This American Strong Ale weighs in at 8.8% ABV and is just another in a line of great brews from Lagunitas. The California based brewery is one of those companies that consistently produces quality brews — and luckily for me I see them pretty often in my neck of the woods.
I’m sure I’ve said it before, but anytime I see one of this brewery’s products on the shelf, it’s a given that I’m at least grabbing a couple of bottles. The Hairy Eyeball was no exception and simply strengthened the grasp Lagunitas has over my liver.
Appearance
This one pours a dark, reddish brown in color with a large off-white, orange tinged head.
Aroma
The Hairy Eyeball has a sweet caramel and malty aroma with a fruiting backing. It’s not overly sweet, but you can definitely get a little brown sugar and berry notes in the nose.
Taste
I was initially surprised at how full bodied it was considering it’s not so thick looking appearance. It’s not a syrupy thickness that I’ve found in other strong ales, but it’s a bit more viscous than I anticipated. The fruity presence comes out a bit more than the aroma let on — making itself known toward in the slightly bitter finish. It’s got a malty, caramel sweetness that’s backed nicely by the fruit and light hop notes as well.
Overall
I shared a couple of bottles of this beer when a buddy of mine recently visited. I remember glancing up after my first sip, only to catch him with the same expression on his face. I’m pretty sure that we each had a split second twinge of jealousy in knowing that we only had the single bottle a piece to enjoy. To that end, Hairy Eyeball is a well balanced, tasty strong ale that I’ll be on the look out for in the future.
Rating: 3.5/5
February 18th, 2009
Dan "On Tap" said:
I had many of the same observations as above. If you get a chance to try them, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the Frank Zappa line of beers from Lagunitas.