Lagunitas Brewing Company Little Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale
Tonight I am tying a brew from a brewery, I have had before on this blog. I have had a few brews from this brewery. I think by far this one tonight, might be one of my favorites from this brewery. Lagunitas Brewing Company is located in Petaluma, California or Chicago, Illinois. I think that some breweries that are growing to bigger breweries, are looking for additional places to grow their market. Adding other breweries to your stable is an important thing because it allows you to have multiple places to brew your beer at the same time or to make specific beers at specific locations. Lagunitas recently was in the news for a growth in size because of an investment of fifty percent stake by Heineken. This allows Lagunitas to reach further markets and to stretch their reach around the world, with Heineken's distribution. The beer I am trying tonight is Lagunitas Little Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale. Little Sumpin' is an American Pale Wheat Ale, this style is an according to Beer Advocate is an Americanized version of a Hefe-Weizen. A Hefe-Weizen is a German-Style Wheat Ale. To think of combining two styles is what some breweries do. To me this makes sense because you are trying to appeal to two different style beer drinkers. Trying to capture the wheat beer drinkers, while also appealing to the hop or bitter beer enthusiasts. Little Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale has an alcohol by volume or ABV of 7.5% and an IBU of 65.
Appearance of Little Sumpin' Sumpin'
Taking a look at this ale I start to think about the combination of the two styles. This ale has a cloudy appearance to it, but is also light in color like a pale ale should be. There is a cloudy straw appearance to this brew. The head or foam of this beer lingers around like a wheat ale would. While also leaving some lacing around the outside of the glass, like a pale ale would. So far, so good in trying to incorporate the two styles of brews into this ale. The aroma is a different story. I take my first sniff or whiff of the ale and all I pick up on this the hop aroma. After taking a few more whiffs, I began picking up on the typical wheat aromas. I noticed a citrus note as well as an apricot note in the aroma. Lastly I picked up on a spiced aroma as the final note in the aroma.
Taste is where I am eager to see the combination of the two styles play out. I took my first sip on this ale to see if the two styles blended. First thing I noticed after my first sip was the bitter hop note in the beer. The more and more I began to drink of this beer the more I notice the hop presence in the beer. The taste is where the two styles deviate. The beer is a medium body and leaves a trace of the beer on the back on your tongue. For a beer that is seven and half percent alcohol by volume, it does not drink like one. In fact, it drinks like a wheat beer in that sense. Another wheat beer aspect to this beer is the mouthfeel of the beer. The mouthfeel of this beer is similar to a wheat beer, medium thickness, but finishes not too heavy.
Check out Little Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale by Lagunitas Brewing Company
Overall, I think through the appearance and the aroma this beer is more of a perfect blend of Hefe-Weizen and Pale Ale. But when it came to taste it leans more on the Pale Ale side of things. I think that blending these two styles can be very difficult and I appreciate the combinations of the two styles. Looking at this beer, I think it appeals more to a hop or pale ale fan, but it does leave the wheat ale fan intrigued. It has it's Little Sumpin' Sumpin' for all beer enthusiasts. Gives you a little of this, a little of that and appeases the masses.
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