AleSmith YuleSmith (Summer) India Pale Ale

An abundance of hops and pine in the aroma, copper, pours a medium tan head. Flavours are malty, hoppy, piney with some orange too. Creamy, mellow, smooth as silk. Fabulous! Thanks to wohlfs and qdog.

Bomber. I’m absolutely buying everything the brewer claims for this beer: citrus and florals on the nose, and an attack that starts hoppy and grows malty and sweet, even to the point of vanilla. There’s a decent off-white head, dark copper color, body on the high side of medium, and plenty of carb (without being an overabundance). The finish is dry and lingering. After rousing the yeast, it takes on a more pronounced fruitiness and the malt sweetness takes up a new emphasis as well. This is a fantastic IIPA with and without yeast in the glass.

Bomber consumed at Stone Bistro because it topped the draft offerings the day I was there. Pours a dull hazy orange with off white head. The aroma has a sweet sugary maltiness mixed with juicy pine and some citrus hops. Not nearly as pungent as the winter version. The mouth feel is thick and chewy with a plentiful bounty of pine and grapefruit hoppiness that mixes brilliantly with a river of malty sweetness. Toward the finish the hops seem to split into bitter pine hops and grapefruit hops as well as sweet orange juice. Easily quaffable.

Pours a slightly hazy orange with a tall fluffy ivory head that leaves some thick lacing on the glass. Sweet malty aroma with a good dose of citrusy spiced hops. Taste starts sweet and malty with a bit of a spice kick to it. A nice bitterness finishes off the taste. A very smooth and well balanced IPA, excellent.

A huge grapefruit aroma on tops of a orange golden beer. Flavor is sweet malt initially followed by a huge grapefruit backbone. This beer is very sweet, yet very bitter. Very dry and resiny finish. My only complaint about this beer is that it is a little too candy sweet in the malt. But I really love the intense hoppiness that kills that sweetness.

Cloudy Copper, with a big white head. Spicy, peppery, woodsy aroma, with just a hint of medicinal smell. Big citrus flavor - Grapefruit, of course, but also some lemon and lime. Hints of smoke and salt. Very dry, but also incredibly smooth. The malt presence is incredibly subtle in the flavor, but is felt in the palate and aftertaste, if that makes any sense. Some resiny flavors in the finish. Really, really impressive. Thanks to Drunkasaskunk for this one!

(Sample courtesy of my good friend Odeed)Summer Version 2006 Wonderful hoppy, citrusy nose (second only to Moylan’s Hopsicle), hazy copper with a small white head, Flavor is of caramel malts and hops with a nice long hop finish.