Lag time

I was in P. Mac's for a different reason entirely when I found a Lagunitas event taking place. It centred around one of only two kegs of Willettized stout in the country. This is Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout aged in rye whisky barrels acquired from the Willett Distillery in Kentucky. That turns the 9.1% ABV imperial stout into a 12.6% ABV beast, but the subtlety it creates is phenomenal. There's no harshness or heat here, and all of the rich coffee flavours from the base beer are still fully present. They're joined by a gorgeous smooth and mature bourbon taste, much lighter on the vanilla than most examples of this kind. This isn't a complex beer, and it lacks any gimmickry; instead it represents a pure simple elegance, a lot like fine whisky itself.

A few short weeks later it was 20th April, bringing a multi-pub launch of their triple IPA The Waldos, and I was back in P. Mac's. Lagunitas tends to go big on the residual sugar so I was terrified of what would happen when the ABV hit 11.7%. Yes, it's thick, but the hop flavours are bright, clean and distinct. There's no sugary syrup and not even any oily resins. The flavour, as one might expect, goes big on bitterness, with classic Californian grapefruit and lime up first, then a softer and more nuanced pineapple behind. I found it remarkably easy to drink, though I'd say a few would sneak up on one very quickly.

Something gentler was required next, and "moderate... slightly alcoholic" read the description of Sumpin' Easy, despite it being a somewhat stonking 5.7% ABV: not exactly where I'd put the moderation marker. It looks light and innocent, a pale and limpid straw colour with just a very slight haze. The aroma is gently tropical: mango, pineapple and papaya, enticing me into a big first gulp. That showed the carbonation to be low, just a pleasant prickle of gas. The flavour is fruit-forward but not the way I expected. Instead of juicy tropical produce, it's sweet and sticky strawberries to the fore. Behind this there's an almost-bitterness which has a little pine but also some offputting plastic and cheap chemical candy. It coats the palate like one of those gummy ice cream IPAs. This isn't the summery refresher I wanted it to be and easy it ain't.

A sticky session IPA next to a clean and dry triple IPA? What have Lagunitas been smoking? Oh. I see.

States of mind

For a festival organised by a US-based company, we weren't exactly drowning in American beer at Alltech Brews & Food 2015. It took a bit of hunting to find what was there. Obviously, Alltech's own beer was front and centre, including the new Kentucky Honey Barrel Ale. This is mahogany red and has a very woody bourbon nose. Vanilla is massively dominant in the flavour and, coupled with a huge sugary sweetness and a high level of carbonation, the overall effect is very like a bourbon and coke. Not something I'm looking for in a beer.

Meanwhile, at the Grand Cru stand, they had tapped up Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout. The coffee flavour isn't too overdone here and at its heart it's a simple middle-of-the-road dry stout. Lagunitas DayTime was much more fun, all bright sherbet lemons and more serious heavy resins finishing perfectly cleanly for bonus drinkability. And all at 4.6% ABV, making it a session IPA truly worthy of the style.

DayTime, like the remaining American beers in this post, came from the Dublin Cup bar, where leftover beers from the international competition go to be disposed of. It's a wonderful idea and I took full advantage. Where else would you get to try Schlafly Oatmeal Stout, a marvellously smooth and sweet number, using its 5.7% ABV to give it extra welly but staying soft and approachable at the same time. The same can't be said for New Holland's Dragon's Milk, a 10% ABV imperial stout given far too long in bourbon barrels coming out the other side dripping with vanillins and only a late rush of milk chocolate offering any kind of complexity.

Back to simple and subtle again, and Major Tom's Pomegranate Wheat by Fort Collins brewery is light on fruit but makes good use of the dry flavour from the pomegranate for a very refreshing end result. Dark Horse's Crooked Tree IPA is also nicely refreshing, though perhaps darker and a little sweeter than many of its contemporaries. There's a lovely hard orange candy flavour but nothing blaringly bitter or citric. It's one that's worth taking time over, not that I did.

Two rather plain sweet dark ales to finish on. I've been very impressed with Great Lakes beers in the past but Conway's Irish Ale didn't do it for me. It offers only a few crumbs of biscuit and a dry mineral edge but otherwise failed to hold my attention. Similarly, Smuttynose Old Brown Dog is dark red and mostly tastes of caramel. This time the extra dimension comes from a few wisps of roasted grain but there's not really enough to make it interesting.

Some quality beers here, but nothing too daring or different in this selection. I've saved the more thrilling beers for the last couple of posts.