AleSmith Speedway Stout - AleSmith Brewing Company

BeerBuilder

Minnesota

4.83/5  rDev +9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

After many opportunities I have finally had one which really stood out to be worthy of review #500

This one pours to a deep brown with a creamy light-brown head. It leaves a bit of lacing when sipped down. The aroma is heavenly; deep roasted malts and fresh black coffee. The flavor is very roasty, with expresso-like flavors throughout. It finishes with a roasted malt bitterness. It is silky and creamy in the mouthfeel....very easy drinking for its strength. Beer and coffee....the perfect combo!

I have to thank the person who has been most anticipating what #500 would be for sharing this with me...Thank you fantome.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2005 00:20:36 | More by BeerBuilder

IceAce

California

4.33/5  rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Black as a moonless night, with a nose of English Toffee and alcoholic esters, this brew lets you know before you even take a sip that it's the real deal.

Carbonation caresses the top of the tongue as the first of many layers of chocolate, roasted malt, and toffee pile upon themselves with layer after layer of flavor through the midtaste.The finish is extraordinarily dry, leaving the tongue glued to the roof of the mouth as the elevated alcohol warms the esophagus.

Forget the fod, pair this with a roaring fireand a classic movie instead.!

Serving type: on-tap

05-01-2005 07:10:00 | More by IceAce

Dukeofearl

California

4.65/5  rDev +5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Split a 750 ml bottle with a couple of friends.

Pours a dark, thick, oily (seriously, motor-oil like) into pint glasses, with a brown, and I mean BROWN head that is moderate in size, and quickly collapses to brown oil spill cap over the beer. There is no way to see through this beer- not with sunlight, flourescent, flashlight, or even cell-phone glow (he-he-he). A gorgeous stout that tells other stouts what they should look like.

Aroma is rich, powerful, and oh so good. I am a big coffee-espresso fan, and this brings out the bitter aromatics of a fine expresso, with a dark bitter chocolate overlay.

Flavor follows through from the aroma. If I didn't know better, I could convince myself I was drinking coffee, not beer (ok, not really, but you get the idea). And yes, there is a strong alcohol presence sitting behind it all.

Mouthfeel is also wonderful- rich and creamy and just lingers oh so well.

Where this beer really falls down for me (in terms of scoring, but only slightly so) is in drinkability. We split the 750, so that was 250 ml each. I think that's more than enough of this beer. It's incredible, and I love it, but it should be in small quantities to be best appreciated. Much like you don't get a huge mug of espresso, I don't want to drink this as anything more than a small nightcap at the end of a day.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2005 21:01:56 | More by Dukeofearl

cokes

Wisconsin

4.5/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Black, interwoven with purple tar, crowned with a scattered tan patchwork.
Fills the room with molasses draped espresso, garnered with toffee, vanilla beans, black cherries, seared cedar, bourbon, and walnuts.
Begin the beguine. Full-bore, acrid jittery espresso roast. The beans here are not so much full of simple char as layered nuance. Vanilla bean, roots, smoked chocolate, and burnt maple. This is the real deal, as far as coffee is concerned. Below is an imperial stout worth its salt, ripe with prunes, currants, molasses, liquorice, toffee, burnt malts, and an eventually swelling red grape vinousness. Booze enters through bourbon clues, all full of toasted oak, hazelnuts, and vanilla-cedar-caramel, and it almost presents as barrel aged even when it is not. Wafts of burn barrels full of newspaper precede a blackened grass-filled hop closure. Coffee lingers, full of ash, char, chocolate, and roast nuts.
It rests just shy of full bodied, with an oozing, sluggish carbonation.
For java nuts, this is euphoric; a coffee stout to the nth power. And, thus, vies with my girlfriend (and several previous versions of such) as the prettiest thing I'd ever hope to wake up with. On the opposite end of the day, it works just as well. Sultry, silky, and gratifying.

Big props to kmpitz2 for the bottle.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2005 08:57:20 | More by cokes

ppoitras

Massachusetts

4.68/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

750ml bottle obtained via trade with oggg. Thanks for the opportunity... Capped and foiled.

