AleSmith Barrel Aged Decadence 2005

Formerly brewed at AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: Old Ale
San Diego, California USA

Bottle in trade from Padrefan98. Thanks for this one!!
Pours a hazy, muddy, brownish color. Smell is aged maltiness, oak and bourbon and very well balanced. Smells great. Taste is raisiny, malty with a light alcohol and bourbon flavor in the finish. Medium bodied, and no real heat from the alcohol for me. Really drinkable and tasty.

05 Bottle shared by lb4lb Poured a murky brown color with a little tan head that disappeared quickly. Aroma of bourbon, raisin, light fig, and apple. Begins with some light, sweet malt with some moderate undertones of apple leading into a decent bourbon/raisin hit with some alcohol on the finish. Full on the palate, light oak bite on the finish. Overall, pretty good, but not my favorite from Alesmith.

Muddy brown colour with a bit of orange and just a bit of head. Mildly fruity with vanilla and oak on the nose. Lots of maltyness in the flavour lending a bit of a sweet note. Some more vanilla, oak, and a tad bit of fruit show through. Feels a little alcoholic overall.

<a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/ViewUser.asp?UserID=3 actually poured me some of this!?! Wow. It makes me almost want to take back some of the things that I’ve said about him... except that 1) They’re all true, and B) He probably scarfed the bottle from someone else!
It poured a hazy light brown body with a scanty wisp of film for a head. The aroma had rich sweet malt, Bourbon, oak, vanilla, and the hint of a bunch of alcohol to come in the flavor and the veins. That alcohol did jump into the flavor along with some dark fruit, burnt brown sugar, and more booze. The sun had come out and it was warming up when I drank this, but its warmth was still muchly appreciated. Thanks, friend.

<font size=-4><a href=http://www.ratebeer.com/events-detail.asp?eve Lord Day 2008 at Three Floyds, Munster, IN, 4/26/2008.<font size=-1>

Wow, didn’t think I would be trying this anytime soon. Big thanks goes out to Holdenn. Great hanging with you. Poured a hazy orange/brown color. Not much head at all. Aroma was lots of wood and dark fruit. Taste was dark fruit as well, nice rounded wood, super smooth, maybe some vanilla or caramel. This was easy drinking and delicious. Had a great long lasting finish that slowly faded away.

Huge thanks to Zac for sharing bottle #101. Vanilla, mint and basil initially on the nose. Plenty of moist oak. Toffee. Bourbon soaked vanilla bean. Some fruitiness (strawberries?). Pours a nearly still looking murky brown with copper accents. Flavor is sweet, malty and boozy. Vanilla, wet oak, cilantro . A touch of metallic oxidization. Slightly dusty with hints of earth, leaves and tart grape skin. Decent texture. Medium bodied with a touch of alcohol hotness on the finish. Nice, lively carbonation. Thanks a ton Zac!

Pour is dark amber with a small tan head...smell is strongly vanilla and bourbon...light notes of dark fruits too...taste is sweet with vanilla and bourbon and lightly alcoholicly fruity...chewy mouthfeel...delicious...

Bottle # 85 / 124, direct from the brewery, purchased on the 9/28/07 release. Damn this has been a long time coming, this bottle has been calling to me for many months. Opened up with my girlfriend to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, 2008. This brew culminates the ultimate Alesmith experience in what I look for in a quality barrel-aged beer. WOW! Pours a clear and dark copper with some light bubbles and subtle beige swirls on the surface. Immediate aroma of soft bourbon whiskey and loads of oak wood. Spicy caramel, toffee, vanilla extract, coconut, and sweet tannins lie behind the wonderful barrel presence. Also some notes of raisin and light leather in the aroma. Flavor follows up the described aroma spot on, with elegant flavor transitions that include tons of brown sugar, coconut and more bourbon. Divine palate that shows off some nice oxidation, with a pleasing numbing body that lingers after each sip. I really had a tough time describing this, it is so wonderfully complex. All aspects improve with warmth. The alcohol is there, but pretty well-masked. World-class! Rating Update (4/11/09) thanks to Jon Ambrosini cracking his only bottle. This beer has only improved with the extra year of age. Alcohol warmth has toned down with a more smoothed flavor approach and silkier body. Damn, this is a stellar creation. Rating bump to 4.6.