AleSmith YuleSmith (Summer) India Pale Ale

Brewed by AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
San Diego, California USA

Bottle at ultimate glasgow tasting. Aroma is yee haa hops, citrus, lychee, grassy, noteably bitter, but this some pale malt character, peppery and spicey too. Taste is similar however slightly lacking in the hop resins and citrus, lychee character im after. Very nice and id love more of this!

Bottle at Toms Ultimate Glasgow Tasting ... Golden orange ... Good slightly sweet american hop nose ... Good balance but too much hop for me lots oan lots of hop resins ... very intence.

22oz bottle. Pours a beautiful blood orange with a frothy, off white head that left nice lacing on the glass. Nose was big on the pine, citrus, and grass. lingered on the palate for what seemed like days.

did in a side by side with the dreadnaught, and this one came across much fresher and stronger, but was still great, had very piney presence and a light finish, was very good.

Thanks to Bockyhorsey. Poured copper with a nice thick head. Very citrusy with lots of hops in the aroma. Very pronounced hops and strong grapefruit up front, but the malts really balanced it well. Had a long lasting hop pine aftertaste, but very smooth with a touch of sweetness. Annoyingly drinkable since I can’t get this one around here. Thanks Bocky!

650 ml bottle

Rating #650 - I saw this at Chuck’s a week or so ago and decided it would make a nice treat for a milestone rating. The price was not bad either though enough that I probably will be picking up the regular IPA instead next time I want something hoppy from Alesmith. This is an excellent beer that deserves its place as a borderline Top 50 beer. I would place it among one of the better Imperial IPAs I have tried; perhaps I will get another bottle when it is fresh to see if that changes things.

Aroma / Appearance - The clear body let through about half the sunlight that trickled lazily into the tulip glass. A short lived head surged to the top before settling to almost nothing. Strong citrus notes made me think of the weather a month ago - moderately warm with the leaves still on the trees and a light breeze blowing the smell of fall around.

Flavor / Palate - The taste of orange creamsicle coated my mouth before being overwhelmed by spiciness and a tinge of malts. The alcohol is not subtle but still manages to remain under control. For an imperial IPA it was a little peppery. I found it to be very drinkable and easy to finish. It falls just shy of my Top 50 though I can see why it is one of the most highly ranked of the style.

22oz bottle purchased for $4 (half-price, they say - it’s November) from Bauer Wines in Boston. Pours with a ridiculous unforgiving head that is delaying my consumption and enjoyment of this beer. Underneath the head there is a thin sliver of cloudy light gold. Strong bitter aroma. Whoa, this is strong stuff. Tastes more like hard liquor than a beer on first taste. Let’s checkie the ol’ ABV... only 8.5%! For a second I was wondering if this was in the 12%+ range. I swear, I’m getting some weak whisky tastes here (disclaimer: not a whisky drinker). Took a quick look at reviews on here and don’t see anyone concurring with me - wonder if mine has spoiled at all? OK, as the beer goes on, the review progresses. I’m getting a bit less of the whiskey flavours, but I’m still not getting what I consider to be typical hoppiness from the style. An hour later, I just tried pouring the last third of the bottle and the process creates as much head in the bottle as there is beer. What is going on with this bottle? It pains me a bit to give such a highly rated beer (100th percentile!) a mediocre score, but I cannot tell a lie when it comes to this bottle. An experience, none-the-less.

22oz Bottle. Huge citrusy, piney,hoppy aroma. Beautiful copper color. Malts balance extremely well. Buts its all about the hops as it should be. Alchol is evident but very smooth. My first AleSmith & a great one.