Poured into an imperial pint glass, formed a 1/2" of dark brown head over the totally dark brown/black brew. Head holds steady for most of the drinking experience, and exhibits excellent foamy lacing. Aroma is dark malts, coffee, and alcohol. Taste is creamy coffee with dark fruit tinges and the slightest alcohol notes. Funny, the booze is hidden over the tongue, because my chapped lips are stinging, and my throat is warm as all get out, so I know it's in there... For the style, mouthfeel and drinkability are great. Smoothness and not over the top alcohol presence (at least perceived), make this one a great one.

Serving type: bottle

02-28-2005 23:29:12 | More by ppoitras

wyllder

Massachusetts

5/5  rDev +12.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Excellent.

I haven't written a review in a while, but for this I'll make an exception.

Speedway pours the expected opaque deep chocolate brown, bordering on black. A caramel colored head forms but dissipates rather quick. As you go, it leaves quite a bit of sticky lacing on the sides of your glass.

The smell is top-notch. Notes of roasted chocolate, caramel, coffee and molasses are all here.

Taste is bliss. Smoothly comingled flavors of chocolate, roasted malts and coffee play out on the palate. Only slightly hoppy, with plenty of malt to smooth things out, this comes in somewhere between a Russian Imperial and an American Double stout: a really tasty place.

Mouthfeel is perfect. Smooth, not resinous or viscous but just thick enough to warn you of its potency. The alcohol is there, but never overwhelms as it provides a nice warming tone going down.

Drinkability. Send me more, much more. Keep it coming. Thank heaven I had two friends help me with the bottle or I might not have remembered much of the evening.

Having tried their IPA and Yulesmith previously, Speedway has put Alesmith firmly on the top of my favorite brewers list. A trip to San Diego is in order.

UPDATE: Had a second bottle of this about 6 months after the first. Every bit as good as the first. And, after some consideration, I've decided to get it over with and make it the first beer I 5-out. I love this stuff.

Wyllder-

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2005 17:07:39 | More by wyllder

merlin48

Kentucky

4.6/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Shared a bomber of this nice impy stout with mtnlover over the weekend. Pours a dark and opaque body, with a longlasting, one finger light brown head. Garnet fringes lurk around the edges of the glass and sheet lacing gives way to attractive patch lace as the contents are drained.
Aroma has cocoa, medium chocolate, and roasted coffee beans in the background.
Mouthfeel is robust and full bodied. Good carbonation and a zing of hops on the tongue.
Taste is nicely complex, with chalky cocoa, milk chocolate, and chewy roasted coffee beans for bitterness. Some alcohol warming is noted. Bitter, burnt roasted coffee notes at the finish.
Complex, and very well put together. Hard to believe this is 12% abv, as a pleasant warming sensation was the only clue. Definitely, a world class Imperial Stout here.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2005 11:03:00 | More by merlin48

mntlover

Tennessee

4.65/5  rDev +5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Pours a dark deep black have to hold to the light to get dark red highlights around the edges. Has a nice chocolate colored head that leaves some lace.
Aroma is lots of roasted flavors chocolate, coco, and moca coffee aromas mix with together for wonderful experience.
Taste is nice chocolate roasted malts nice and smooth coffee flavors come to the surface and mix with the roasted chocolate to add a touch of bitterness that is aided by some light herbal/floral hop mixture. It is nice change from the west coast variety this time. I was expecting big coffee flavors from this one after reading the label about the special coffee beans used but it was more smooth sweet chocolate first then some coffee flavors and light bitterness after. Very tastey. Some
Mouthfeel is big full smooth and dreamy very nice feel.
Drinkability is great 12% you have to be kidding me nothing more then a warming feeling is ever noticed a very fine Impy Stout, many thanks to merlin48 for sharing this one with me.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2005 21:37:05 | More by mntlover

Sixpoint

New York

4.3/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Special thanks to my friend Mike for bringing this bottle back fresh from San Diego. Thanks, Mike.

