AleSmith Evil Dead Red - AleSmith Brewing Company

adamparker05

California

4.6/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Great fake blood, grade B molasses appearance.

Nose is dried black fruits (raisins!) and Christmas trees.

Flavor is wonderful: candied orange peel, maple syrup, hoppy with a great bittersweet finish

Very good, but you can't have more than 3 pints. A) IT starts to get very heavy B) You'll be hammerwed... which isn't a bad thng, but you'll stop appreciating this kick-ass beer.

Serving type: on-tap

10-17-2008 02:50:05 | More by adamparker05

Floydster

California

4.43/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pint at Beachwood BBQ for six dollars, consumed on 10/2/08, reviewed from notes, also tasted from a growler the next night, first time I had seen this stuff outside of the brewery

A-Deep red with some brown highlights, 3/4 inch vanilla colored creamy head that lasts a long time, nice retention, good lacing most of the way through
S-Hoppiness, both piney and citrus, sweetness, rich malts, caramel, toffee, some tropical fruit, grassy accents, and
T-Starts off with a dry piney and hoppy welcome, some sweet malts in the middle, normally I would not like such sweet accents but it complemented the hop profile very well, more hops in the finish which is made up of mostly citrus, gets a little sweeter as time goes by and it warms, but nothing to get worried about, just a well balanced amber that deserves some recognition
M-Medium body, carbonation is on the lower side but fitting for this beer, dry, sweet, and chewy mouthfeel, taste lingers nicely and it is not overly strong
D-Could drink a lot of this, not overly malty or hoppy, more dry than sweet though, goes down easy, ABV is low enough to allow it be sessionable, alcohol is hidden, very smooth

Alesmith does it again with another great beer, this one just made me want to try My Bloody Valentine even more now but I have to wait until February unfortunately, one of the better ambers I have ever had, too bad this one is not bottled, but now I have something to look forward to every Halloween, will drink again, recommended

Serving type: on-tap

10-09-2008 15:58:01 | More by Floydster

opwog

Minnesota

3.78/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Now listening to: Van Morrison - Astral Weeks

Thanks to Beechwood for bringing this one in!

A- Dark reddish brown color, thin white head
S- Very sweet malt and straight hop smell
T- This is a nice red taste. All the good qualities of a red, minus any blandness of some American reds of the past 20 years.
M- slightly syrupy, but carbonation helps this.
D- This is part of what I find to be the new school California Reds, with more bold hop to balance the malt. I find most of these to be very drinkable.

Serving type: on-tap

10-06-2008 02:07:16 | More by opwog

Halcyondays

California

3.53/5  rDev -16.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On-tap at the Beachwood BBQ,

A: Pours a deep crismon/maroon/mauve red with a small white head leaving solid lacing.

S: Sweet malts, with a solid hop character, straight up red ale smell.

T: Taste is really sweet initially, certainly more than its sister brew My Bloody Valentine. The sweetness dies down a bit after a while leaving a tasty hop bitterness of pine and grass clippings.

M: Soft carbonation, overall medium body, with a treacle sweetness in the finish.

D: I liked this one from Alesmith, but I thought it would be better if it was a tad drier, still a nice Halloween brew.

Serving type: on-tap

10-01-2008 21:27:13 | More by Halcyondays

paytoplay

California

4.18/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

On tap at the 07 Speedway BA Release. Lots of growlers being filled up. I can see why, it was a stunning brew. Rich amber color, nice hop, malt, floral deep aroma. Very balanced, no alc noticable. Very easy drinker. Complex, for some reason it seemed like Pliny meets YuleSmith. Thus very high quality. Keg only, hope to see it around town very soon for a second go!

Serving type: on-tap

10-01-2008 18:13:01 | More by paytoplay

CharlesDarwin

Rhode Island

3.88/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Originally reviewed on November 26, 2006. On tap at Pizza Port, Carlsbad. Aroma has a light sweet cherry and brown sugar wasp, with some molasses and a whole blast of sweet malt and fringes of Cascade. Orange-hued deep amber florid color, with a creamy off-white head. Incredibly creamy malt flavor. It explodes in lucious foam on the tongue, sending forth brandied sugars and some edges of resiny hops. Intensely smooth, deeply rich with malt character. The balance here is inexplicably some of the best I’ve recently experience, with all angles of hop character meeting at various facets of the presentation to combine with the outstanding malting to create a delicious beer. Nicely done!

Serving type: on-tap

12-20-2006 14:43:44 | More by CharlesDarwin

SacoDeToro

California

4/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at the Green Dog in Long Beeotch!

The beer was a true deep red with a nice off-white head.

The aroma was good mix of herbal and citrus hops with sweet caramel malts.

The flavor of the beer was reasonably hoppy, but let the sweet caramel malts shine through. The maltiness had a nice touch of roastiness in the background.

