AleSmith Barrel Aged Old Numbskull

Brewed by AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
San Diego, California USA

Serve in Snifter

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Bottle number 37/100 big thanks to MI2CA for the bonus in our trade a while back. Shared with Eyedrinkale on 8/5/2005.
Pours a thick, opaque, dark, dark brownish-black body, with a huge head formation, that is not that long-lasting, though there are bits of lacing down the glass. Smells of rich, green, bitter, mega-hoppiness, thick, salty, bitter roast and dark chocolate. Rich, heavy caramel sweetness. The flavor, personified, is like a thick, hot, humid night with heavy, stifling air and no moonlight. Good lord, this is one of the most powerful, richest, just all out massive beers I’ve ever had. Huge hops bitterness (and a weird dill-like note), salty, thick, rich black malts, massive caramel and bitter baker’s chocolate. The body is awesome, even at 3 years of age, it still shows no signs of aging, while the carbonation is low, with a creamy and sticky consistency (which really saves the palate score, as this stuff demonstrates no balance). Alcohol is hidden as in regular Old Numbskull (seems to be variability on alcohol apparency looking at other ratings). The barrel aging is not overdone, which is another impressive aspect. Just enough to add some character without dominating the beer (though in actuality, it would take a lot to dominate this monster).

What do I think??? I hate it and can’t even drink my half of the bottle, but then, it’s no surprise, as this aint my thing. Do I think it’s all hype?? No, not really hype as much as peoples’ preference for big, rich, hoppy beers. And that’s cool, this is a barleywine after all, as EDA says. I’ll try this one again in about 5 years, I should like it more then, as I really think it’s a well made beer, just ridiculously unbalanced/young at this point.

2006 vintage A: Poured a murky brownish color with a light sediment presented, a light tannish cap S: Still has a quantifiable amount of old spent oak spirals, Earthiness, light vanilla and booze T: Still had some light residual sugar sweetness, with old wood, light vanilla and pinch of raisin remains M: Medium to big body at this age with lower carbonation, some fading flavors, light booze and stickiness O: Good but it is peaking IMO or has recently peaked

Tap at brewery a few weeks back. Pours a nice mahogany hue with a thin layer of tan foam. Aroma mainly of earthy peaty malts, strong bourbon, and vanilla with lesser notes of caramel, thick molasses, and dried fruit. The hoppiness of fresh Numbskull has really faded in the nose here. Flavor has significant bourbon, dark sticky toffee, chocolate-covered maraschino cherries, wet oak, and brown sugar. There is still some hop-tinged flavors here, but the barrel is dominant. Mildly sweet and a bit soft on the palate. There is a tingle of alcohol in the finish -- it warms but does not distract here. Excellent execution on this one. Glad to finally get to try this one...it completes my trifecta of barrel-aged Alesmith classics, along with the equally amazing BA Speedway and BA Wee Heavy. (474, 692)

2007 vintage, bottle #407/449, split with manuchampions and uhlan. Pours a dark amber with a small beige head. Aroma of wood / bourbon barrels, toffee / caramel, dark fruits and candied sugar - the barrels don’t really shine on the nose... but they do on the tongue. Flavour of bourbon barrels, toffee, dark fruits, vanilla, alcohol and finishes with light fruity sweetness and booze. Wood barrels and done very well, but adds a vanilla character that very slightly detracts from the complexity of the base beer. Most excellent, though an extremely slow sipper.

2003 Vintage, Bottle #110/223
Tasted in late November 2011 from a capped 750mL bottle shared by unclejedi at his birthday tasting, massive thanks on this rarity, Jim. Pours clear blood orange with some tan lace that quickly disappears. The nose is earthy English-style barley wine with caramel, toffee, burnt brown sugar, and bourbon notes of vanilla and coconut. The flavor is full of caramel, toffee, brown sugar, and the oaky bourbon coconut and vanilla, with the sweetness nicely balanced by the earthy yeast. The body is full with an oily texture, light carbonation, and a long caramel and oaky bourbon finish.

In short: A fantastic big fruity dark beer with a nice wood barrel presence. Great beer.
How: Bottle 750ml. 2007 version released in 2009, bottle #88 of 449. Consumed when a little over than 2 years of age. Bottle sent to me by kegbear, thanks a million Craig
The look: Cloudy burgundy body topped by a small beige head
In long: Nose is only moderately bourbonny and with plenty of raisins and dark fruits. This beer smells like a world-class Abt that would have been aged in bourbon barrels for a short period of time. Just from the aroma I knew it was going to be something special. Taste has lots of vanilla, raisins, dark fruits, earthy three roots, caramel, notes of milk chocolate, light scented notes similar to garden flowers. Body is full and the carbonation is very lively and that’s totally unexpected from a barrel aged big american beer. It’s hard to put into words why a beer like that works so well, listing a bunch of flavor elements doesn’t do it justice and is almost meaningless. Everything just worked perfectly in this beer. I went through a full bottle and it was pure pleasure and I would have loved to drink a second bottle immediately, something I almost never say about a barrel aged big beer. This was one of the greatest big beers I’ve ever had, what else can compare? I went to my PC to google "greatest big beers" but I googled "greatest big boobs". Don’t be surprised if I don’t see me on ratebeer for the next few months.

This one grew on me the more I drank it. Poured a dark brown color, and had a flavor I find hard to describe (deep hop flavor mixed with a dry finish?). It was enjoyable, but expensive, and not one I would have often.

Bottle brought by me, 2007 Vintage, #117/449. Poured into Darkness snifter. A - Pours a dark brown/reddish color, cream ring, with random whisps on top. S - Dark fruits, huge oak/barrel, ever so slight hoppy bitterness, caramel, burnt sugars. Perhaps a little more oak-forward then I prefer but otherwise, pretty good. T - Dark fruit, caramel, oak/barrel. Smooth booze, nice caramel sweetness, and the oak isn’t quite as strong as the nose (that’s a good thing). M - Light to medium (a bit too thin), good carbonation, and creamy sweet finish. O - I think I actually prefer the regular 2007 over the Barrel-Aged version. Perhaps a bit too much oak for me in this one. I wonder how the other years stack up to 2007? I guess I’ll have to try them and see.

Hazy dark amber color/ beige head. Vanilla, whiskey, alcohol fuel, caramel, wood aromas. Medium bodied with light co2. Sharp spicy pit fruit, alcohol fuel flavors with sweet vanilla, caramel, whiskey--2004 bottle 147/240

From notes, 2007 bottle. May 2010 tasting, with a HUGE thank you to Greg. Pour is a very slightly hazy red brown with almost yellow highlights, with a light tan head that fades quickly. No lacing. Aroma is dominated by brown sugar, caramel, and molasses sweetness. Taste is much the same, with the sugar sweetness dominating any malt or hop profile that could be hiding in there. Far too sweet for my tastes, but a decent example of a BAd beer. Would have benefited from a larger hop profile...

2002 edition bottle generously shared at the RBSG grand tasting. Pours a cloudy amber with frothy beige head. Aroma is hot and full of oxidized sherry and butterscotch. Flavor is boozy up front with sweet toasted coconut and butterscotch, Marshmallow fluff in the finish with loads of booze. A bit too much for me. Massively sweet and hot.