I was a little disappointed in the appearance for a lack of a good head. Of course, it is not necessary, nor is it expected for an Imperial Stout to have much of a head at all... and sometimes, people prefer their imperials without a head. It's just that mine had absolutely no head on it at all, and I usually like at least a trace of carbonation.

The aroma was nice. A pretty neutral aroma considering the strength of the beer, with no fusel alcohols or crazy esters from the yeast. The mark of a well-crafted imperial...

The taste... I was pretty damn impressed. A perfect balance, the perfect amount of black patent malt and roasted barley, and a nice accomplishment with the addition of coffee beans.

I gave a 5.0? I hardly ever give 5.0s, as they should be rare. But let's face it... this beer had one of the most interesting mouthfeels I've ever tasted. It was silky and smooth like an oatmeal stout, yet full-bodied like an imperial. And the coffee beans must have given it a subtle complexity my palate could understand but my writing cannot articulate.

I will definitely recommend this beer to any imperial lover.

Serving type: bottle

01-15-2005 22:06:03 | More by Sixpoint

shippos

New York

4.15/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Courtesy of my secret santa Gueuzedude, thanks santa for an awesome beer.

can't get any black that this with a nice small lacy frothed topped head. rich roasted chocolaty aroma bit of molassesy sugar and a bitter hoppy coffee aroma that blends nicely with the chocolate malt. taste lite freshly ground coffee with an upfront roasted chocolate taste. body seems a little weak and a bit thin for a stout of this caliber. coffee seems to thin out the body and finishes with a dry fresh brewed coffee mixed with a bit of alcohol.
I you can get it don't pass it up, fantastic.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2005 17:11:39 | More by shippos

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

4.22/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A coffee brewed with beer and some spices and nicely carbonated. Thick and medium mouthfeel. Strong overwhelming coffee taste more than anything. Caffeine and alcohol kick certainly puts one on a rush. Bitter acidic finish. I've had more enjoyable of the style, see Yukon's version. Thanks XLPerro for bringing in from San Diego.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2004 23:35:24 | More by northyorksammy

BrewMaster

California

4.78/5  rDev +7.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance: Poured from a 750 ml bottle. It pours a very very dark brown color with a brown head. No light comes through this beer. The head has great retention down to the last sip.

Smell: Very potent aroma that I can smell before my nose even gets close to the glass. It is very roasty with clean dark chocolate and coffee aromas. A bit of caramel sweetness too.

Taste: The flavor is all coffee with rich, thick, choclately sweetness. A bit of soy sauce flavor jumps in as well. A bit of hop bitterness lingers in the flavor but the coffee/chocolate is so strong it is hard to distinguish much else.

Mouthfeel: This beer is thick and full bodied coating the mouth well but not leaving any unpleasant stickiness. Very clean and satisfying on the palate.

Drinkability: I am very glad that this beer is so readily available in my area. It is magnificent and I will be drinking much more of it.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2004 00:28:50 | More by BrewMaster

CRJMellor

Arkansas

4.7/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours thick, viscous midnight black with a dark tan head and spider-webbed lace on the Imperial Pint glass.
Aromas of creamy chocolate, hint of roasted malt and a good shot of fresh roasted coffee beans.
Flavor is thick, milk chocolate, rich but deeply bitter roated coffee and more sublt notes of roasted peanuts and drak bread. As beer warmed got some faint hints of dark citrus fruits.
Mouthfeel is amazingly lush and palate-coating from start to finish. Rich, powerful chocolate malts cut by robust but well moderated bitterness.
Drinkability is very high. Near perfection for a stout. Thickness and fullness might make it tough for some but great too style and simply enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2004 18:24:48 | More by CRJMellor

Bierguy5

Ohio

4.15/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

750 ml green bottle. Pours a dark, deep black with absolutely no highlights. No light can get through. Thick tan creamy head, which stayed for a while, and turned into a thin wispy ring. Not much lace on the sides of the glass. Strong roast smell, combined with alcohol. The taste is a strong roast, almost burnt, combined with a rich coffee aftertaste. Some bitterness, mainly due to the strong roast flavors. Full body, with very low carbonation. The alcohol is noticable, as this beer warms you up quickly. Overall, a fantastic stout. I am not sure that it was worth the $13 we get charged currently here in Ohio, but certainly worth trying once.

