AleSmith Speedway Stout (Barrel Aged)

Brewed by AleSmith Brewing Company
Style: Imperial Stout
San Diego, California USA

Serve in Snifter

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

2009 bottle acquired by trade, consumed at THE stout tasting - part 1. It pours near black with a medium tan head. The nose is coffee, roasted malt, oak, vanilla, coconut, chocolate, lactose, liquorice and mild acidity. The taste is roasted malt, wood, coffee, light acidity, vanilla, milk chocolate, vanilla, toasted coconut, liquorice, bourbon, light alcohol warmth and earth. Full body, fine carbonation and not cloying at all. Smooth, well balanced and mighty drinkable. I wouldn’t say it’s massively complex, but it’s delicious.

Chilled 75 cl 2009 brown bottle poured into a snifter at a JStax tasting. Pours coal black with light brown head. Little lacing, medium body, light carbonation, and wonderful strong bourbon aroma. Taste is bourbon, chocolate, and a hint of salt. The bourbon taste hit me hard to start with, but really enjoyed this the more I drank.

2009 vintage. Pours black with a khaki colored head of foam that dissipates at a moderate rate. Aroma has a dry maltiness to it. Big bourbon on the nose and a bit gravelly at cooler temperatures. As it warms, that goes away. Taste is very sweet, there’s an ever so slight tartness, and a bourbon presence that has less of a presence than the nose indicated. Very complex taste. Kind of dry on the tongue. Very mellow and delicious.

Outstanding beer here. Such a balance of coffee, cocoa, bourbon, and oak. Liquid goodness.

This bottled brew from rbsg 2010 #58 poured a head of dark brown colored bubbles that were fully diminished and left behind a no visible carbonation opaque dark brown colored body and a oily lacing. The aroma was dark malt and bourbon. The mouth feel was tingly at the start and at the finish. The strong flavor contained notes of roasted malt and vinous. Delicious and one I would certainly like to have again.

Poured from a bottle into a snifter. Pitch black with a khaki head. The aroma of this beer is incredible. It smells like a dark chocolate caramel vanilla dessert. This is probably the best smelling beer I’ve ever had. The taste is very well balanced. Just enough bourbon. You can taste the underlying stout, but the vanilla bourbon is still present. There is just a tinge of coffee bitterness on the finish. If it didn’t say it had coffee in it, i probably wouldn’t have realized it, but you did get a bit of coffee in the finish. Don’t expect this to be a coffee beer, because you will be disappointed if that’s what you’re after. The coffee is a subtle component in a wonderfully crafted and balanced bourbon barrel aged imperial stout. Incredible beer.

2012. Coffee gets hidden and should be more forward. Pretty boozy, though its overall complexion is nicely crafted and refined. Far superior to the ’09 bottles I’ve had, also better than the ’03. Should age well. Best vintage yet IMO.

Really thick, with a chocolatey coffee-like flavor. Not as much tones of barrel-aging as expected or desired, but overall a very good Imperial Stout!

A - pours opaque cola brown with 1 finger dark brown head that dissipates. S - very mellow rounded stout aromas. Bitter chocolate, toffee, vanilla, molasses graham crackers. Hints of soy sauce. M - nice well rounded very smooth rich velvety mf. Full palate, nice soft warming on the end. T - dry oakiness, nice espresso, bitter chocolate up front. Molasses, toffee, vanilla, richer chocolate/coffee on the palate. Nice warming. Lingering chalky, brown sugar, earthy notes, soy sauce. O - amazing well rounded warmed. Fantastic and complex. 8 ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

UPDATED: FEB 23, 2013 2012 bottle. Color of dark coffee with a oily sheen of a head. Slight bourbon nose (less boozy than I expected) with some anise and charred oak. For the taste, subtle burnt sugar, light oak, malty biscuit, with the slightest touch of coffee at the end. Almost no booze tones from the bourbon, just a residual sweetness. One of the smoothest palates I’ve tasted, but with a slight gritty finish. Well made, but I would have liked just a bit more boozy, bourbon flavor.