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AleSmith Old Numbskull

Percentile
100
overall

bottled
common

on tap
available

Broad Distribution
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RatingsAverageScoreABVStyle PctlServe in
7624.04/5.04.03/5.010%98Snifter
Commercial Description:
Bottle conditioned.
Old Numbskull is AleSmith’s first barley wine offering. You may find the name "Old Numbskull" curious. Barley wine has its origins in England and tradition is to begin the name with "Old": Old Nick, Old Sampson, Old Jock, etc. Tongue-in-cheek is often the spirit in naming a barley wine. After drinking a glass or two, you may agree that Old Numbskull feels like a fitting description. It also reminds us of the Three Stooges, one of the greatest comedy teams of all time, so it's meant to bring a smile even before the first taste. Exotic fruit aromas, along with clean ethanol, caramel, honey and toasty notes are present in the nose. At five months of age, the Numbskull flavor begins malty and the hops become more evident from the middle to the finish and linger nicely in the aftertaste. The aroma notes also show themselves in the flavor.

1999 - waxed cap
2000 - dated as such. Pictured at left
2002 - Silver foil with electric blue design and NO filling in the anvil spaces
2003 - Silver foil with electric blue design and blue filling in the anvil spaces
2004 - same as 2003 but with "Alesmith" below the logo in white lettering.
 Most Recent Top Raters Highest Ratings Who's Rated This?  
 Ramenen (455), San Salvador, El Salvador
4.2 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/59/104/517/20
Mar 14, 2008  
Dranki it with Juancho at the Ginger Man in NYC. Pours beatiful amber color with a great head. Complex, full bodied brew, with different levels of flavor in front and in the back of the mouth.


 deftim13 (103), California, USA
3.8 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/103/58/102/517/20
Mar 12, 2008  
Bottle, 2005 Vintage. Pours a nice dark red/brown with zero head. Small swirls of bubbles come up but that’s it. Smell is intense on this one. Dark fruit, fig, prune, caramel, light honey and distinct hop aroma is there. Taste is pretty complex with fruit, hop, caramel malt, light smoky ash and clean alcohol burn at the end. Light chocolate aftertaste that comes through if you take a while between sips. Mouthfeel really hurts this one. Out of all the bottles from alesmith this is the most watery. No carbonation either. Overall not bad but not in the top tier of Barley wines.


 gotbeach (136), San Diego, California, USA
4.1 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/104/58/104/517/20
Mar 7, 2008  
On tap at Alesmith. Pours reddish/brown with a diminishing tan head. Strong hop and citrus aroma and flavors with good carbination and a great aftertaste.


 rlgk (3377), Vårgårda, Sweden
4.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
10/104/59/105/518/20
Mar 3, 2008  
Bottle at Hop Devil, NYC. Amber/orange color, small offwhite head. Fruity aroma, pear, pine apple, peach, very malty, vinous, candy, nuts, raisins and figs. Hoppy flavor, at first, then more and more malts, nuts, fruits, grapes, grass, vinous, sweetish, raisins, dryish, figs, hazelnuts and some metal. Quite bitter hoppy finish with obvious malt notes. The flavors just keep coming and coming as you try more of this beer. Alcohol is very well hidden.


 jimhilt (1677), Bow, New Hampshire, USA
3.6 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
8/102/58/104/514/20
Mar 2, 2008  
Pours without a head?? so no lace. Thought it might be flat but it isn’t. Nose is mellow caramel. Cloudy amber color. Light carbonation and medium bodied. Flavor is caramel but it is sweet and sour, some alcohol. Clean finish. $7.70 for a 750ml bottle from Colonial Spirits Acton, Ma.


 Acknud (772), Morganfield, Kentucky, USA
3.4 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
7/103/57/104/513/20
Feb 25, 2008  
I just don’t see it. I expected too much I think. It poured a hazy amber with a soft white head. Alcohol was noticeable in the aroma along with plums, raisins and heavy with malt. Taste of the above fruits with molasses, alcohol and a heavy malt finish.


 jcwattsrugger (5333), Florida and, New Jersey, USA
3 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
6/103/56/103/512/20
Feb 21, 2008  
Old Numbskull ‘03-bottle @Mels YEHA-pours a white head and hazy ? color. Aroma is medium malt, alcohol. Taste is medium malt-chocolate, alcohol, earthy/metallic hops.


 gunhaver (1025), Tampa, Florida, USA
4.5 Aroma Appearance Flavor Palate Overall
9/104/59/105/518/20
Feb 17, 2008    Updated: Jun 4, 2008
Bottle, courtesy acknud. Pours a dark copper with red highlights. Very little head, but sticky dripping lacing. Aroma is caramel, fruit esters, toffee, soft chocolate, green apples, apricot....wow. One of the finest smelling barley wines I’ve gotten my hands on. And the flavor? Just as good. Toffee, roasted coffee, sticky hops, and a caramel finish. Lovely dark chocolate aftertaste, too. Very well-balanced, nice bitter finish. Wow.



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