AleSmith Barrel Aged Old Numbskull

Brewed by AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
San Diego, California USA

Where the Wild Beers Are at The Gate 8/30/09. Muddy reddish brown. Woody bourbon and caramel aroma. Woody spicy bourbon caramel slightly oxidized with bitter finish. Nice internal carbo. Very good. Thanks Dennis whoever you are!

Could not believe I had to pass this up twice because my glass was full and then return to the bottle to find it was still going. Dark pour not much head. Aroma is really big, alcohol, bourbon, wood, and some dark cocoa and fruit. Flavor is smooth but still plenty hot. Sweet and strong with loads of vanilla and bourbon and a little wood. Nice overall.

2007 bottle. Pours dark brown with an average, creamy brown head, somewhat lasting with good lacing. Aroma is heavy malt (cookie, toffee, nutty), average hop (perfume), heavy yeast (leather) with notes of raisin, plum, prune, dates, toasted coconut, oak, and vanilla. Full bodied, creamy texture, average carbonation, and an astringent finish. Long duration, heavy sweetness, moderate acidity and bitterness.

Bottle at BCTC 2009: 2007 version. Muddy murky pour with a wispy tan head. Big sweet nose- buttery oak, toasted coconut, plum, darm thick caramel. Slick and warming body. Plummy and big with vanilla notes, buttery oak and still some hop character to offer resins in the finish. Pretty solid- drinkable despite it’s gravity.

Bottle shared by Dennis the awesome Stone rep (who would even later bust out a BA Speedway!) at BCTC. Pours a murky and milky brown. Bourbon and vanilla all over the nose, but not the isopropyl mess that the last BA beer I had from Alesmith was. Plum and prune notes throughout, and a little bit boozy.

Rating 200! Bottle, thanks to an exceedingly generous soul at liquid sunshine. Nose is simply gorgeous; bourbon, tar, caramel, toffee. More of the same on the palate, plus stewed fruit and heaps of tar. Surprisingly not boozy at all; just wonderful. One of the very finest beers I have had to date!

750ml Bottle thanks to Daknole. Pours a hazy brown with a small tan head. Nose is lots of brown sugar and caramel malt and a big old helping of bourbon. Very smooth balanced flavor with well hidden alcohol. Somewhat thick heavy body. Perfect layering of flavors and carbonation level. Fruit with heavy caramel and figs. Lots of bourbon but just right on that count. Hops are pretty much gone. Much much better than regular Numbskull since the hops are largely gone.

2002 Edition. Bottle 8/225. Pours a murky brown with some good tan foam on top - more carbonation than expected - that settles to a light film. Aroma is of dark fruit, candy sugar, a little vague. Flavor is very round: Very fruity, not too sweet, and the alcohol is very light. Less complex than expected. Mouthfeel was just average. I really enjoyed the regular Old Numbskull better. Overall, good.