AleSmith YuleSmith (Summer) India Pale Ale

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

smells like vanilla and carmel, followed by intense hoppy buds. what a great aroma. the head is slightly reddish, and very small bubble, great lacing. somehwat cloudy dark amber color. the feel on my mouth is smoother than silk, and oh so cramy. tastes great, buttuer, vanilla, marijauna, bubble gum, amazing i love this beer

Bomber. Pours deep, slightly cloudy amber with a small beige head. Aroma is chock full of hops: citrussy, piney and resinous with some earthiness too. Surprisingly for this hop monster, there is an excellent malt aroma in the nose: sweet caramel and bread. Flavor is big on the hops (resinous pine and grassy earth) with plenty of bitterness to back up the minimally apparent alcohol and sweet, bready malt backbone. Some floral and citrussy fruit esters come through was well. Finishes fairly dry and bitter with a mild alcohol warmth. Body is quite full and slightly sticky and smooth. Excellent DIPA.

Christmas ’04 bottle thanks to Odeed. Once it’s popped, the hops rush out. Thick, citrussy, resinous, sticky, bitter, juicy hops. It’s like wandering through a pine and grapefruit forest right after the grass was cut. The malt smells sweet behind it, but can’t begin to keep up with the hops. Pours a coppery orange with a white head that doesn’t care to stick around too long, but does give a lot of nice lacing as it goes down. Mouthfeel is full, but not as oily and syrupy as I’d expected with the alcohol up where it is. Flavor is initially puckeringly bitter with hops -- grapefruit, grass, pine, spice, and dirt from a beautiful American hop profile. The malt behind it is sweet amber malt with some caramel in the background. Wonderfully complex beer. I can’t wait to have it back to back with Dreadnaught.

Poured from a bomber. Orange amber color, bright and murky. Lots of apricot and hops in the aroma. Smooth mouthfeel, a bit creamy and very refreshing not too strong texture. Lots of flavors arising. Vanilla, Apricot, Grapefruit, malt, light fruit. No alchohol burn at all. Love it and the $5 price is perfect.

Beautiful bright coppery amber-orange color with a dense, fine, creamy, light tan colored head. Hop-driven aroma of grapefruit. General citrus top notes with earthy and spicy undertones mixed with some malt and alcohol. Citrus and resinous hop flavors--orange peel--with deep, strong, profound hop bitterness--one of the most bitter beers I’ve had. Malt flavors are present, but only just enough to provide the perfect balance to the body--not heavy or sweet yet strong enough to support the dense bitterness. Well integrated alcohol rounds out the amazingly packed flavor profile that delicately unwinds through a long finish.

This beer opens with the aroma of a pine forest, and pours a hazy tan with a thick white head that sticks around on top. The flavor of this beer is amazing, strong hop presence, with a somewhat syrupy and oily mouthfeel, and an amazingly long bitter finish. Pump up the hop profile, and lower the malt profile... while thinning the syrup a bit, and this would be a perfect 5.

Out of a bottle Winter version. Aroma is very malty with complex hops some flowery citrus seedy and earthy notes. Pours an opaque orange amber, qith a large frothy head that lasts and good lacing. Flavor Heavy rich malts with a nice sourness followed by complex hops (grapefruit, citrus) earthy flowery vanilla. A nice big thick dry mouth feel. A delicious lingering flavor smooth feel coming down the throat.

Bottle sampled with Stegosaurus, courtesy of an ohio dad trade. Hazy orange pour with a floral hoppy citrus aroma. Hoppy bite up front with a malty alcohol finish but blended really good. An incredible IPA !!!!!! Probably one of the best IPA. I have had to date.