The mouthfeel was medium and the carbonation was good.

This beer strikes that rare point between and amber and a brown and comes in red.

Serving type: on-tap

11-21-2006 16:02:46 | More by SacoDeToro

sloejams

California

3.9/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Ambers / reds are definitely not my favorite style of beer. That said, this is the way I like them - full with lots of hops.

I've only had this once before, about this time of year at the same place I had this one - Father's Office in Santa Monica. This time it reminded me a bit of last winter's Yulesmith, just tone-downed considerably.

The color was a deep dark ruby with a billowing head, lacing throughout. Cotton candy and roasted malts with a piney hops afterkick dominate the aroma. The flavor takes the best of a traditional American amber - the sweet maltiness and an IPA - the booming hops.

I liked this quite a bit. When I finished it I was ready to move on, there were plenty of other tasty beers awaiting.

Serving type: on-tap

11-15-2006 18:41:02 | More by sloejams

LongBeachHopHead

California

3.9/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Alesmith Evil Dead Red, 6.66% ABV brewed only at Halloween.

I had this on tap at the Green Dog Grill in Long Beach. I was talking to the rep that brings this beer in, and she was telling me that there were only 15 kegs of this allocated for SoCal. Too bad, its pretty good stuff.
Appearance: is a very dark rich almost blood-like red. There was not much head to speak of but the beer was poured in a pint glass taken from a freezer. Not sure if that's the best way to serve this one. It probably got colder when it hit the glass.
Smell: is wonderful. I am a huge fan of hops and always look forward to an Alesmith brew. Big bitter hop scent but also a wild maltiness to it as well. This beer is definitely a big red evil hop monster.
Taste: First few tastes are the floral hops right through the nose and a sticky-sweet-bitter malt base to it. I am not usually a huge fan of big malt but this is good. I'm very impressed by the complexity of this beer.
Mouthfeel: ((Cooold!)) j/k. I let the beer warm up a bit and it starts to release many more levels. It sort of bites the back of the throat with a burn like feeling but once swallowed, the hops kick in and they layers of malty aftermath to follow. They have really put effort into making this a Halloween brew. Its EVIL.
Drinkability: I could put down a couple of these, but that's it. The beers red bitterness starts to take over and become overbearing. Great beer though and hits the name on the nose.

Serving type: on-tap

10-17-2006 07:23:15 | More by LongBeachHopHead

dbalsock

Vermont

3.78/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Appearance: This was fairly standard for a red ale, but the kicker was the head was a little tanner than expected and stayed through out the pint.

Smell: The hops were quite prevelant and fruity, but mixed very well with the caramel malts to create a bubble-gumesque smell.

Taste: Again, the malts and hops mixed very well. I found this to be extremely well balanced, and very enjoyable. The caramel malts were present, but didn't control the beer. The hops, which were a tad piney and a tad citrusy (but not very) also were quite noticeable, but definitely used in a balanced way.

Mouthfeel: This felt like every other red ale I've ever had, standard/medium bodied and fairly embittered.

Drinkability: I would have this again, especially if it was on cask. I wouldn't go out of my way to find it, but it's better than the average brew.

Serving type: on-tap

10-14-2006 04:49:57 | More by dbalsock

Westsidethreat

California

4.3/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

2005 on draft at the Stuffed Sandwich

A: Sort of a murky, burgundy color. Very creamy, frappacino head.

S: Red fruits, bubble gum, raspberry and sweet malts.

T: Begins extremely fruity; fermented strawberries, boysenberries and maple. Slightly citrus flavors along the sides of the tongue. Their is a smooth yet even bitterness that occurs through out the process. Finishes with a health peat smokiness.

M: Medium body with just a touch of fuzz in the mouthfeel.

D: Damn fine. Really glad I had a chance to drink this. Its a hard one to track down.

Serving type: on-tap

07-30-2006 21:03:21 | More by Westsidethreat

goschool

California

4.22/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I had this on-tap at Father's Office in Santa Monica on 11/5.
This review is from my notes.

The pour is carmine (deep, blood red) with about one finger of off-white head that faded quickly into a thin lace. It starts out sweet and malty and finishes with a sharp hop bite. Such bitterness is unusual for a red ale in a really tasty way. If you come across this stuff, be sure to check it out.

Serving type: on-tap

11-07-2005 03:29:37 | More by goschool

OStrungT

California

4.15/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This beer pours a ruby red with a thin tan head. The head fades slowly leaving a good amount of laces. This beer has a malty sweet aroms. Also, it smells quite hoppy. This beer tastes quite hoppy for a red. I was not expecting it to be so hoppy. It tastes malty and sweet. As it gets warmer, the hops come out more. It also has a slightly nutty taste to it. This beer goes down smooth, leaving a hoppy aftertaste. This beer is carbonated very well. I think this beer would make a great session beer. It is hoppy, but not overly aggerssive. Also, the alcohol content is low enough to allow you to enjoy a few.

