Triple Sunshine - Tequila Barrel-Aged
Lawson's Finest Liquids

6/25/24 On tap at THE brewhouse.

Pineapple and lemon on the nose right off. Near the end it melted into a beautiful deep and earth pine aroma.

Quite dry in the mouth and surprisingly spicy with clove, vanilla, banana, and mango. Very SURPRISING flavor profile for a triple IPA! It seems at times to want to be sweet, but then it's not. This is a great and complex offering!

Barrel aging an IPA, in my opinion, rarely works - and when it does, it's something like gin or tequila barrels, not the more traditional bourbon, that gets the job done. By design or accident, Lawson's creation here aligns with my bias.

OG Triple Sunshine is an absolute hoppy delight. This beer is ... well, also a hoppy delight, but in a completely different way. The tequila adds a nearly inscrutable layer, blending with the hops, malt, yeast, and massive ABV to give the impression that you're drinking a smooth, fruity, hoppy tropical liqueur-infused drink.

This is a beer equally at home savored by beer nerds taking notes with quill pens on parchment, and chad bros and beach bunnies lounging in the sun. It's remarkable: there's a ton to savor and explore, but at the same time, it's instantly satisfying in a way that beer rarely is.

Is it a compliment to suggest that a beer drinks more like a cocktail? Perhaps; perhaps not. Only you can be the judge of that. For me, this beer is shockingly good.

 

 

 

Taster at brewery, side by side with Triple Sunshine. A bit darker hue, closer to amber, thinner head. Coconut aroma, woody. Taste is soft and sweet, coconut, vanilla toffee. This really transcends the normal Triple Sunshine, a masterpiece in its own right . Got the last two bottles they had.

 

Bottle. White head with lace. Slightly dark golden color.

Wow is this something. So much going on here. The flavors are great, but my is it boozey. Coconut, caramel, toffee, vanilla, and oak mixed with pine, resin, floral, and weedy hops. Very dank. Some citrus and pineapple mixed in. Finishes with a healthy dose of tequila and booze. Love the flavor, afraid of how it’s gonna knock me out.

Look: Slightly hazy caramel with orange highlights in the coloration. White foam is mellow due to the aging, but had plenty of white, bubbly foam around the edges.

Nose: The tequila barrel's really brings in a big vanilla and oak aroma. Bright hoppy fruitiness is pungent, pineapple and strawberry. Sweet boozy heat in the nose with caramel and candy sweetness underneath.

Feel & flavor: rather crisp and dry at first feel, the hops are bright and fruity flavors but also very earthy-dry. Sweet vanilla, yes coconut and oak from being laid down on the tequila wood. Complexity is high, although I feel it might mature very nicely over the next couple of years.

Overall: The blast of bright fruity hops, super earthy dry adds character and the tequila wood sweet and oak style flavor's actually meld very together. Well done.

Pours a dark, heavily oxidized-looking cider color with a thin finger of off-white head. Remarkable retention and messy lacing. It’s mugly looking at first, but the head impresses.

Pineapple and other tropical fruit show in the nose, along with a hint of vanilla or cream.

Tropical fruit explodes in the taste as well. Loads of pineapple and other island fruits, vanilla chews, a touch of wood and moderate alcohol heat. Pilly bitterness in the aftertaste.

Full bodied and chewy feel with soft carbonation.

I prefer the regular, but this is definitely fun to try. The vanilla and extra chewiness to the mouthfeel are great additions.

1 Pint, .9 fl oz. bottle.
11% abv.

Moderate pour yields an almost one inch white head over a deep golden body with sticky lacing. Nose of hops, tequila, and slight oak. Taste is a tad sweet with flavors of tequila, hops and slight oak. The oak is a bit more pronounced closer to the finish, which is dry. As it warms, there are flavors of tropical fruit, vanilla, and coconut coming forward. Nice feel and overall, I really like this; which is saying a lot because I'm definitely not a tequila drinker. This does come off sort of like a tequila cocktail and that's just fine.
Cheers to Sean and crew in Waitsfield, VT!!!

 

Pours a crystal clear golden amber with a thin head and moderate lacing. The aroma is explosive! I am pulling pineapple, strawberry, watermelon, and grapefruit with earthy wood, vanilla, and lightly toasted coconut. A honey like, bready malt character and herbal tequila round out the vapors coming off this glass. The flavor is just as huge with pineapple, strawberry jam, grapefruit, and watermelon dominating. This is met with a very soft bitterness, vanilla, woody oak, toasted coconut and a slightly spicy, herbal booziness. The finish is sweet with a tannic balance and lingering juicy fruit, and citrus rind flavors. This is a mind blowing beer. One of the best things I have ever tasted. I would describe it as a super hoppy blonde barleywine. So incredibly complex and so incredibly drinkable. Lawson's has really outdone themselves with this. This may be my favorite beer I have ever had. I would have never thought "aging" an IPA could make it better but apparently in the hands of the right brewer it does.

 

 

L -- Golden orange with virtually no haze and also virtually no head. Just a bit of lazy effervescence bubbling up
S -- Caramel, tequila, tropical fruit candy, apricot, vanilla
T -- Butterscotch, pineapple candy, lychee, hint of agave, oaky tannins, sugar-dusted coconut. Much more enjoyable than the base Triple Sunshine
F -- Medium mouthfeel, medium- carb. Sweet, but not cloying. Minimal bitterness on the finish
O -- Other than the very high price ($15/16oz), this is good. It takes what is an overly sweet, malty bruiser (Triple Sunshine) and makes it quite palatable with the exotic tequila notes

85/100

Like sinking your teeth into the perfect blend of tequila-dipped tropical and citrus fruit is what Lawson's Finest Triple Sunshine (Tequila Barrel Aged) delivers. Hawaiian punch and margarita see a marriage made in beer heaven with a single sip of this elixir.

Its lightly hazy, nearly golden-straw color is laced topped with a tall, creamy and persistent froth. But hovering over the glass overwhelms the palate with all things tropical, citrus and orchard fruit with a fruity, twingy spice of tequila and oak.

Its bright and almost tangy taste is both mouthwatering and drying simultaneously. Its mild hop acidity latches onto the tastebuds with the teeth-churning taste red grapefruit, mandarin, agave, lemon, pineapple, mango and apricot. As the ale swirls beautifully on the middle palate, its distant backdrop of malt is delicate with honey, agave, and confectionary sweetness giving its vibrant hoppy fruit character a sense of being vine-ripe, bursting with plump juices.

Hiding its strength masterfully, the ale hasn't trends spicy, balancing with piney bitterness and intent on allowing the hop flavor, dryness and smooth bitterness to govern the final taste. Its medium long finish is tangy, spicy with tequila, drying with oak, playfully warm and leaves the mouth begging for more.

16.9 oz bottle into a tulip glass.

Pours a cloudy golden amber color with a half finger of white head. The head leaves a crown of lacing as it settles into a halo around the top of the beer.

The aroma brings notes of grapefruit, melon, pineapple and agave from the tequila. Maybe a hint of vanilla.

The flavor starts off with loads of grapefruit and tangerine, followed by some vanilla and a finish of coconut. Bordering on cloying.

The feel is full bodied and resinous. Very syrupy and boozy.

Overall, I'm not sure how to define this beer, but it's not bad. It's a bit too sweet and boozy for my tastes, but as a "barrel aged IPA" it's decent. Definitely not worth the price of admission, though.