Old Numbskull
AleSmith Brewing Company in San Diego, California, United States 🇺🇸
Barley Wine - Barley Rotating|
Score
7.90
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Bottle conditioned.
Caramel and toffee notes abound in this deep copper-colored American Barleywine-style but alongside toasted malt and a hint of ripe dark fruits. Old Numbskull showcases malt sweetness, intense American hops, and an aggressive bitterness. Extremely well-balanced, the full-bodied mouthfeel and assertive hop profile leads into a deceptively smooth finish. Old Numbskull can be enjoyed now or laid down for years to come.
Caramel and toffee notes abound in this deep copper-colored American Barleywine-style but alongside toasted malt and a hint of ripe dark fruits. Old Numbskull showcases malt sweetness, intense American hops, and an aggressive bitterness. Extremely well-balanced, the full-bodied mouthfeel and assertive hop profile leads into a deceptively smooth finish. Old Numbskull can be enjoyed now or laid down for years to come.
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8/10
Intensywne, geste, lepkie, zywiczne, przejrzale owoce tropikalne, trawiaste, ciut miodowe, ciut karmelowe, ciut alkoholu, slodkie... Klasa!
Tried
at
Powiśle
on 24 Apr 2016
at 15:07
8.1/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 9
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 9.5
Bottle of one and a half year old. American style barley wine with thick, moussy, quite stable, yellowish beige head and ’equally’ misty, deep amberish copper robe. Complex aroma of American cookies, biscuit, gingerbread, Cointreau, brown rhum, candied orange, mouldy grapefruit, lychee, caramel, chestnut, wet leather, pepper, hay, peach, strawberry, old cocoa powder and a bit of damp cellar in the end. Soft, sweetish fruity onset with estery hints of Cantaloupe, strawberry, passion fruit and lychee surrounded by a certain mushroom-like ’umaminess’, soft carbo, vinous and ’fluffy’, almost quad-like mouthfeel, bit powdery, built on a thick layer of caramelly and bready malt sweetness with softly bittering toasted edges, while the finish adds earthy, peppery, leafy hops with retronasal dried grapefruit peel fragrance but mildly so, as well as quite a lot of peppery, brandy-like alcohol, becoming a bit tiring and even slightly astringent on the tongue in the end, but providing a great deal of ’afterwarmth’. Nice and complex, interesting, but somehow it lacks the dignity of the best barley wines of this world (think Sucaba and the like); still, I think with some years of cellaring, this has great flavor potential. In terms of style, I think this is closer to English barley wine than to ’true’ American barley wine, if such a thing is to be recognized in the first place...
Tried
from Bottle
on 08 Apr 2016
at 19:14
7.6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 8.5
Bottle shared at the 2015 edition of the chriso Pre-GBBF tasting - London. Cheers! Pours clear, reddish gold with a creamy, khaki head. The nose holds old pine, toasted grains, crackers, dried out caramel. Medium sweet flavour with lots of graham cracker, dried fruits, alcohol, bread. Medium to full bodied with average carbonation. Warming finish with more graham crackers, pine and dried fruits. Very tasty overall.
Tried
from Bottle
on 20 Mar 2016
at 07:24
6.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 5
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 5.5
Old rating rerated 30.01.2016, 0,75l bottle shared with friends:
Nice creamy mediumlasting head. Aroma is slightly dry mineraly, burnt sugar, bark, alcohol, grass, hops, old leafs, weeds, minerals, hints of thinner. Taste is sweet grassy, leafs, sugar, grass, weeds, bark, alcohol, hops, citrus peel, dried fruits, minerals. Medium to longlasting bitterness, sweet and harsh grassy mouthfeel. Fair enough.
Nice creamy mediumlasting head. Aroma is slightly dry mineraly, burnt sugar, bark, alcohol, grass, hops, old leafs, weeds, minerals, hints of thinner. Taste is sweet grassy, leafs, sugar, grass, weeds, bark, alcohol, hops, citrus peel, dried fruits, minerals. Medium to longlasting bitterness, sweet and harsh grassy mouthfeel. Fair enough.
Tried
from Bottle
on 30 Jan 2016
at 17:17
7.6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Bottled on 05/11/15.
