AleSmith YuleSmith (Winter) Imperial Red Ale

Brewed by AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
San Diego, California USA

22 oz bottle (Rozi’s Wine and Liquor House, Lakewood OH October 2006) served at cellar temperature from a Corsendonk glass. Big puffy light cream-colored head dies slowly atop the luminous, hazy and yeast-flecked dark gold-amber body.....pretty big PNW hop aroma, lots of typical citrus and pine but also nice hints of maraschino cherries, light creamy caramel, vanilla and lavender, fairly complex and quite enticing.....on the tongue, my first thought is "barley wine", this is quite hoppy but the malt balance is there and it’s immediately warming and a bit sherry-like (though fresh) with a slightly oily, juicy mouthfeel and rough fresh hops increasing continuously to the long bitter finish....burnt almonds and light pepper also show up, giving this yuletide confection a lovely complexity, a slightly different mood with every sip, almost....tingly carbonation might be a little on the high side but I can find very little to complain about this, and I’m plenty pleased as many W coast hop bombs haven’t been doing it for me lately. This does, in spades, and is the equal of any Alesmith bottle I’ve had yet. Awesome.

Bomber. Big aromas of sweet roasted malt and floral(?) hop. Dark coppery color with a four finger, slightly rocky head. Medium body with very mild carbonation. Rather slick feel. Principal flavor is roasted malt, but there is some hop involved. Finish is less sweetness and more hop. A little heat down the throat. Pretty tasty. Not sticky. Close thing though.

Lucky for me I have notes and ratings for both versions after the split:

2003: Cloudy deep copper and reddish hue with a very nice creamy off-white head and very good lacing. The aroma was pine, grapefruit, pepper, orange zest, roasted malt, mocha, and leathery yeast esters. Large pine and fruit presence upfront followed by a solid mocha and vanilla malt undertone. Minor spices upon the finish with lingering bitterness and citric components. Medium-bodied with a creamy and lively mouthfeel, alcohol was well hidden. This is a excellent hoppy brew, not a "holiday beer" since it would have needed more spice to fit that genre. If you like your hops, this is a beer for you.
Earlier Rating: 12/26/2003 Total Score: 4.2
The split rate for the summer version: This has mellowed slightly into one outstanding brew, well balanced and great depth of palate, the summer 2004 is the equal of the winter 2003, maybe better. BUT WATCH OUT, don’t upset the yeast!------�

Bottle at Toms Glasgow tasting 2 ... Copper ... toffee malts ... lots of amewrican hops ... very fruity ... not that exciting ... just getting hops. but its ok.

Draft@ Stuffed Sandwich: Clear reddish amber color with a medium sized off-white head. Big hop forward aroma of ruby red grapefruit flesh. The aroma was a mix of sweet and citrus. Sweet malt lead the flavor followed by large notes of sweet grapefruit juice and citrus grapefruit component. Grapefruit rind and pith on the finish making up the bitterness. Big hoppy burps followed. The hops and sweet malt while both strong balanced each other nicely. Medium to full bodied.

Sampled at OSLO/Guerde’s Memorial Day tasting. Picked up a single 22-oz bomber from John’s Marketplace in Portland, Oregon. Pours a hazy reddish amber brew with a thin off-white head that slowly dissipates to a fine film and white ring. Aroma of caramel malt, some citrus zest, grapefruit, a touch of pine and some pineapple. Taste is medium bodied, some hoppy character with flavors of caramel malt, pineapple, grapefruit and a touch of pine. Finish is semi-sweet, slightly dry pitter with a caramel and slight alcohol bite. Definitely a winter warmer.

Bottle thanks to DarkElf! Poured a beautiful medium copper/orange with a finger’s worth of off-white head. Warm, powerfully hoppy aroma (fresh grapefruit and pine tar, dried flower and grass)... held in check by soothing caramel and a subtle spiciness. Very smooth and tingly mouthfeel with some hoppy oiliness to it. Grapefruit and pine bite the tip of the tongue, transitioning to smooth malty caramels and sweet pine notes. Floral hoppage and spices complement the grapefruit and caramel on the warming finish. This was just fantastic!

A big beer. Very hoppy and lots of alcohol and some spices such as nutmeg and cinammon in there. Maybe I’m not such a big fan of double IPA’s or more likely they are as a group overrated by the hopheads. Well malted to take the edge off the bitterness.