Lazy Boy Brewing Belgian

8.7% ABV

Considered a suburb of Seattle, the city of Everett has little need to be envious when it comes to breweries. Home to Scuttlebutt, Diamond Knot and Lazy Boy as well as a couple of fine beer bars and shops, Everett’s brewing community is thriving. Lazy Boy Brewing is relatively new to the game (celebrating only their fourth anniversary later this week), but I have tasted three of their ales now and have yet to be disappointed.

Their Belgian could be sub-categorized as a strong golden, and it mostly succeeds. Banana, cloves and yeast dominate the nose of the yellowish amber colored liquid with the soft off-white head. Funky fruit splashes throughout the mouth before the sweet malt rolls in, which disguises the high alcohol content until the aftertaste. Well within the style characteristics, I still felt that overall there was something slightly lacking; perhaps a certain mustiness imparted from too long a stay on a shelf? A well crafted entry to the Lazy Boy line, but next time I reach for the smiling little guy with the beer gut on their label, it will be for their IPA or Porter and would instead depend on a brewery from Belgium to provide me with a Belgian-style golden ale. Call me a traditionalist, if you must.

Thirsty Zymurgist Score: 37/50