AleSmith Barrel Aged Speedway Stout

Brewed by AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
San Diego, California USA

sorry i am not a stout guy. i gave this a good try and it was worth it. for a hop head.

bottle number 187/233 from 2006 thanks to fordest. this beer had a sex party in my mouth that gave me sheer pleasure. poured black with a tan head and great lacing. bman111vr and myself enjoyed the greatness of this aroma before even taking a sip. the aroma was dark roasts, chocolate, vanilla, coffee, oak, and vanilla. flavor was even better than the nose with chocolate, coffee, vanilla, and alcohol. slick mouth feel with no carbonation. a huge thanks to fordest for bringing this gem to texas and sharing with the crew.

2002 Vintage-bottle #68 of 115: Color is pitch black with burgandy highlights. Head is thin and dark tan. Nose is chocolate fudge with a hint of brandy (or bourbon). Flavor starts chocolate followed by a light coffee bitterness, some vanilla notes and a hint of licorice. Rich sweet finish with a light alcohol burn. Barleywine like mouth feel is smooth, creamy and mellow. Another AWESOME brew from the magic of AleSmith!

750ml bottle thanks to John C and poured at Noog4. 2006 bottle. Black oily pour with no head. The aroma has chocolate and tons of wood mixed with bourbon and coffee. The bourbon and wood definitely overpower the other scents. The taste is actually much hotter than I expected. Boozy with bourbon combined with plenty of wood. The coffee has been made somewhat sharp by the barrel ageing and the chocolate is much less noticeable. Thinner body than I expected. Overall I seem to like straight speedway better. However, as I noted with the Old Numbskull, I think if you let this age another 2 years it would be spectacular. I guess these brews need a lot more time to develop after they come out of the bourbon barrel.

I saved this rating till #900. OH MY GOD. 2004 batch bottle #5 out of 228. Split this with kmfdm91 at O’Briens in San Diego back in September. What a beer. Thick aroma. Maple sugar, caramel, vanilla, and chocolate. Strong taste. The alcohol is certainly not masked. Very rich. Coated mouthfeel. Roasted malt, coffee, caramel, and chocolate. Great balance. Definitely the best stout I have ever had, and I was so blessed that O’Briens had it. What a treat.

Had this with Probiere and JF-Grind at the RB gathering in Philly. This beer was fantastic. Bourbon, coffee, and alcohol worked perfectly together. Dark ad night on the poor.

04’- Huge thanks to Blake for sharing this one at the Pre-GTM gathering. Having had the earlier version (and at the time much more aged) I was not such a fan of this one, though I’m guessing with time It will be just as awesome. 02’Thanks to Gordo for this one! Pours a pitch black, small medium brown head. Aroma of whiskey, fresh roasted coffee, almost overpowering. Flavor is full of whiskey/barrel, coffee, with the alcohol and coffee taking a backseat compared to the regular version. Damn fine brew.

Noogfest Four-O

2006 bottle. Dark brown pour, some lighter highlights, decent lacing and a nice head. Roasted notes are bright and full of life. Slight alcohol burn, with smoke and peat, oh and caramel. Flavor-wise there’s lots of roasted coffee, boasting brass horns of chocolate and distant caramel. Vanilla, molasses, and some peat, too. Full-bodied and balanced well. Finishes extremely fantasticfullyinggoodinglyfull. Yeah. Some folks said the bottle was infected? Going to go ahead and disagree on that one.