Lagunitas Censored Rich Copper Ale
January 16, 2007 – 11:21 am
I have to admit that, until I sat down to write this post, I had the Censored Rich Copper Ale confused with the Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale. The latter beer has an interesting backstory. The article to which I linked gives the details. Here’s the gist:
But when Lagunitas Brewing Co. founder Tony Magee decided to go public with his protest against state alcohol regulators, he naturally chose the medium he knows best.
The result is Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale, a new “especially bitter ale” brewed to commemorate a bust at a brewery party last year and a subsequent 20-day suspension of its state brewing license.
It turns out undercover police officers attended some tasting parties at the brewery at which pot was smoked and/or dealt. That’s neither here or there. The Censored Rich Copper Ale is one of Lagunitas’ standard offerings and is not the same as the Undercover Investigation Shut-Down Ale.
Now onto my review. The beer was a translucent copper color in the glass. It has a thick head which dissipates very quickly. The only way I know how to describe the beer is consistently hoppy throughout. It has a slight floral aroma, but the smell is largely neutral. It’s a medium-to-heavy bodied beer.
As I state time and again, I’m not a huge hop fan, so this beer didn’t win me over. Any malt presence was just too weak for me to enjoy. I would choose plenty of other beers before I have this one again, not because it was a huge turn off, but because it had very little to offer me in the way of a nice balance between a noticeable malt and a crisp, clean malt.
If you’re a hop head, this one might be up your ally.