Home > Brewers > California > AleSmith Brewing Company >

AleSmith Wee Heavy Scotch Ale

	Percentile
	100
	overall

A Scotch Ale brewed by
AleSmith Brewing Company
San Diego, California USA

bottled
common

on tap
available

Regional Distribution
Find this beer

Send Corrections

Ratings Average Score ABV Style Pctl Serve in Advanced
606 4.09/5.0 4.09/5.0 10% 99.5 Thistle P Stats

Commercial Description:
Bottle conditioned
J.P. Gray's Wee Heavy Scotch Ale Scotland's bone-chilling winters command a strong, richly-flavored brew. J.P. Gray's Wee Heavy is such an ale. Named for Brewmaster Skip Virgilio's maternal grandfather, J.P. Gray's is a blend of the prized Maris Otter barley and dark roasted barley which imparts a slightly smoky flavor and a deep chestnut appearance. In the style of a classic Scottish wee heavy, this fine ale is remarkably smooth and malty with background flavors of chocolate and molasses. Warmth is provided by a substantial 9% alcohol by volume. The high alcohol and fresh ingredients allow this ale to age well over time. Appearance: Deep mahogany color, sparkling clarity, and excellent head formation and retention when properly served. Flavor: Deep caramelly malty flavor with just a hint of smoke in the finish. Aroma: The aroma is sweet and voluptuous, reflecting the flavor with malt, hop and yeast characteristics. Mouthfeel (body/texture): Lush, full, rounded, almost chewy. This is a BIG beer!

Most Recent

Top Raters

Highest Ratings

Who's Rated This?

kmweaver (2121), Takoma Park, Maryland, USA

4.2	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4.2	7/10	4/5	9/10	4/5	18/20

Nov 11, 2006
750mL bottle. Murky dark brown with yellowish edges; light tan head, attractive lacing. Plenty of maple syrup / brown sugar and roasted malts in the aroma; slightly hot. Full, chewy mouthfeel: plenty of roasted malts, caramel, and maple syrup; some citrusy hops; sweet at the front, with a lengthy finish showing nougat and chewy malts. Hides its alcohol much better than some of Alesmith’s other big beers.

lb4lb (1452), Austin, Texas, USA

3.5	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.5	7/10	4/5	7/10	3/5	14/20

Oct 7, 2008

Bottle shared at recent tasting. Thanks!
Pours a dark amber to maroon color with a nice beige head. Smell is smoky, maybe lightly hopped and nice. Taste is dry, peaty, and caramelly with a bubbly, refreshing mouthfeel. A bit hoppy as well for a scotch ale, but surprisingly still tastes like a scotch ale, and I quite enjoyed it. Usually not a big fan, but this one I could have again.

Swolf3 (83), Elkton, Maryland, USA

4.2	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4.2	8/10	4/5	8/10	4/5	18/20

Oct 6, 2008

Bottle thanks to GMCC2181, Thanks brotha! Poured Dark brown in color with nice tan head. Aroma was vanilla, malt, and a slight alcohol smell. Taste oak, vanilla, malt, with slight smoke and alcohol finish. very nice texture, smooth and creamy, goes down very easy.

GMCC2181 (416), Bear, Delaware, USA

4.2	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4.2	8/10	4/5	8/10	5/5	17/20

Oct 6, 2008 Updated: Oct 7, 2008

Bottle from bigern! ( I think) thanks! Can any one answer this question: Does Alesmith make a bad beer??? Not in my opinion... Bottle Dark in color good head and good lacing. Aroma is close to an oak aged.. I swear it smells like oak and vanilla. Perfect creamy texture. I love that they bottle condition their beers... Taste is sweet, touch of alcohol but the sweetness takes over, also little bit of vanilla and oak. Malty, chocolate, smokey. Super smooth and easy to drink. I wish Alesmith was available in my area, I dont think I would drink anything else.

nqualls (422), Tennessee, USA

4.1	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
4.1	8/10	4/5	9/10	4/5	16/20

Oct 3, 2008

Bottle. Poured a dark brown with a three finger tan head. Aroma of vanilla, maple syrup and malt, with a touch of alcohol. Flavor of vanilla and maple, with a smoke finish. Full body with soft carbonation and a dense mouthfeel.

glkaiser (999), Seattle, Washington, USA

3.9	Aroma	Appearance	Flavor	Palate	Overall
3.9	8/10	4/5	8/10	4/5	15/20

Sep 19, 2008

Thanks to bitbucket tasting. Love the mix of caramel malts, dark fruit, and chocolate. Not overly sweet. Very smooth for 10%.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO READ MORE RATINGS?
Then join us! RateBeer is made by beer enthusiasts for the craft beer community. Your basic membership is free and allows you to read all beer ratings.

Desired User Name
*

Valid Email (Needed to verify your account)
*
Relax. RateBeer is 100%, guaranteed spam-free. That's our promise to you.

I agree to the terms of the RateBeer User Agreement

RATE THIS BEER
Aroma
Appearance
Flavor
Palate
Overall impression
TOTAL SCORE
Comments

More Scotch Ales

AleSmith Barrel Aged Wee Heavy (4.13)

Bedondaine et Bedons Ronds Reyne Descosse (4.02)

Town Hall Wee Heavy (3.93)

À l’Abri de la Tempête Corne de Brume (3.93)

Iron Hill Bourbon Wee Heavy (3.9)

Town Hall Barrel Aged Wee Heavy (3.88)

Founders Backwoods Bastard (3.83)

Flyers Bottleworks VIII (140 Schilling Strong Scotch Ale) (3.78)

Kuhnhenn A Few Shillings Too Many (3.78)

Dieu du Ciel Cornemuse (3.77)

More California Brewers

Brothers Brewing Company
  Oakland
Mountain Meadows Mead
  Westwood
Gekkeikan Sake (USA), Inc.
  Folsom
San Francisco Brewing Company
  San Francisco
Einhorn Beer Company
  San Luis Obispo
Drakes Brewing Company
  San Leandro
Truckee Brewing Co./Pizza Junction
  Truckee
Honeyrun Winery & Honey Company
  Chico
Pompeii Brewing Company
  Los Gatos
Rock Bottom San Jose
  Campbell
Oggi''s Pizza and Brewing Co.
  San Diego
Brewbakers Brewing Company
  Huntington Beach
Back Street Brewery (Yorba Linda)
  Yorba Linda
Mount St. Helena Brewing Company
  Middletown
Jupiter
  Berkeley