AleSmith YuleSmith (Summer) India Pale Ale

Bomber - This one I was excited for, and wasnt disappointed. Pop the cap, great aroma already grabbing the nose. I can already tell its a hop bomb. Orange/copper pour with a gorgeous fluffy off-white head that laces about as much as I’ve ever seen in an IIPA. I take a deep whiff, and wow this smells good. I’m noticing some great hoppy citrus scents with that piney malty underneath. At this point I already know I’m going to love this ale. Flavor is what I was hoping for, a big hoppy front to a slightly sweet caramel backbone. Hops are off the hook in this badboy! It’s not nearly as sweet as say 90 minute, but thats not a bad thing. Somehow they’ve balanced the super-hoppy with the malt VERY well. I don’t know if I’ve had a better IIPA.

Bottle. Pour is a coppery orange color and sports a pretty large head (about three figners of foam at first). Aromas are mindnumbing. I am fairly giddy at this point as I’m picking up the pine and pineapple that means good IPA hops and a slight caramel backbone from the malt. Flavor is much more bitter that I anticipated. The malt definitely is there and holds the hoppy bitterness in check, but as far as IPA’s go, this one leans to the hoppy end of the spectrum. This is interesting considering that the Winter version heads much more in the malt direction if memory serves me well. Either way, I’m not sure which of the twins I would rather take home.

Thanks MikeTD. Orange pour with huge white head. Aroma is big on orange and citrus. Flavor is really malty, crystal all the way with orange and grapefruit. Toasty but still sweet from the huge amount of crystal malts. Good but I really prefer the winter version.

Bottle via Weeheavy. Golden color. Smell of grapefruit, malt, hops, pine, zest, grass, sugar, caramel and orange juice. Taste of malt, hops, grapefuit, caramel, brown sugar, salt, flowers, grass, pine, citrus zest, spice and alcohol. Wow! The hops are great in this one. Wonderful!

Bottle. Pours clear copper color with a decent sized off white head. Aroma is heavy citrus, mango, oange, floral hops, mild caramel. Flavor is piney, citrus, grapefruit, orange, mango, floral hops, caramel malts, alcohol. Palate is medium bodied, medium carbonation, finishes with gigantic hoppy bitterness, almost burning the tongue. Awesome stuff.

The best smelling beer i’ve encountered to date. Nose of heavy citrus, noticed the mangos, with hops, exquisite. Flavor is complex, not sure what to make of it... I’ve had other dipas where the flavor was mainly a bitter hoppy adventure, this does not follow suit. Overall a very good beer, and I’m glad I picked it up.

Bomber from my not so Secret Santa, theisti. Poured into a tulip glass with a big head that just won’t go away and eventually turns into a surface covering lacing. Color is murky dark orange, cannot see through the beer. Aroma is in general strong, sweet, citrus-tea. It’s surrounded by some nice perfume-y, bitter tangerine and a light earthiness (the only aspect that seems independent of the hops. Taste is medium-strong bitterness, with light pine but mostly a thick citrus. A medium body and a long citrus/bitter aftertaste. Now that I tried each Yulesmith I see what Alesmith was going for: this a DIPA and the winter a DIPA with a whole lot more malt and substance (understandably to have a more “winter" feel yet be a hop bomb), I prefer the winter.

Thanks to dirty martini. Hazy amber, large head, excellent lacing and retention. Aroma is strong grapefruit, pine and citrus, some caramel backing. Medium to heavy body, fairly bitter but not overly so. Very predictable, but calling this well made is an understatement. Extremely enjoyable and tasty, but I felt that Dreadnaught offered a softness that this one didn’t. Both are kickass though.