Serving type: bottle

11-11-2004 02:39:04 | More by Bierguy5

SheepNutz

Kentucky

4.7/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

750mL bottle poured into a snifter. It pours a midnight black color with one finger of dark tan head. There is almost no lacing. The smell has lots of roasted malts and coffee. A really full smell that just peps ya right up. The taste has lots of burnt malt and coffee, but it's fairly mellow and not overpowering. Everything comes together nicely. The body is very thick, yet smooth as silk. The drinkability is deadly for a 12% brew. Awesome stuff, thanks Kev!

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2004 18:20:46 | More by SheepNutz

Ellbert

Ohio

4.68/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance: A deep black color with a couple finger tan head that fades into a nice layer on top of the beer that stays throughout the entire bottle. There is some nice spiderweb lacing that adds to the appearance.

Smell: Alcohol and sweet black raspberries hit the nose. Aroma is very sweet with a little bitter hops coming across.

Tatste: Roasted coffee and alcohol are very present in the flavor. Sweet berries and raisins are in the aftertaste. Very complex with many flavors that meld together nicely.

Mouthfeel: Prefect mouthfeel for an imperial stout. Rich and creamy with just the right amount of carbonation.

Drinkability: This is unbelieavably drinkable. I finished the entire 750 ml bottle by myself. Whoa, maybe I shouldn't have done that.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2004 17:13:29 | More by Ellbert

clvand0

Kentucky

4.8/5  rDev +8.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Been waiting to try this for some time now. Expensive at $13/bottle, but worth it. Pours a very dark color with a moderate and dark head that doesn't hang around long and leaves nice lacing on the glass. The aroma is very strong coffee and dark maltiness, with some chocolate and alcohol as well. Nice aroma. The flavor was very strong with coffee and has some nice silky chocolate with the maltiness. Excessively smooth for the high alcohol. Expresso. Creamy.

Serving type: bottle

10-25-2004 14:09:34 | More by clvand0

kmpitz2

Tennessee

4.68/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

This pours a jet black, with a weak tan head. the nose is mostly coffee and roasted malts. The flavor starts chocolate, but quickly goes to a really nice bitter coffee flavor. I do love this beer. The feel is nicely thick and a bit creamy. This beer is way too drinkable for 12%ABV. What a great beer.

Serving type: bottle

10-24-2004 20:40:27 | More by kmpitz2

Padron4KM

Arizona

4.63/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

notes from 5/30/04
Bottle served at 55 degrees.
This stuff is dark! I held a flashlight up to the glass and no light penetrated.
Medium sized dark brown head that disipates quickly and leaves behind a patchy, chunky lace.
Aroma was rubbing alcohol and coffee. maybe a little prune juice in there.
Flavor is milk chocholate, coffee and dark fruit with a sweet caramel finish.

Surprisingly soft and smooth for a beer so high in ABV. kind of went down like a kahlua and cream. or a chocholate milk with chocholate syrup, heavy cream, coffee and a shot of everclear.
This was a great beer.
I am buying a bottle tomorrow to put in the wine chiller/beer cellar. This is definitely the Padron Anniversario Maduro of beers.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2004 07:18:15 | More by Padron4KM

rastaman

United Kingdom (England)

4.5/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle, thanks to mat. This was a great relief, i’ve often been dissapointed with a lot of top 50 beers, but this just kicked arse. Full mouthfeel, mocha, chocolate. Sweet at first, but balanced by a rich roasted bitterness. Rich, with plenty of guts, but really balanced where it needs to be, top notch.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2004 12:27:25 | More by rastaman

mattcrill

Ohio

4.9/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Presentation: 750 mL green champagne bottle capped and with black foil around the top. The label states that this beer that I'm about to enjoy is an "Imperial Stout brewed with Ryan Brothers Coffee Beans". I am tingling at the thought of an imperial stout brewed with coffee. Hail to the beer geniuses that make craft brew and add coffee to it!

