Lagunitas, as I've previously mentioned, is probably my new favorite brewery. Nestles in Petaluma California, they produce some shockingly good ales, and I am always eager to try their newest creation. This is the most recent I'm come across, so Maximus is up. This is 8.2% ABV, so it's no slouch, but alcohol is a side effect, not the intent, of all the fermenting hops.
The color is a slightly hazy amber gold. The head is thick and lashes itself to the sides like a 60's college girl tying herself to a tree to ensure that it doesn't get knocked down for the sake of "progress." The layer that remains across the top is relatively thick and full of life. The aroma is hoppy and floral with the added smell of freshly baked bread - which I wasn't expecting. Normally, I would associate that particular smell with malt, and malt does not normally take a front seat in the IPA roller coaster of taste and alcohol.
First sip is like they took a big sack and filled it with flavor, then they condensed it into a flavor ball the size of a golf ball and I cracked that sucker open right onto my tongue. It is about this time that I am reminded that amber ales and IPAs are brewed in a similar fashion, but the two could not be further apart in terms of taste bud challenge. Ambers strain the ability to taste subtleties like trying to hear a whisper from the other side of an empty room with lots of echoes. An IPA is like trying to hear someone in the same room, speaking normally, with a few dozen other people having arguments.
I'm going to move on to the big swig, as I had a long day, and I want to drink a beer like a man.
Tip-in is an acidic bit followed by a carbonation tingle. I say tingle, as a lot of the time the carbonation bites, but this does not. The middle of the beer brings a surprisingly light hops with a very floral sensation. As the finish starts, there is a hint of pine, a sweet malt, and ... is it love? Could be. Then, the taste winds down with a slight metallic taste and a bit of hop bitterness with a sweetness remaining on the lips.
I don't know how to say this, but this beer is ludicrously good. I mean, holy Moses.
5.0/5
