AleSmith Barrel Aged Old Numbskull

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

So, after having a buncha horrible Mexican lagers for the last few rates... well... wow. I mean... wow. I got this at O’Briens in San Diego. Number 107/240, 2004. I still can’t believe I’m writing this up. Anyway, poured a brown body with a moderate sized head. Unfortunately, the glass was a joke. Aroma was strong bourbon, caramel, some darker fruit. Flavor was the same, dangerously smooth, dangerously drinkable. To have a 10% BW go down this easily is.. wow. The only real flaw is that it was sitting for too long and really lost most of its hop profile. You could tell there were hops there, but not much was left to taste. Still fantastic and a very rare treat. Probably never again, all for the wrong reasons.

Bottle (2004 vintage, #35/240) shared with HogTownHarry, blankboy & tupalev - courtesy of blankboy, who got it from the amazing DarkElf. Man, I’ve been wanting to try this one for a while! Hazy ruby colour with a small white head. BIG aroma of bourbon and caramel, oak and malt - so good! Flavour - WOW - wood and bourbon, warm and mellow, resiny hops, sweet and lucious - just fantastic. Thanks again to DarkElf for sending this beauty our way.

Bottle shared by willblake at the Pre-Tap gathering. Bottle #220/240. Poured a cloudy mahogany with no head. Aroma of brown sugar, toffee, and biscuit dough. Flavor is slightly sweet with notes of sugar, biscuit dough, and vinous fruits. Taste is considerably dry without a whole lot of heat. Like BA Speedway, I think the flavor of the beer was too hindered by the alcohol flavor of the bourbon.

Bottle provided by WillBlake @ Dickinsonbeer’s Pre-TAP gathering, thanks. 2004 bottle, 220/240. Deep copper color. Heavy, heavy malt aroma. Flavor is a lot more subdued. Still malty with just a bit of oak coming through. Just a bit of bitterness at the end. I don’t see what all the hubub is about. Its a malt heavy, aggressive, west coast barleywine. The flavors have been subdued a bit by the barrel aging. Fine brew but not the craziness it seems to attract.

Re-rate: Blind at Cornboy’s 2nd Annual BW tasting, not sure of vintage. Aroma is aged, strong, and full of alcohol. Taste has a nice alcohol touch to it with strong thick biscuit flavor. 7/3/8/3/15.

Re-rate: I can’t believe I am trying this again, keeps coming back to me. This may be the best experience though. 2004 bottle, 5 years old now, shared by Indra, thanks Eric. Bottle number 159/240. Completely murky dark ruby brown pour. Small but strong and sticky head. Aroma is very oaky but bot bad, no barrel sugar. This blends well with the raisin-sugar-alcoholic characteristic. Usually I dislike this bit Alesmith makes it work. The flavor is sweet raisin with alcohol mixed together. The oak has died down a bit and some caramel sweetness at the end. No heat or burn at the end. 8/4/8/4/16

Bottle shared with the ATL crew at 5 Seasons- courtesy of Goldtwins! Bottle 161/240. Pours a relatively clear medium amber with a thin white film of a head and nice lasting lace. Aroma is caramel sweet, but not overpowering, hoppy and of course some bourbon and oak aromas, but those were very well balanced as well. Flavor is lightly smoky, sweet, candied fruits, bourbon, wood and slightly earthy. Nice balanced bitterness in the end. Very smooth overall. I think this and BA old salty would be good to try next to eachother to see which is better. Thanks again Larry.

Bottle shared with HogTownHarry, GregClow & tupalev -- my bottle courtesy of DarkElf. Vintage 2004. Bottle 35 out of 240. Pours a hazy ruby-orange with a nice size rocky off-white head. Wonderful aroma of bourbon, caramel malt, wood, vanilla, alcohol and hops. As great as the aroma is, the flavour’s even better! Just the right amount of bourbon along with caramel malt, oak, vanilla, dried fruit, piney hops, alcohol and so much more -- it’s quite complex, very well balanced and damn flavourful. Nice full body, creamy mouthfeel. I’m not always big on bourbon beers but this onereally works and is definitely the best of it’s kind I’ve had yet, it’s simply excellent.
Thanks again DarkElf!

Bottle (750ml 2004 vintage, bottle #35 of 240). Shared with blankboy, GregClow and Hogtown Harry - blankboy’s bottle, graciously shared (THANKYOU!), via trade with DARK ELF (thanks man!!!). Wonderful fiery dark red/woody brown. Nice sized foamy orange tinted head - looks deep and complex. Lots of bourbon in aroma, but also lots of vanilla oak too - strong alcohol balances things out. Sweet, smoky, and butterscotch round out the aroma. Taste: upfront, sure is lots of bourbon. But for once, to me anyway, it does not dominate and overwhelm. Dare I say it is balanced with the original base beer here, which has enough malt heft to hold its own. The bourbon complements the significant alcohol already here. Some hops peep through, along with some sweet vanilla notes. Best barrel aged yet. Probably enhances the original very good Old Numskull. Thanks again Paul and Dark Elf for giving me the opportunity to try this.

Bottle (750ml 2004 vintage, bottle #35 of 240). Shared with blankboy, GregClow and tupalev - blankboy’s bottle, graciously shared (THANKYOU!), via trade with the great trader DARK ELF. Poured hazy mahogany with a decent off-white rocky head. Smooth, elegant nose - old oak, light sweet bourbon, musty, yeasty malt and alcohol, some cream ... woody. God this is nice - just the right taste balance between oak, bourbon, alcohol, resiny hops and malt - woody, resiny, smooth and balanced - terrific. Creamy, thick, astringent, complex mouthfeel, solid body. Don’t know about the rest of you, I friggin’ loved this! Big thanks again, Paul!