• Lagunitas Lucky 13

Lagunitas Brewing Co., Petaluma, Calif.

(ENLARGE)

BOB TOWNSEND BEER PICK E-mail Townsend Related: • More on food and drink • Restaurant reviews and search More Townsend New brews for fall and Oktoberfest  Budweiser American Ale  Craft brewers a perfect fit in Slow Food Nation event  Sweetwater Motor Boat Ale  Weyerbacher Brewing on track, after a struggle  • Bob Townsend is editor of Southern Brew News, a bimonthly beer publication distributed throughout the Southeast.

•$2.99/22-ounce limited-edition bottle at metro beverage stores

• Profile: Another fun limited edition from the wild guys at Lagunitas (say lah-go-knee-tuss), this time in celebration of their 13th anniversary. The label on the 22-ounce bottle — showing a pint-quaffing, dark-haired beauty wrapped around a horseshoe — looks as though it could have been painted on the nose of a WW II bomber. Dubbed a "Mondo Large Red Ale," it's a strong brew, 8.1 percent alcohol by volume, auburn-colored, with a profusion of grapefruit and pine in the nose, a sticky mouthfeel and a flavorful balancing act of sweet caramel malt and resinous hops.

• Pair with: Fight fire with fire and try the bold, bittersweet flavors of Lucky 13 with all sorts of super-piquant dishes — blackened Cajun, Sichuan, Indian vindaloo, Jamaician jerk, Mexican peppers — or maybe a tasting of blow-your-head-off hot sauces and Southern barbecue.

— btowns@bellsouth.net

Bob Townsend is editor of Southern Brew News, a bimonthly beer publication distributed throughout the Southeast.