AleSmith YuleSmith (Summer) India Pale Ale

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

Another awesome west coast brew sent from sparky! Bomber: Monster head on this one, which never went away! I poured it agressive, and it almost over filled my snifter! Aroma of citrus hops. Beautiful glowing orangish color. Flavor, was classic DIPA. Lots of fruity and citrus hops, and a hint of mango. Dry....Excellent texture, easy to drink. Super smooth. Over all a great beer, THANKS eric for the great beer! F*cking A, why isnt Alesmith available in my area????

Nowhere near the hop-bomb that I expected, this was a surprisingly well-balanced DIPA with great malty, fruity sweetness that made for just a superb drink.

bomber into pint glass. The aroma is pretty inbelievable and quite possibly the best hop aroma I have encountered (reminded me a bit of Hop Slam, but better than what I remember of it). All juicy citrus hops with a great floral character too (even some pine hops, which I am detecting further down the glass) that is in such impeccable balance that I can’t really explain it. This is also not to mention the extreme potency; when I poured this I could smell it throughout the room. Beneath the great hops one can detect a hint of sweet pale malt... yum. I’m not one for the color of this brew or the color of its head (very light copper golden body with an all white head), but the creaminess of the head that the lace it leaves is litterally perfect (perhaps the best lacing I have encountered also). Crystal clear without much visible carbonation. The hops on the flavor are also, as expected, off the chain with all varieties of hops - citrus, pine, floral and bittering. It has pine hops upfront that fade into citrus and finish with a dry as hell bitterness. As it warms the malt comes out on the swallow and finish too - rich thick pale malt. This thing is hot but smooth on the palate, medium to thick bodied with a rich maltyness. Overall: this may be the ultimate in hoppy beers, and I am actually a bit surprised that it isn’t rated higher. (after submitting my original rating... I checked my raitings and I gave dreadnaught 1 point higher but can;t imagine it having been any better... I need to try these side by side and crown the victor.) This thing is beautiful.

Another awesome DIPA in the west coast style, similar to Green Flash West Coast, Stone Ruination, and RR Pliny the Elder. Golden color with active carbonation. Strong hops dominate, good sweet maltiness also. Piney, citrusy, awesome.

Bottle graciously sent to me by alexsdad06. Thank you so much. This one is a damn fine beer. Wow. Pours a hazy orangish color wtih a very nice whte head. Aroma is a delicious mix of caramel, malts, fruit and spicy and floral hops. Flavor is just a perfect union of big hops and smooth malt. I get citrus, caramel, vanilla, and man I just loved this beer.

Poured amber with a white head. Aroma of pine. Lots of pine and citrus flavor. Wet finish. So good.

Clear golden pour with super-dense creamy white head, distinct tiered lacing, very aggressive hoppy and fruity aroma, sweet and smooth with a powerful, but tactfully bitter hop finish, great brew

Location: 22 oz bottle bottle via trade from NickD717, 9/1/09

Aroma: Juicy citrus hops, grapefruit, orange, pine, caramel, maybe some melon
Appearance: Clear golden-orange color with a big, creamy, long-lasting head and tons of lace on the glass
Flavor: Really pleasant bitter flavor, just the right amount of caramel malty sweetness, really tasty
Palate: Medium body, smooth beer that reminds me a bit of the Ruination in how easy it is to drink for a DIPA
Overall Impression: Wow this is a good one, thanks for hooking me up with this awesome beer, Nick! This stuff is really quite good buddy, and you are 2 for 2 so far on sending me awesome beers. I could see myself drinking this one really often were it distributed to the East Coast, but unfortunately, it looks like this one is being hogged by you lucky bastards out west. Seriously though, I really can find very little to quibble with on this one, it is almost exactly what I was hoping for, a truly exquisite brew.