AleSmith Grand Cru

Brewed by AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
San Diego, California USA

06 vintage signed by Peter Zein! Deep ruddy brown color with a sticky creamy tan head. Aromas of bruised apple flesh, chocolate-covered caramel, and grapes. Extremely appealing. Flavor is sweet bready malts and chocolate accented by red fruits, citrus, and cidery notes. Just delicious. Mouthfeel and body are perfect. Another epic Alesmith beer.

Bottle, aged ~1 year. Pours a deep brown with a small white head. Aroma of raisin and sweet malt. Flavor is vegetal, quite malty and heavy in the palate. A little better as it warms, but it’s super sweet. This is supposed to age well, but I didn’t like how it turned out. Meh, not a fan. 6/4/7/3/13 (3.3/5)

Bottle. 2006 vintage. Poured a slightly hazy ruddy orange color. There wasn’t much head other than a few small soap bubbles. Nice enough aroma of alcohol, fig, clove, subdued cinnamon, and orange peel. Medium bodied and slightly sweet. I tasted dark fruits, orange peel, mixed spices, and malty molasses. Decent, but not as good as I had expected.

Bottle shared by Solan I beleive! Thanks Alan! My second Alesmith of the evening. Do these folks make a bad beer? Sweet aroma of caramels, figs and apple cider. Flavor was a bit of a sour wine like taste followed by vanilla and chocolate. Very delightful!

Vintage 2005 Pours dark amber with a ruby hue. No head developed, even with a stretch pour. A thin ring of white lace ran around the edges of the glass with a few dots of lacework remaining. Sweet malt, candied fruit, and caramel start the nose. Cherries, tangerines, grape jam, cloves, and rum follow through. Medium bodied, slick, and slightly syrupy. Low carbonation lends a light chew to the mouthfeel. Ripe fruit, sweet malt, and rummy alcohol lead off the palate. Hints of Grand Marnier, red grapes, cherries, raisins, and ripe berries add plenty of depth. Finishes with warming alcohol, a light peppery note on the throat, and plenty of lingering ripe fruit. Three years on it’s side has really rounded this beer out. The spiciness when young has stepped back and allowed plenty of complex fruit to come forward. Approaching the realm of a very fruity Quad. Further time in the cellar will really put this one over the top.

750ml thanks to Sparky27 for a ridiculous extra. Pours a slightly cloudy brown with a decent head. Aromas of dark fruits, light spice, light hop, caramel, and a bit of vanilla. Flavors are sweet malt, caramel, dark fruits. Palate is medium to full bodied, and nicely carbonated. Very nice beer, thanks again Eric.

22oz bottle. Pours a slightly cloudy burnished brown. Red edges. Very cool looking. Perfect head. Very strong banana nose with some caramel accents and buttery yeast. The taste is very full, terrific mouthfeel. Alcohol is well hidden. Tons of caramel and full bodied chocolate clean finish with some tasty yeastiness. Reminiscent of the Rochefort 10 but not quite as heavenly. Probably one of the best American Belgian Strongs. Alesmith never disappoints.

Bottle. Butterscotch nose, lightly spicy and fruity Cloudy orange-brown with no head. Sweet buttery, clean but lacking in the spice profile for a the style. Drinkable, clean, and balanced.