AleSmith Decadence 2005

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

Pours brown with low carbonation and no discernable head. Almost immediately on the pour, the 11% abv overwhelms the more subtle malty aromas. Tastes sweet and malty with some raisin and prune elements. Alcohol presence makes it a bit hot. Needs another year to settle down a bit. I’ll probably revisit this one again next year to see how the alcohol’s doing. Mouthfeel is thick and oily, but the finish isn’t quite there. Not as balanced as I’m used to.

My bottle. Sampled at the MKE YeHA! Approximately on 12/17/2005. Pours to a red-mahogany body with a slick white head. The aroma is sweet with strawberry and toasty malts. Raisins and licorice. The flavor is caramel, sorghum, strawberry, toffee. The palate is smooth, a touch too much alcohol. I’m gonna save the other 2 bottles of this that I have for a long time in the future. 8, 4, 8, 3, 16 = 3.9

Jason’s bottle on 03/27/2007. A delight. The alcohol has mellowed significantly. Rich malts, random spices, light anise, aged barley. mmmm. Rich full bodied palate that is approaching perfect. This brew has gotten better. What a delight! And I still have 2 bottles of my own.

Had at Yeha ’05. Tan yellow head. Clear caramel color. Aroma of caramel and raosted malts. Tastes of caramel, molasses and roasted malts. Fine beer!

Bottle from Santa
Pours a thick woody-brown with a heavy aroma of raisin, yeast, and a touch of strawberry. Taste is a bit underwhelming considering the strong aroma, but it still packs a punch. Hints of raisin, coriander, yeast, and caramel are evident. Finish brings a pucker to the lips as the acidity fades. Palate is a bit thin. Good sippin’ beer.

Dark reddish brown-hued body with a pretty little laced head on top. Looks appealing...the aroma is appealing too, with strong hints of caramel and plums and raisins. This is a very thick brew, chewy, bready and very warming. Alcohol is well-masked. Interesting flavor, very vinous and herbal, yet just a hint of sweetness to balance things out. A good representation of the old ale style.

Light burgundy/copper in color, with impressive white head and very thick lace - complex aroma of caramel, toffee, vanilla, oak, alcohol and a hint of smoke - alcohol is quite apparent at first, but mellows as it warms - quite a bit of light fruity esters at first (strawberry, cherry) - then some roasted malt, making way for toffee and vanilla, maybe a touch of bourbon - warming alcohol and long, sweet finish, tempered by just enough hops - a tiny bit out of balance for now, but with aging this will be incredible.

Bottle. Pours reddish/brown with a small creamy off-white head that diminished slowly. Heavy complex roasted malt, toffee and alcohol aroma. Medium to full body with a sticky texture. Good well balanced bitter sweet flavor with a long finish. Good brew.

Bottle at A&K 4th DC tasting (thanks beer god) - Lightly hazed orange, creamy thick khaki colored head. Nose held rich tones off toffee, caramel, light chocolate, spicy hops, and hot alcohol. Flavor was all about sweet dark fruits, brown sugar, toffee, and alcohol, with a decent hop bitterness rounding it out for balance. Full bodied, moderate carbonation, bittersweet, boozy finish. Good, but definitely not the best thing AS has ever done. Age will probably pull all of this together nicely....