Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
Thanks to CaptainCougar and DrunkAsASkunk for making trades of this! This pours black, pure and simple. Not much head as expected, huge aroma however. Coffee, chocolate and toasted marshmallows. Smooth coating palate is delivered to the tongue. Dark roast malts provide the bitter dryness and the caramel sweetness counters it to make a beautifully balanced brew. A tad bit smoother than the Barrel aged version, although it too will have those who prefer that touch. A really great over the top Imperial Russian Stout.
Oakes (33493) reviewed Double IPA from AleSmith Brewing Company 21 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Hazy orangey-amber colour. Deep orangey hop aroma with pine and earthy amber malts. Very bitter and hugely orangey, piney. Chewy malt backbone helps balance things out.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8.5
Deep reddish amber, fizzy beige head. Light smoke but mainly caramelized sugar, cookieish toasty malts. Medium bodied, sweetous, vinous. Peppery alcohol finish, not especially well hidden, but workable in a sipping beer of this sort.
omhper (44752) reviewed Double IPA from AleSmith Brewing Company 21 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Bottled. Hazy amber. Intense grapefruit aroma. Fairly sweet with firm, rounded maltiness. Enormously hoppy. Salty, very bitter finish. Die hard brutal hop juice with a fair amount of alcohol...
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 10 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
Bottled, #113. Black, small head. Aroma of chocolate and whiskey, Roasty with very rich maltiness. There’s some molassess and coffee there, still it feels dry. Flavours are really intensive, and still they’ve managed to get good balance among all the huge flavours. Salty licorice and bourbon in the finish.
omhper (44752) reviewed Grand Cru from AleSmith Brewing Company 21 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Bottled. Nut brown, clear. Aroma of molasses. Sweet, rich and very malt. There are some chocolate and a apeppery sensation from all the alcohol. Salty finish. There are some really big flavours here, but I wouldn’t call it complex - which of course doesn’t mean that it is not a really good beer.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9
Thanks to Eyedrinkale for sharing this at Brewtopia ’04! Very few "wants lists" remain intact when Mike comes around! Bottle #19. This pours black with a weak attempt at forming a head as expected. A complex aroma rises from the surface carrying notes of chocolate, whiskey alcohol, and roast malt. The flavor is very intense and complex as well, playing back and forth between the sweetness and the bitterness from the roast malt. There is a slight whiskey bitterness/sharpness present. The alcohol content is well hidden and the alcohol flavor is pleasant coming from the barrel, not the malt in the beer. Overall, a very nicely done Imperial Stout but somewhat over hyped. Just the same, I’d have another one if it were available. Bottle 84 Spring(ish) Tasting in Knoxville, TN on 3/10/2007. As good as before or better!
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8
Thanks to Eyedrinkale for bringing this to Brewtopia ’04. Deep mahogany color with a slight haze. Spicy malt aroma with a complex spicy flavor that offers hints of sweet fruit and raisins. Smooth, with just a touch of alcohol in the finish.
Clarkvv (16523) reviewed Old Numbskull from AleSmith Brewing Company 21 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9
1999 vintage sampled June 2004. Thanks to Bob (herbjones) for coming through on these vintage AleSmiths. What a hell of a treat this was. My friend and I split this. He’s never tried barleywine, dosent even care that much about beer but he mentioned right away how good this was. Wonderful mahogany color, with burnished copper tones, light ambers and red swirls. Aroma has intense english toffee characteristics, old, soily hops, and a big funky yeastiness that blew me away. Due to the unfiltered/bottle conditioned nature of this beer, the flavors have developed wonderfully these 5 years. Wonderful caramel and toffee malt flavors, with a now subtle hops profile (soily, earthy, dusty, doughy). This thing had so much personality and my favorite part was the yeast. Somehow this thing reminded me of a belgian, I don’t know if it was all due to the yeast, or maybe just the interplay of the malt and oxidation, but wow was it unique. The flavor was as close to perfect as I can imagine. No harsh tones, low carbonation and a huge, full body. As much as I respect Old Horizontal, the low filtration on this beer puts this a notch above that one. This is why I love barleywines. MAN I LOVE THIS BREWERY!!! 10/5/10/5/20
2003 bottle thanks to EDA! This one is still obviously young. This beer takes time to mellow out. Bitter hops still apparent, but the flavor underneath the up-front hops is as good as it gets, IMHO. A mix of English and Belgian yeast flavors, light caramel and toffee traces, sticky and just full of flavor. I’ll have to cellar the 2003 another couple of years to see if it truly matches the elegance and craftsmanship of the 1999. Rerate 2003 bottle sampled in June 2005 at RBSG. Hmm, the hops still are front and center, but some sticky caramel malt peeks through nicely. Bitter and lightly astringent on the end. Seems not nearly as magical and unique as the 1999 and though it’s still a marvelously executed barleywine, it would have to make a lot of progress as far as yeast apparency (the 2003 has almost none) to really bring it up to the 1999 level. Or maybe my imagination has just gone running with the 1999. Fortunately I’m well stocked on all vintages so I will be well able to test my theories. 8/5/8/3/15
2005 vintage Sampled young on 10/29/05. Actually prefer this one young to even the 1 or 2 year old 03. The hops are not nearly as bitter, and while I still think the hops impart too much harshness, it’s only a minor problem for me. The malt is very well done, toffee and caramel with an almost candy-sugar like feel. Orange peel, raisins, grapefruit and a nice earthy, dry malt flavor on the finish.
Clarkvv (16523) reviewed X Extra Pale Ale from AleSmith Brewing Company 21 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 8.5
2004 bomber. Pours a light yellow with some light grass/hay shades. Some darker golds upon settling, and mildly hazy. Tons of foamy white head. Aroma has a mixture of wet, mildly sweet malt, and dry floral hops, lightly sprucey and crisp. Flavor is mildly bitter (light citrus, mild hops) with a lightly sweet, almost creamy malt. Body is medium-light to light, slightly watery upon warming. Mouthfeel is soft and drinkable. Light zing of hops and carbonation on the finish. Altogether more balanced and lighter than most APAs. If I lived in San Diego, I would drink this stuff as a session ale religiously (this and Levitation ale).