StereoHopic Vol. 5
Lagunitas Brewing Company

Easy crushable stuff with good bitterness, solid malt backbone and vivid carbonation. Good for a midsummernight´s hangover. Has not the balance of the regular IPA.

Bottled on 6.30.22 I believe

Poured into a weizen glass at fridge temp.

Pours golden with a dense white head, settles into a ring and loose cap. Fairly loose lacing. 3.75

Fairly heavy and strong stone fruit, fermented cherry and dank hop aroma. 3.75

Taste is hop forward, dank, slightly boozy and malty. 4

Creamy body, slight alcohol burn and sharp. 4

Overall not as good as vol.6 in my opinion, but this likely would've been better fresh. 3.75

 

 

 

This was a nice return to Lagunitas bringing good hops for a great price. Got kinda sketchy there for a bit after the full buy out. But this is a nice return to form essentially.

Pours golden light honey like color. 1/2" white head, good clarity. The aroma had the berry weed strawberry cough Strata strain. Eukanot brought a bit of the stone orchard project with an addition of grapefruit. Smells nice. This is nice.

The taste brings a heartier bitterness that is welcome. It layers out a west coast malt bill of minimalism and dryness in the mouthfeel. Light berry and weed notes, brisk carbonation and body. Efficient abv delivery system too, pretty easy to crush. Not sure why people think this needs more bitterness, seems to be in the 50ibu wheelhouse to my senses.

Its nothing special, but it delivery on a good hoppy beer available at grocery stores for $9/6 pack. Crushable year round. Nice return to form.

Bottled on 6-18-22. 12oz bottle poured into a tulip.

Pours golden with nice clarity and transparency; small white head that fades leaving decent bubbly retention and okay lacing.

The aromas have a nice blend of citrus and tropical fruits. Some caramel. Malts are there.

The flavors are clean, crisp, and refreshing. Some orange, lemon, strawberry, and pineapple leading. Hints of grapefruit in the mix. Lots of floral notes as well. Lots of fresh grass along with some pine. More subtle hints of caramel. Malts do their thing while almost taking a backseat. Finishes dry. Alcohol basically goes unnoticed.

Mouthfeel is very nice. It's medium-bodied with active carbonation. It's sharp, crisp, fluffy, and smooth.

This is a nice IPA. I could just imagine if it was "fresh". Nice hop flavors and the craftsmanship is on point. Well done.

Clear light copper color with a modest white head and some decent lacing.
The aroma is mild caramel malt with cherries and berries.
The taste is also mild, light caramel malt, cherries, strawberries, raspberries, grapes along with some citrus. The finish has grapefruit and pine resin, though milder than typical west coast IPAs. The body is light/medium , carbonation is light, smooth and easy to drink.
Altogether, this is an interesting and tasty use of hops, refreshing and enjoyable even with a fairly mild bitterness level.

Pours a transparent golden color with the two finger pillowy head with big bubbles. Lots of carbonation in this one.

Smells very bready with some light fruit notes.

Taste is of yeast all the way through into a very mild bite.

A very simple IPA not too heavy not too light.

 

 

 

 

Clear gold, 2-finger head. Dank aroma with a little pine. Stiffly bitter balanced by a very slight sweetness. Seems like an IPA-lover's IPA fo sho.

 

12oz bottle purchased from the fridge as a single for $2. No visible bottled on date.

Look: Pours a perfectly clear, beautiful deep copper/amber color. There was a small off-white head that dissipated pretty quickly. Some nice lacing.

Smell: Nice aromas of caramel malt along with dank and piney hop notes. The beer smells like it will be hop forward, and also will have a nice caramel malt backbone. I get some subtle cherry notes (I can almost smell a Luden's wild cherry throat lozenge). Other notes of spice and citrus zest. Smells interesting.

Taste: Yummy. It's not nearly as bitter as I expected it would be. This is actually really accessible and drinkable. The cherry notes really come through on the palate, it's very tasty. Up front - nice caramel malt notes that gradually lead to a mild to moderate bitter and spicy/peppery finish. The finish is clean and fairly dry, but it still feels like you're drinking a West Coast IPA so it's not super dry.

Feel: It's moderately carbonated with a medium to medium plus mouthfeel.

Overall: It's a pretty unique hop pairing, and most brewers that are using Strata are probably making hazy IPAs with it. I actually think that it works very well in a West Coast IPA. This beer is so well balanced and the malt and hop flavors are so well integrated. Sometimes you drink a beer where it feels like the malt and hops are competing against each other; here, they are working together in perfect harmony. Really delicious. Don't sleep on Lagunitas - their price point is amazing and they certainly know how to brew good beer! Especially West Coast IPAs!

 

 

12 oz bottle from Weavervillle NC served in a Tervis in KY.

Appearance. Dark but very clear amber colored body with visible carbonation rising to a durable, creamy looking off-white head.

The aroma and flavor reflect a well chosen (or serendipitous) combination of two hop varieties, including Strata.
A mix of berry and fruit notes emerge with some lingering on into the hoppy aftertaste. Moderately bitter for the style.

Pours a light watered copper color, sounds weird but not really amber or a orange golden. Head is small and leaves only light lace.

Aroma is a soft fruity topical with lots of berry notes too over taking every thing else. Light malt base hard to tell what it is just loads of fruity berries.

Taste is fruity with berries dominating the flavor profile, some normal light citrus/tropical hoppiness but the berries over take that as well. Eh is you like fruity and berries you may love this if you want a bitter IPA this won't fit the bill.

Mouthfeel is light and crisp.

Overall not a hop combination that needs to be tried again, unless you want a fruity berry drink.