AleSmith Barrel Aged Wee Heavy

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

Sample at J Gumbos Aug 2008 Indy tasting - First off, I absolutely love the base beer and we had that first. The result was the bourbon probably stood out more than it would have otherwise. Not a big fan of bourbon, but this one has gotten pretty balanced. Aroma is peat, oak, bourbon, caramel and toffee. Flavor matches with the bourbon being a bit stronger but not overpowering. Incredibly smooth palate. Very nice BA version of an already great brew.

Bottle at RBSG2008 Grand Tasting on 08/02/2008. Clear dark amber body. Big caramel and light molassas aroma. Big smooth caramel flavor. Full body with low carbonation.

Thanks to bitbucket tasting. No head. Good amount of bourbon in the nose and taste. Still picking up plenty from the base beer, but seems to be a bit thinner than the original (did a side-by-side). Good, but I think I’d take the original over this.

2005, I can see this getting better in 3-5 years, thats how good this brew is. Had never had a regular Wee Heavy from Alesmith for some reason. Intense brew, dark rich and had a finish like no other. Alc and acidity keep this very focused but still it’s big. Barrel aged nose of burbon is tied into chocolate and dark coffee type aroma. Haunting. Powerful mid palate. Thanks to Tom at O’Brien’s SD and his Alesmith tasting for this. Maybe the best beer I’ve ever had.

Bottle shared with GregClow, Hogtown Harry, Jerc, Blankboy, and Garthicus, courtesy of Harry (smudged Sharpie bottle). Very dark brown, no head. Bourbon aroma, sweet, some alcohol and smoke. Great taste - very earthy, slight smoke, some well worked bourbon - great balance. Very very good.

After saving this bottle for an unspecified occasion, I was moved to open it in tribute to Richard Wright, the remarkable keyboardist whose contributions to the music of Pink Floyd cannot be under-emphasized. And if you must ask, yes I did pour some of this precious liquid out. I only wish the beer itself lived up to the moment, let alone its momentous hype. 2005 bottle, numbered 40/222. Opened with just a whisper of a pop behind the crown, revealing its lack of carbonation. Nose was dominated by oaky vanilla whiskey. There is brown sugar and caramel in the background. Color was a darkish cola brown, no head, no effervescence. Palate reveals only a light tingle of carbonation. Flavor was also dominated by the whiskey barrel contributions. Generally sweet, with a rounded mouthfeel, there’s a touch of bruised pear, acrid prune and raisin juice approaching the finish, which is strongly tannic with a near over-bearing alcoholic bite. Mouthfeel generally very full. I like the general theme behind it, and the intoxicating fun of it, but I’ve had a few barrel aged beers that exceed this one by some measure.

750 ml bottle @ liquid sunshine tasting - thanks to ironchefscott for the trade; 2006 vintage, bottle #115/254; thin head compared to the regular that we opened side by side (thanks bruce); clear, dark brown; smooth, rich, intoxicating aromas; not unlike the regular version; caramel, scotch, oak and vanilla, very sweet and thinned out slightly compared to the regular version; lots of wood; not blown away as i have been by the BA numbskull and decadence; i love the regular version so much, that i’d say i fall on the side of the fence that while amazing, this was not really an improvement

Bottle shared with HogTownHarry, blankboy, tupalev, jerc & garthicus - courtesy of HogTownHarry. Deep ruby-brown with very little head. Aroma of wood, booze, malt, booze, spice, booze - did I mention booze? Flavour of bourbon and wood, malt and brown sugar, a bit of coffee and smoke in the finish, and yeah, booze, but not as hot as I feared from the aroma.