beer poured a clear golden with thin to no head. The aroma is malty and sweet with a slight hint of pepper – not overpowering. The taste is sweet with a slight pepper bite on the tip of the tongue. The pepper really shows through in the aftertaste and seems to linger for a long time (I could still taste it on the way home from the bar). The mouthfeel is on the lighter side of medium – not sure if this is mouthfeel, but it leaves a weak burn in the back of the throat. Overall, this is an interesting beer. For chile beer lovers I’d highly recommend giving it a try. For others it is interesting, but it might be a bit spicy for regular drinking.