Lagunitas - A Little Sumpin' Sumpin' Ale

Lagunitas releases one specialty beer for each month of the year. July's is the pin-up girl themed Lil' Sumpin Sumpin Ale. It was just introduced last year and they brought it onboard. Having had the seasonal beers for January, March, and June I was eager to try this one. Here's what the company has to say about it:

"Sneaky Smooth with a Touch of What we Call Wheatly-esque-ish-ness. Crispy Wheat and Pale Malt flavors with a Zippy Hop Finish."

Let's see how they do with those claims.

Lowdown
Style: American Pale Wheat Ale
Price paid: $8.99+CRV for 6-pack of 12oz bottles
ABV: 7.3%
Bottled: May 2010
BA URL: Beer Advocate page

Appearance: Poured into a pub glass, it's a orangey-amber color, and cloudy. It looks like some sort of bubbly nectar. The head is white and very light, about a half-inch high. It dissipates but for a thin layer in minutes.

Smell: It smells sweet and hoppy, but hard to get a good estimation of what is going on exactly in there. Might have to taste some to really get into it. Yup, that's what I'm going to do.

Taste: The hops hit immediately. However, they're quickly followed by a very pleasant apricot flavor. It creates an awesome blend between the hoppy bitterness and tart sweetness. This is like the baby of a Hefeweizen and an IPA. Parents, you should be proud of your lovely daughter.

Mouthfeel: Bubbly sweetness attacks the tip of the tongue while a syrupy dryness runs down my throat. There's a lot going on there.

Drinkability: Done reviewing, I want to keep drinking this.

Bappr Index: 9/10

Alaskan Smoked Porter (2008)

Germany have been brewing smoked beers, called "rauchbiers" for centuries. This style was basically unknown until Alaskan Brewing Company in Juneau, Alaska came out with their now-famous Smoked Porter in 1988. Combining the smoking process of Rauchbier with the syrupy goodness of a Porter, soon other domestic microbreweries followed suit with their own smoked beers.

It is made with Alaskan glacial water, 5 kinds of malt, 2 kinds of hops, and yeast, and smoked with alder wood. It may be aged for several years.

Lowdown
Style: American Porter
Price paid: $7+CRV for a 22oz bottle
ABV: 6.5%
Bottled: 2008
BA URL: Beer Advocate page

Appearance: It's a dark brown color with a bit of tan-colored head.

Smell: As can be expected, it smells kind of smoky. In fact, not much else gets through ITS SMOKY POWER!!!

Taste: Pretty smoky, but still retaining a lot of the coffee-like porter taste. Less smoky than say, Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Maerzen, which I would definitely consider the classic of the smoked beers.

Mouthfeel: Not too much carbonation, more of that porter-ey soft fluffy feeling, like

Drinkability: Surprisingly high for a smoked beer. Sometimes they're too overpowering to drink in high quantities but this is really no more difficult to drink than your average porter, except the smokiness presents itself not from any roasted coffee flavors but rather a barbeque-like savory goodness.

Bappr Index: 7/10