Serving type: on-tap

10-20-2005 22:21:23 | More by OStrungT

TheLongBeachBum

California

4.1/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Presentation: Draft at Hollingshead Delicatessen in Orange. A real treat to come across this “rarely seen” Alesmith offering, freshly tapped too. I snagged a full pint of this baby!

Appearance: Ruddy mahogany, dark and brooding – held to the light it exhibited a dark brown-purple hue. Strange color for a “Red”, but I ain’t complaining. Light brown head had a god thick composition and nice staying power. Resilient conditioning fresh from the tap. Nice looks, but don’t expect a typical looking

Nose: Gorgeous collection of malts and roasted barley. Hoppy too. Fresh off the tap it is a pleasure to stick your nose deep into this one. Quite complex in its profile, and it changes as you drink, the hops seem to build with temperature and time in the Glass.

Taste: Slick yet raw malts and tasty bold hops that seem aggressive, yet they all present a tamed profile, controlled but powerful and not scared of showing their muscles. I like that. Fruity too with some oily hops in the lingering finish. This got hoppier with a more in yer face bitterness as I got to the bottom of the glass. Bloody tasty. Rich, deep, strong but well balanced and superbly crafted.

Mouthfeel: Soft and creamy with a rich thick malty full-bodied torso.

Drinkability: Very quaffable indeed. I was driving and I had already elected to fill both my Growlers by the time I tried this, otherwise I may very well have got one of them filled with the Evil Dead Red. Very nice and eminently drinkable.

Overall: Not exactly your “Run-of-the-Mill” Red, but that’s why I like this one I think. I don’t often add Reviews for beers that I try on draft but given the beauty and creativity in this one I figured it is worth adding some notes about it.

Top Marks for creating a very memorable Red.

Recommended…..that’s if you ever come across it.

Serving type: on-tap

10-09-2005 23:14:17 | More by TheLongBeachBum

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4.1/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This beer has a frothy light tan head that sits atop a deep amber colored beer that is quite clear. The aroma is fortifingly hoppy with notes of pine, grapefruit and a nice herbal note. Oh yes this is packed with hops, bracingly bitter from the get go. I get notes of orange peel in the finish as well. There is some sweet malt here as well, but it is almost drowned out by the pure hoppiness of this beer. The hops are quite refreshing though, after a night of hopless beer sampling. This beer has lots of herbal hop notes to it, there is citrus character here as well, but it really is most evident in the finish once the malt sweetness is finally able to assert itself. I get notes of candied orange in the finish, this beer is almost abusively bitter, yet it is still quite appetizing. My only complaint, this beer could use a bit more malt complexity to stand up to the hop onslaught.

Serving type: on-tap

06-17-2005 22:58:06 | More by Gueuzedude

Gusler

Arizona

4.35/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Draught @ Papago
The beer as it sets in the glass a deep sanguineous color with a stupendous creamy light tan head that last for a week, well almost, the lace a thick and sticky sheet to obfuscate the glass. Nose is cotton candy like in sweetness, nice aroma of hops, clean and fresh to the senses, start is sweet, decent malt presence and the top middling in feel. Finish is strict in its acidity with the hops pleasantly spicy and the dry aftertaste lingers long on the palate.

Serving type: on-tap

11-01-2004 13:22:30 | More by Gusler

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

deeply hopped. Very nice bouquet of floral hops, lots of pine and citrus notes accentuating a typical amber back, nicely malted with large hints of grains. The flavor was so much hoppier then I had thought it would be. There was a huge citrus hop punch from the very first sip and a very nice resin like taste that followed you throughout the session leaving behind a great dry and bitter finish. Great use of the hops here as the typical amber will have more of the malty character, which was still evident in the underlying base here, however the big hop presence not only balanced it well, but pushed it over to the lighter side and gave it much more of a bright feel. Great smooth and light body with ample carbonation led this to be an easy session beer.

Serving type: growler

11-11-2011 02:42:15 | More by mikesgroove

bhalter8

Georgia

4.28/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Big thanks to PretzelCity who sent me a growler straight from the brewery. Enjoyed with a friend over the course of football game, but reviewed prior to kickoff... Pours pure ruby red with exceptional clarity and a perfect 2 finger off-white head. The head had excellent retention throughout the enjoyment of the beer. The smell is as enticing, if not more, than the appearance. A sweet malt backbone is supported by a fresh hops smell and accompanying citrus characteristics, specifically grapefruit. I love the blend of strong hop character with the classic sweet malt in a red ale. Taste follows suit, a more pronounced citrus hop flavor twinges the tongue, but does not overpower the caramel sweetness of the malt. It almost like having a grapefruit candy or something, the flavor is sweet, but the citrus tart adds a nice twist. A smooth, and light mouthfeel, supported by ample carbonation makes it an easy drinking beer. I really enjoyed this beer, and wish we had it on tap in these parts, as it has more to it than you average red ale, while not overdoing it and sacrificing drinkability.