This was poured into a tulip.
The appearance was a semi-hazy burnt amber color with a thin white slim little head. Lacing was filmy and glossy along the glass.
The smell started off with leafy tobacco aroma up front. Subtle citrus hops invade light toffee and caramel malts. Crisp yet sweet and dry fruity esters slyly move in.
The taste was moderately dry with a subtle sweet dry caramel to toffee. Subtle dried fruit rides underneath. Dry semi-sweet caramel to fruity to toffee aftertaste subtly moving into the finish.
On the palate, this one sat about about a medium on the body with a good sipping quality about it. Carbonation rides in subtly and nicely, allows a super big stickiness, almost cloying, but not.
Overall, as an American Barleywine it works, there’s some hops in the aroma that seem a bit further back but due to the age on the beer, I’m not worried and didn’t cut back. It’s good for what it is and I’d have again.
This was poured into a tulip.
The appearance was a semi-hazy burnt amber color with a thin white slim little head. Lacing was filmy and glossy along the glass.
The smell started off with leafy tobacco aroma up front. Subtle citrus hops invade light toffee and caramel malts. Crisp yet sweet and dry fruity esters slyly move in.
The taste was moderately dry with a subtle sweet dry caramel to toffee. Subtle dried fruit rides underneath. Dry semi-sweet caramel to fruity to toffee aftertaste subtly moving into the finish.
On the palate, this one sat about about a medium on the body with a good sipping quality about it. Carbonation rides in subtly and nicely, allows a super big stickiness, almost cloying, but not.
Overall, as an American Barleywine it works, there’s some hops in the aroma that seem a bit further back but due to the age on the beer, I’m not worried and didn’t cut back. It’s good for what it is and I’d have again.
Tried
from Bottle
on 01 Jan 2016
at 20:00
8.1/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 10
Overall 7.5
Coppery red colored, clear, small off white to beige frothy head. Aroma is of sweet caramel, toffee, dried fruits, bit spice, herbal and pine hops. Taste is very sweet and malty, quite caramelish and toffee, very dried fruity, moderate floral and pine hops, medium- bitterness, some spices, quite boozy with alcohol warmth finishing up. Full bodied, soft carbonation, thick and syrupy.
Tried
on 30 Dec 2015
at 07:18
6.8/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
Bottle from Texas Liquors, shared at the holiday party
Clear golden with a medium sized beige head, some lacing. Aroma is caramel and nutty. Taste of caramel, malty and hot alcohols
Good. I’ve had this for a few years, it could have used a few more.
Clear golden with a medium sized beige head, some lacing. Aroma is caramel and nutty. Taste of caramel, malty and hot alcohols
Good. I’ve had this for a few years, it could have used a few more.
Tried
from Bottle
on 15 Dec 2015
at 13:35
8.2/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
2012 vintage. Thanks Keven for sharing. Fun to try and surprising that this is my firsr experience with this beer. Pours a cloudy brown with a lasting fizz head. Toasty flavor throughout, and very mellow. Has settled in time im sure. Hoppy finish. Delicious.
Tried
on 02 Dec 2015
at 21:43
8/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 9
Botella 75 cl en el Kraken 18..04.. 2019 cata barley wine. Toques dulces al principio pasando rápidamente a lupulados algo secos con toques maltosos acaramelados y recuerdos de frutos pasos al final. Seca amarga al final. Bastante buena, cervezon. No cambia puntos. Botella 75 cl tomada en el Lupulo en varias veces última en julio 2014. (r1397). Sin lote ni fecha en Botella. Antiguo etiquetado. Increíble barley Si me con buen cuerpo y sensación alcohólica. Para repetir sin duda otra vez más.
Tried
on 11 Oct 2015
at 13:18
10/10
—
Appearance 10
Aroma 10
Flavor 10
Texture 10
Overall 10
Aroma: caramel, dark fruits, citrus, pine, earthy Appearance: clear copper, tan head Taste: medium sweetness, medium bitterness, Palate: full body, creamy, soft carbonation, long finish, Outstanding.
Tried
on 04 Oct 2015
at 19:18