Appearance: Pours black hole black, thick, and viscous with a chunky tan head. I figured with the high ABV that I wouldn't have the pleasure of seeing a perfectly capped beer with a foamy head. However, I was pleasantly suprised. It didn't last too long but it was long enough for me to pick up the beautiful and subtle aromas that were wofting out of my snifter glass.

Smell: Raisins, dark chocolate, dried cherries, and a touch of smoke. Definitely not overdone. Perfectly balanced leading to the anticipation of tasting this beautiful looking beer.

Taste: Espresso, dark chocolate with an alcohol backbone. Even though I can taste the alcohol, it's not overdone, it doesn't wear you done and it only adds to the complexity and myth of this fantastic beer. I get a nice coffee-bitter aftertaste. This is absolute perfection in a glass. All tastes balance out. This is what all Double Stouts should aspire to be.

Mouthfeel: Creamy, thick, lip-numbing goodness. This is definitely a sipping beer. It has a HUGE body and enough character to have it's own TV drama.

Drinkability and overall: I am humbled. This is my all-time favorite Double Stout. Just because it says "Speedway" on the label, do not hurry with this beer. There is nothing that should be rushed with drinking this fantastic creation. Sit back, sip away, and let the goodness of this beer permeate your entire existence. I saved this one for my 100th review and it was surely a treat. Find. Drink. Be Merry. I only hope that Alesmith will stick around Ohio longer than they are predicting.

Serving type: bottle

09-18-2004 14:03:03 | More by mattcrill

bigbeerdrinka

Germany

4.3/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Pours a deep viscous black color with a slight ruby and dark brown hue. The slightest of slight heads appears from this brew only about a millimeter high at best. There is only a tiny lacing on the glass to be seen. Aromas are of dark roasted malts, some hints of coffee, a bit of cocoa and some alcohol. For flavor this beer is initially quite roasty, with a nice coffeescque flavor to it. Following some nice tones of chocolate come about along with yet more roasty flavors, and a nice sweetness to boot. This beer finishes strong and warm with a nice alcohol kick and yet more dark malty chocolate flavor. The finish is nicely bitter, with more coffee and just a snap of carbonation to leave this beer with a nice crisp finish. Overall the body to this beer is truly thick and chewy, with a nice smooth complex flavor to it. The alcohol is only noticeable at the end and gives this beer a nice kick. Great flavor and pretty easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2004 00:39:28 | More by bigbeerdrinka

MrNuggets

Oregon

4.65/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Black body with a small brown head. Powerful aroma of coffee, alcohol with a hint of underlying sweetness. Taste was unexpected. Heavy dark fruit blended very well with the coffee flavor. I was looking to be over powered by coffee, this was not the case at all. Coco finish with that alcohol warmth you need in an imperial stout.

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2004 20:13:14 | More by MrNuggets

ngandhi

Illinois

4.63/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Coffee, but not in any way ovepowering. Rich with cocoa and an ethereal, high-end carbernet mouthfeel. Tons of coffee, yes, but never overpowering. Fresh hop character is subtle and serves to lend structure without ever compromising the enormous malt and java character in this brew. An imperial stout before a coffee stout that is entirely impressively and archetypal of the style -- not of coffee/chocolate/nut whatever that means, but of stouts in general.

Drink now.

Relax, relax.
ng

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2004 04:17:03 | More by ngandhi

egajdzis

Pennsylvania

4.58/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

2003: Poured an opaque black color with a nice tan head and lacing as well. Rather mild chocolate, but a HUGE coffee aroma. Dark fruits were also noticed in the aroma. Taste of roasted malt, chewy hops, lots of coffee and some alcohol. Full mouthfeel, but I feel this might be a little young.

Serving type: bottle

06-13-2004 20:50:19 | More by egajdzis