Jun 1, 2017

Terrapin Lucille

As a fan of The Walking Dead series on AMC, picking up a bottle of Terrapin’s second collaboration with the show was a no brainer. The fact that this imperial stout is named for the barbed wire wrapped baseball bat belonging to the charismatically diabolical Negan is an added bonus. Lucille, as the character’s weapon of choice is named, has done some damage on the rag tag cast and caused much heartache for long time followers of both the show and original comic book series. The beer, however, is not nearly as evil or foreboding as its namesake.

The big stout (9.4% ABV, 45 IBU) is brewed with blackstrap molasses and vanilla before it is aged on a variety of woods — hickory, white ash and maple also go into the making of your standard baseball bat. The result is a brew that drinks more like a rich dessert than a zombie brain-encrusted Louisville slugger. Dark roast coffee, molasses and cocoa drive the beer’s flavor profile while the blend of woody notes linger far in the background. Anise, vanilla and a moderate sweetness present themselves as well, hanging around for a good long while after each sip of the full-bodied and viscous stout.

Lucille is a solid imperial stout, though I wish it were a bit more on the robust side to match the ominous atmosphere that its namesake creates each time it appears on screen. The rich flavors work well with the blend of woods that it has been aged on. I, personally, would have liked that woody influence to stand out a bit more. I may have missed out on the first collaboration between the series and the brewery, but this second effort was a pretty tasty treat.