Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout

Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout
The Lagunitas Brewing Co.
Petaluma, California

The Andy Warholesque coffee mug (or perhaps it's a facsimile: I'm not really concerned with accuracy here) juxtaposed with a fine bottle of Lagunitas coffee stout and a corkscrewed bottle opener might make you wonder what the hell has gotten into me but it shouldn't. Like Howard Beale I'm mad as hell and I'm not going to take it anymore. I guess I'm not really mad but more underwhelmed by the craft beer movement than most of you probably are. The truth be told: I don't really care two shits less about beer. I drink it to blog. If I could think of something else to blog about that took less ability and desire then I'd do that. I'm merely lampooning the trend despite the fact that I do enjoy the bottles and the labels. Which stands to reason why I don't care to pay outrageous amounts on this pseudo-hobby.

No, I'm not going off on a tangent just yet. It's more a response to a recent post by the Appellation Beer blog concerning the continuing upward trend of prices for craft beer. The acceptance of these mounting costs for a brew and the seeming insouciant nature of craftees on plopping down $10-$20 for a single beer sort of repulses me. Decadence aside, the flippant nature towards disposable income is a bit alarming. I mean, is beer really that important to you? It's an afterthought to me so I'm quite dumbfounded by cross country trips for a beer fest and paying $50 to enter a festival and sample new beer. Truly it's bizarre.

Anyhow, recently I decided that I'm not going to try beers that are excessively priced regardless of their appeal. Sure, I might break the rule for something exceptional but for the most part I'm going down the Depression Era road towards economics and supply and demand.

Being an avid listener of Coast to Coast AM and not really believing too much in coincidences I found it quite amusing that I should find these affordable classics and new arrivals in the craft movement awaiting for me today at a local grocery store. I was merely driving past the place and suddenly decided to stop in because I wasn't much in the mood for a Belgian (which is all I had in the fridge) on a day that the Hall of Fame legend George Kell passed away. A blue collar ballplayer perfectly compliments the blue collar intellect of Detroit and its satellite cities.

Ironically enough, when I arrived home and plopped down to the computer and read Jay from The Hedonist Beer Jive's commentary on why he wasn't going to pay $24 for a bottle of Consecration, I wasn't surprised that he also mentioned Lagunitas: "to say nothing of a $3.99 22-ounce Lagunitas beer, for instance. It wasn’t because it was a “workingman’s beverage”, no sir –". A brewery that I had earlier decided would encompass parts of my next purchases due to their affordability.

As for the beer itself: a fine farking stout with a just right amount of quality coffee, a strong creme-malty spine and a perfect slight affect of hop element that puts a fine detail on the beer but not an overwhelming stamp. God bless the $4 bomber!

All apologies for the lengthy and unnecessary post.

-Wörtwurst