AleSmith YuleSmith (Summer) India Pale Ale

Bottle from realale420. Pours mahagony with a patchy and rocky off-white head, edgy. Aroma is huge hops (pine, floral and citrus), caramel nutty lightly roasted malt (biscuit), yeast (sour dough) and a perfume alcohol nose. Heavy bitterness, moderate acidity, malt and yeast flavor is overpowered by the hoppy flowers, citrus bite and pine sweetness. Medium bodied, fizzy and dry palate.

Red and Blue bottle. I always thought this was a mix of an IIPA and a BW. A heavy citrus aroma, clings to the glass with lots of malts. A thicker mouthfeel than most IIPA’s, good hop bite with a decent amount of caramel sweet malts. Distinctive.

As I spend time in France and Belgium I often feel an urge to revisit styles such as the IIPA upon my return to America. Though experience tells me that these hoppiest of beers are decidedly unfit for my palate, I find myself momentarily craving their quixotic flavor after a consecution of graceful efforts. YuleSmith was to be just that, a sacrifice to appease my palate, and remind myself why I so often dismiss the entire style. As my first taste of AleSmith (courtesy of FlacoAlto), my expectations were logically clashing by virtue of the brewer’s revered status and my apathy towards IIPAs. The beer amazes upon my delicate pour, revealing a brooding pumpkin hue packed with a dusty yellow cake which proceeds to metamorphose into what seems a feudal citadel circumscribed by its appropriate trench and barricaded in thick lace. The nose is initially dominated by rich mango nectar and juicy aromas of orange and pineapple. Biscuity malts, characterized by burnt butter and an alcoholic cedar quality perform as the primary base for an exciting array of scents including black pepper, coriander, ginger, spruce and a hint of grapefruit. Hops are evident in the aroma, but attain their full potency on the tongue beside prominent coriander, caramel malts and café au lait. The flavor appears rich at first, building to a creamy apex before a generic hoppy and spicy burn emerges to clumsily seal the palate in an inevitable bitterness. An appeasing apple flavor appears in the aftertaste, but I found the finishing tones rather disappointing. Nonetheless, YuleSmith is to me one of the most enjoyable examples of the style and an excellent introduction to AleSmith’s potential.

Nice sweet aroma. Slightly cloudy yellow with decent head. Very balanced but lots of hops still. Really good imperial IPA. Alesmith continues to impress.

22oz bomber pours a golden yellow with a thick fluffy head. Although not as fresh as I like my IPAs, still a really nice light floral hop aroma with orange citrus and malt. A smooth texture on tongue lots of orange zest, grapefruit, citrus, a little carmel, and overall just a really nice hop profile dancing on the tongue with a fruity and malt sweetness. This slips into a light warming alcohol with a light bitter finish. Very nicely balanced, a well done IIPA.

My 1300th rating! Bottle, summer ’06 edition. Pours a hazy copper-orange with a large lasting creamy off-white head. BIG aroma of fresh hops, lots of swet malt, some fruit, yeast and spices -- but mostly those wonderful smelling hops! Flavour’s sweet and hoppy, very well balanced and oh so delicious. Starts kind of sweet and then BAM! -- a tasty hop medley, followed by a big, dry bitter finish. This is sooo easy to drink and there’s no sign of the 8.5% alcohol. Medium to full bodied. Simply fantastic, definitely one of the world’s best IPAs. I’m thrilled to have hit another milestone and to have done it with AleSmith, who are still my favourite brewer.

From 22oz Bottle. Beautiful pour of blood oranges, caramelized to a beechwood amber hue. Refined crown of creamy, long lasting ivory head rests on top. Aromas of citrusy white grapefruit pulp and wild orange zest creates a spicy hoppiness, tamed by a base of vanilla, caramel, and sugar cookie malts. I did a double take when I first observed the vanilla presence during my tasting, but seeing it now in the commercial description forces me to comment that not only is it there, but it adds an incredible dimension to the aroma and flavor qualities of this brew. Medium bodied, refreshing correctly carbonated mouthfeel. Amazing flavor complexity and layers. The pleasant malt flavors grip my tongue immediately, oozing with hints of caramel, cookie dough, and some sweet, gentle cinnimon spice. Not to be outdone, the hoppy punch quickly follows up the glorious malt brigade. Spicy flavors of grapefruit, spruce, and white pepper flood my palate, scrubbing it clean and preparing it for the next wave of malty goodness. I’m definitely guessing that centennial plays an important role in the hop schedule, but the complexity of the flavors are enough to keep me guessing, and frankly not really care. The final smack contains a deceivingly strong hop bitterness that firmly sets me back into the true groove of this style. Fantastic overall - I must comment that when I rave about the sweet and malty characteristics of the brew, I’m definitely keeping in mind their level of appropriatenesss for the style. The rich balance between hops and malts is really a showcase for the potential this style has to offer when crafted by a creative brewer.

Dusty copper body. Frothy white head. Very perfumey aroma. Hop forward indeed. Dry dusty malt. Peaches and various tropical fruit make up a nice complexity. Interesting crisp hop + malt flavor. Following the aroma, the flavor is a rich sweetened fruity hop mixture. Very delicious.