Lagunitas - Censored Rich Copper Ale

Tonight Dunz, myself and our ladies went out to go see the Christmas Schooner at the History Theater in St Paul. It was a great performance with plenty of Christmas cheer. I would happily watch the performance again. A bonus to the performance was a German beer tasting that we attended prior to the show. We sampled six different brews that all originated from Germany. Some of these breweries dated back to the 1040's! We took notes and pictures and will be writing an overall tasting review tomorrow. For tonight, however, I wanted to share a bit of Lagunitas with you!

Lagunitas is a brewery that is known for its big, full bodied, overly hoppy beers. These guys are brewing beers for the craft beer drinker and wouldnt be happy anywhere else. Censored Ale seems to stray slightly from that craft beer way of thinking. Pouring a very clear copper (which would make sense considering the name) you are greeted with a head that quickly dissipates into a off-white ring around your glass. The aroma is caramel with a touch of roast. You would miss the roast if you werent looking for it. Your first sip will be a nice big malt bomb in your mouth... (Ill give you a malt bomb... thats what she said???). As it warms a touch of alcohol enters the flavor profile and grows as the brew gets warmer. At 5.9% abv it would almost be expected but doesnt fit in this beer. Hops take a back seat in this Lagunitas brew where their only role here is a finishing bitterness on the back of your tounge. Something you wouldnt typically expect from a brewery who labels one of their beers "Hop Stoopid". You will want to drink this one cold. But not any cooler than 35-40 degrees otherwise you will lose the sweet, caramel aroma. Any warmer than 50 and the alcohol starts to interfere with the primary, and frankly only flavor this beer has got. You have to search pretty hard to find other primary flavor characteristics.

Overall, lets give this one a 3.2 out of 6. I enjoy it and could drink a few at a time but eventually the sweetness catches up to you. It has a dry finish which helps keep it drinkable. If you are looking for a sweet beer with plenty of caramel malt in your face then this will be right up your alley and you could probably drink a number of them until you fall off your bar stool. I, however, prefer my beers to be a bit more complex without being overly sweet. This one doesnt quite hit it all the way home.

Interesting fact nugget for all of you illegal cigarette smokers out there, the name under the "Censored" bar on the label is actually "Kronic". And yes, the nugget pun was intended.

Statistics:
1.065 O.G.
25 IBU's

www.lagunitas.com/beers/censored