Serving type: growler

10-20-2009 13:41:12 | More by bhalter8

mattcrill

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Aroma: High hop aroma with a moderate alcohol nose. Moderate fruity esters open up as the beer warms.

Appearance: Deep garnet pour with a thich and sudsy batter-like head.

Flavor: Biscuity malt and carmel flavors. Quickly followed by moderate citrus flavors and bready malt notes. A nice balance of floral hop notes and biscuity malt flavors but the balance is decidedly towards the hops. Finish is clean and dry.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with medium-high carbonation. No alcohol heat and no astringency noted.

Overall impression: A big, well balanced, hoppy West Coast Amber. Glad I had the opportunity to sample this great slant on the style.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2009 01:07:54 | More by mattcrill

maskednegator

California

4.15/5  rDev -2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Red, opaque. Thin, tan head, great lace.
Smell: Tangerines, pine needles.
Taste: Saltines, tangerines, caramel. A lot of black pepper and spice in the finish. Little bit of roastiness.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied
Drinkability: Extremely well balanced. Very easy drinker.
Verdict: A nice, hoppy red. A little sweeter and a little more citrusy than Arrogant Bastard. Very very tasty and a great value at $13/64 oz growler(~4.50 bomber).

Serving type: growler

03-20-2009 19:47:29 | More by maskednegator

brewandbbq

New Hampshire

4.03/5  rDev -5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours sparkling clear dark ruby. A bone, dense head of an inch-plus sank slowly, revealing goops of shredded lacework and a thick, rocky surface coating.

Aromatics lead off with fresh piney hops, tangerine, mangoe, and sugared grapefruit.
Lush and tropical with a kiss of malt.

Medium bodied with a creamy mouthfeel. Sticky and tacky.

Ripe fruit, smashed spruce boughs, grapefruit pith, and sweet malt start the palate. An almost drying yet quite firm bitterness follows through, along with a hint of embers and earthy bark.

Finishes with lingering biterness, fresh carmelized malt, and sap-drizzeled fruit.

Very tasty and uber-fresh. The roasted malts add some depth without adding too much sweetness, and theres a good dose of hops to boot.

Big ups to WeeheavySD for the freshie!

Serving type: growler

11-13-2008 00:30:10 | More by brewandbbq

Mnemosyne

California

4.72/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 5

I got a growler of this beer from AleSmith. What can I say? Yum? It's one of the best growlers that I have ever had.

Appearance- A reddish brown

Smell- It has a bit of a hoppy smell with some sweetness

Taste- A yummy red with some hop fun added in

Mouthfeel- It's sweet, so a tad sticky

Drinkability- There is little taste of alcohol. It has a yummy flavor, so quite drinkable.

Serving type: growler

10-05-2008 04:04:19 | More by Mnemosyne

SShelly

California

4.53/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Picked up two growlers of this at the Speedway Stout release.

Pours a dark rich red with big fluffy off-white head, hits you with a big burst of american hops backed up with sweet malty aroma behind it. Great hoppy burst in the mouth, though well balanced with a thick malty backbone. Highly drinkable, with a pleasant citrusy hops aftertaste. A great beer from alesmith. this one is quite different from past years, seems to be getting darker with higher ibu's as the years go by.

Serving type: growler

09-29-2008 21:30:00 | More by SShelly

PatronWizard

California

4.35/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Grabbed a growler at the BA Speedway release oh yeah. Cracked it Sunday night with a buddy who isn't exactly into craft beers. Had to do most of the damage by myself. Darn. Short review because it's from memory. And I remember I liked it!

Gorgeous ruby hued brew. Big frothy off white head. Nice.

Smelled the hops as soon as I opened the top. Promptly got excited.

Great taste. Don't have notes for this one and I just had it last night but don't remember the actual flavors. Except the yummy hops.

Overall: I would get this any time I see it. Tap, growler, bottle, gimme!

Serving type: growler

09-29-2008 19:01:30 | More by PatronWizard

srandycarter

California

4.13/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours deep dark clear amber, one inch off white head, some cascading action at initial pour around the sides.

S - Sweet deep malt and lots of pine.

T - Thick sweet malt, floral qualities and bittering at the end.

M - Medium to Heavier, good carbonation and coating. Nice roundness and balance to the overall experience.

D - Pleasant and not something to easily tire of.

Serving type: growler

09-27-2008 04:54:21 | More by srandycarter