AleSmith Wee Heavy Scotch Ale

750 Shared by Beardface on the weekend of my wedding. Dark brown with a red tinge and nice lacing from the off white head. Chocolate, caramel, brown sugar for the aroma. Flavor is malt, salty peat, caramel, dark fruits. Slightly boozy. A whirlwind of a weekend and this started it off right!

Bomber. Pours somewhere between coffee and cola, mostly opaque with a finger or so of off-white head. Aroma of chocolate and brown sugar come first, along with roasted malts and an anticipatory touch of the booze. Flavor is like dark chocolate, with the bitterness almost making it like smokey baker’s chocolate. This really is an interesting one because, as other raters have noted, it LEADS with the booze and then closes out to a very well-rounded, caramel and malt finish. Mouthfeel is spot on, just thick enough to make you know what you’re dealing with, a VERY good ale, without ever being overbearing. I have to say, I was expecting great things, and I am not disappointed.

Bottle thanks to blutt59. Pours a deep ruby brown that is mostly opaque; head is not very present here, but color is great. Aroma is of dark raisins, smoky malt, and toasted sweet grains. The taste is the same with the raisins making a big appearance here; a welcome surprise! I generally do not like this style, but see why Alesmith brews are so highly rated. The palette finish is usually where scotch ales are horrible for me (too roasty/toasty/smoky) and this one is just balanced perfectly where the sweetness is what lingers as it should be. Very glad to have had this one.

Pours a deep ruby brown, nearly opaque, with a small head that reduces to a thin film. Aroma has a lot of cinnamon at first, then becomes dusty, bailed hay. Also a little candy sugar in the aroma. Flavor is very smoky at first, then tarry and leathery. Not as sweet as expected. No hops detected. A little sweetness comes around at the end with the whiskey finish. Palate is medium, little carbonation. This reminds me very much of the old ales I’ve had to date; I guess they’re somewhat similar styles anyhow. Overall, good.

This is a BIG beer. Unlike some other 10% ABV that surreptitiously sneak up on you, this one bares its character with the first sip. Pours sort of muddy-brown, with scant head that quickly fades. Aroma is a touch smokey, peaty, and alcohol ester-y. Unmistakenly Scotch Ale. Flavor is a smokey, butter-scotch-y, slightly sweet, and peaty. Very good. Mouthfeel is odd - simultaneously both sweet and dry. I know I’ve had this before - can’t believe I haven’t rated it. Thanks to SurlySober for bringing it up from Cincinnati. This isn’t a beer for every occasion, but it’s good. Enjoyed this out of one of my thistle glasses...just kidding - it was from a tulip.

Bottle at the Bishops Arms, Malmo, 18th May 09, shared with Tobias & Johan from DDM - cheers guys! Dark brown, small white head. Fruity, malty, superbly balanced. Very enjoyable taste and a perfect palate. Chocolate, fruits. Difficult to break down into components and analyse, but in totality, an awesome beer. The word ’voluptuous’ leaps out from that commercial description!

750 ml bottle shared by tupalev at a KW group tasting. deep maroon poor with a very small tan head. very malty nose. nice dark fruit with caramel and chocolate. not as peaty as i thought it would be. huge and rich in the mouth. not overly complex but very easy to drink. i really liked this one. thx for the share jeff.

750mL bottle, KW group tasting, big thanks to Jeff (tupalev) for this! Pours a very nice, deep dark burgundy with very little head. The aroma is nice, very peaty and malty, quite enticing. Smokey chrystal malts feature as well. Flavour is nice and intense, same aspects as the aroma but well blended, a tad bit syrupy though. The finish is kind of chalky, but that dryness almost attempts to balance out the show. Very drinkable for the supposed ABV though you can still feel the strength. Not mind-blowing but pretty damn good. Very much an American interpretation of a Scottish style.