AleSmith Wee Heavy Scotch Ale

Bottle...This beer rocks!... Malty, yeasty and lightly smokey. Notes of sherry, oak and light alcohol. Sparkling clear burnt amber hue. Off-white, medium sized creamy head. Excellent lacing. Fully lasting. Malty, yeasty, lightly sweet and lightly bitter up front. Alcohol and hops blast the senses while almost covering notes of prunes and dark fruits on the backside. Full-bodied. Lively carbonation with a creamy mouthfeel. Long, satisfyingly bitter, pungent and dry in the finish. This scotch ale is for everyone... maltheads and hopheads alike.Thanks go out to herbjones for this one. My favorite beer!

Big thanks to TChrome for this. Pours dark brown (a super heavy ruby through my desk lamp) with medium light tan head and mucho laceo. Aroma of malt, almonds, walnuts, corn flakes, cognac, cabernet, some chocoff. Wonderful, complex aroma. Tastes malty, with a huge chocolate-hazelnut palate, combined with some spirits (cognac, Amaretto). Super smooth, and more chocolate and nuts as it warms. Like drinking a Godiva chocolate nut candy. The alcohol is non-existent. The palate is more exquisite than a shaved call girl on the tongue. This one would be great as a nut brown, a porter, or a scottish ale. I’ve given more big scores in the last 3 months than I can ever remember. Then again, I’ve ramped up my trading so that I have a nice stockpile. To me, theoretically all beers could be perfect, or they could all be garbage. This one is perfect. My 12th perfecto robusto. If I had known, I’d have saved this for 1,500. I still have the Alesmith Grand Cru. Stay tuned, same Bat time, same Bat channel.....Find this stuff at all costs, even if you have to go Faustian and sell your soul...it’s that damned good! Bravo, Alesmith.

Cask During RBSG vintage version, the smoothest silkiest wee heavy ever and holy shit this beer is amazing and as such, I can’t give it a higher rating, but it cements this 5 for me because this version made me want to have it like this every day, it was incredible and is as such incredible. A much needed rerate. I’ve tried to do so a few times but haven’t managed. Pours dark brown amber with a 1 finger head. The nose is incredible malty sweet, and robust. Taste is sweet malty and robust, it is really a pretty damn amazing beer, this is beer that really got me going and I still like it. And I’m out it tonight. I like it still is it a 5? Its damn close if anything. This is my favorite beer, I love everything about it, it is unique, extremely malty, with rich sweet flavor. This beer is perfect for all seasons, like other fantastic beers from Alesmith, the alcohol taste is hidden behind the complex and enticing flavors. I can’t say a single bad thing about this liquid art form, thanks Alesmith.

Rating # 500 and to celebrate my little milestone my first Alesmith, bottle thanks to Ryan (giascar) I have been sitting on this one for a while,so lets see what all the rave is about.Pours brown with a ruby hue with avery lively tan head that is so thick you can make peaks with your finger,with a full bodied appearence so far so good,following form for a scotch ale,aromas are of very heavy caramelized malts, smoke,vanilla and a very faint aroma of hops well in the back ground just where they belong taste is of a very powerful malt bomb,sweet smooth,sugar vanilla, this by far is the best I have had in this style even if magic dave says there is no such thing as scotch ale lives up to the hype and I’ m very jealous of all the fellow ratebeerians who can buy this at thier local bottle shops

The first sample was perfect. Many more bottles have met their demise in this household, but not all of them illustrated the perfection that regularly peeks out. The possibility that only very fresh bottles perfectly suit my palate arises. Analyzation aside, many of my experiences with this beer have yielded awe-inspiring, nearly tearfully joyous moments. A feeling of a slight inconsistency is the only reason this doesn’t achieve perfection in scoring, even though it’s perfect in my mind. Any experience that was less than perfect was just barely so - this is a masterpiece, the finest beer I’ve ever had in my many years of craft beer enjoyment, the single most exciting beverage that’s ever crossed these lips.

The dense pour oozes from the bottle in a honeyed formation, filling the glass with a dark, shadowy ruby pour with devilish crimson brilliance. A thick head that’s creamier than cream itself forms and remains steadfast, throughout the consumption of the entire glass. The glass itself doesn’t even seem to matter, this always looks great. Lacing is thick, webbed and scattered in intricate patterns rarely encountered. Perfect.

Such rich aromas fill the air. The list is evergrowing as repeated whiffs are deemed necessary by someone who just can’t get enough, someone who just can’t get over how amazing this is. Peat, chocolate, vanilla, brandy, red wine, wood, hazelnuts, almonds, plums galore, caramel, butterscotch, roasted grains, fresh grass, molasses, herbs, coffee, flowers, toffee...the list goes on but I feel like it’s no longer a task sorting through such a numerous display of engaging nuances. Alcohol is prevalent throughout repeated inhalations but is never a deterrent or detractor from everything that captivates and satisfies. Perfect.

The first sip is better than silky, more luxurious than I can adequately describe. The body is full and robust but full of delicacy and complexity at the same time. Carbonation is low to medium and whirls the flavors around so efficiently that every tastebud has the opportunity to share in this momentous flavor. Peat and chocolate arrive first and set up a base camp at the perimeter. Smoke and caramel infiltrate the peaks and valleys. Sweetness is medium and perfectly wrought. Bitterness is low, hops are invisible. Acidity is nil, this is just too creamy. The finish is lengthy, bold and embracing; a soft glance at the preceding reveals a lingering chocolate and caramel edge with peated malt and faint fruit that fade gracefully away. Perfect.

Were this rated based upon the first bottle consumed, it likely would have been scored a perfect 5. Something so amazing warranted repeated visits nearly immediately though, and not all of those were as amazing. Not as amazing, as in 4.9 or 4.8 - this is always an amazing beer. Alesmith has not created their interpretation of a Scotch ale in the typical confines of the style, they’ve reinvented and improved upon the style to such a degree that I feel like this beer will never seem tiresome. To me, that is perfect.

Slightly sweet malty brew. One of my favorite styles. Can taste traces of the alcohol. Beautiful color and light lacing. Don’t buy this, as I want to get it all for myself!

Really, I don’t think I could ever compare any other scotch ale to this one. Wee Heavy has a commanding presence that demands respect with the gentleness of a beer that ought best be served from a wine glass. Deep warm flavors go right to your soul with an aroma and mouth feel to please the body. Smooth and delicious.

3+ year old bottle. Just amazing, really. Some alcohol evident in the bready and smoked peat aroma. Creamy, mellow body, thick with molasses and sticky with caramel. Also noted some bittersweet chocolate, brown sugar and pecans. Slightly hoppy finish to remind you that you were just treated to one of the finest Scotch ales ever made. Elegant, refined and a real treat. Thanks to one of the most generous and sweetest raters I have the pleasure of knowing for sharing such a gem.