AleSmith Grand Cru

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

Serve in Trappist glass, Tulip, Tumbler

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Vintage 2005 Pours dark amber with a ruby hue. No head developed, even with a stretch pour. A thin ring of white lace ran around the edges of the glass with a few dots of lacework remaining. Sweet malt, candied fruit, and caramel start the nose. Cherries, tangerines, grape jam, cloves, and rum follow through. Medium bodied, slick, and slightly syrupy. Low carbonation lends a light chew to the mouthfeel. Ripe fruit, sweet malt, and rummy alcohol lead off the palate. Hints of Grand Marnier, red grapes, cherries, raisins, and ripe berries add plenty of depth. Finishes with warming alcohol, a light peppery note on the throat, and plenty of lingering ripe fruit. Three years on it’s side has really rounded this beer out. The spiciness when young has stepped back and allowed plenty of complex fruit to come forward. Approaching the realm of a very fruity Quad. Further time in the cellar will really put this one over the top.

Pours brownish red with no head or lacing. Aroma is plum, orange peel, alcohol, and currants. taste is plum, clove, grape and currants. finish is boozy and sweet. a lovely beer that I can imagine aging well.

Bottled:
Dark orangey amber colour. Large head. Sweet and malty caramel aroma with notes of oranges. Sweet, thick and oily mouthfeel. Flavour is sweet caramel, cherries and alcohol. Harsh finish. Just a little bit too sweet and boozy for me.

Bottle. dark red brown colour with a beige head. Aroma is roasted malt, berries, caramel. Flavour is is sweet and sour, roasted malt, licorice, caramel, berries, alcohol, dried fruits. Full body. Very nice beer.

Pours cloudy orangish brown with a great tan head. Head is smooth like well steamed latte milk with good retention. Yeast, barnyard funk and dark sugar on the nose. Taste is rich and smooth, with rich caramel, candy, yeast, hint of vanilla and a little citrus-like tartness. Med carbonation. Full bodied. After taste is rich sweet with some dry hops and alcohol. Interesting ale, a little on the sweet side, but very good.

Coppery amber in color with a huge foamy tannish head. Wine-like, with a tartness and a sour sweetness tempered with caramel like malt flavors. Fizzy and carbonated with a lot of deep fruit, the alcohol is definitely there.

Pour clear red/dark orange, with a huge creamy white head. Aroma of plums, prunes, caramel, Belgian yeasty funkiness. Also some brown sugar, bread, and perhaps some unripe cherries/berries, to ad some sourness

Pour clear red/dark orange, with a huge creamy white head. Aroma of plums, prunes, caramel, Belgian yeasty funkiness. Also some brown sugar, bread, and perhaps some unripe cherries/berries, to ad some sourness. Taste is sweet, with some sour notes. Medium body, with plenty of fizzy carbonation. Rather dry finish on this one.

Thanks to Deuane for bringing this ’06 bottle to Stakem’s Fish Fry. A - Pours murky brown with a half finger tall off-white head leaving small trails of lace down some of the glass. S - Smells of sweet caramel malt, brown sugar, toffee, dark fruits, figs, some cherries and a bit of spicy/sweet belgian yeast. The booze is all but gone from the nose. T - Starts off with a bunch of sweetness - mostly made up of toffee, brown sugar and caramel malt - slowly giving way to hints of dark fruits, cherries, vanilla and some spicy yeast. Only a tiny bit of booze creeps as it warms up, warming the end of each sip. Finish has some sweetness, lingering on the pallet long after consumption. M - Big body with a creamy sweet feel and moderate carbonation. The flavors are fairly sweet throughout with very little booze detectable. O - I liked this one. The flavors worked well and it was surprisingly easy to drink. It appears to be at its peak now, maybe beginning to slide a little bit.

Bomber from Andy--what a treat! pours a dark ruby. generally sweet, lots of dark fruit to it, cherry and plum, and a nice alcohol warming at the end. Good beer.

750ml bottle, shared with friends. Thin off-white head, fading to minimal. Clear red color. Dry texture. Lighter, smoother carbonation. Nice, sweet belgian-candy taste. Nice, rich dark fruit aroma. Some [complex lemony] notes. Friends liked this better than the AleSmith Wee Heavy (which I shared just before this bottle).