YuleSmith (Summer) - AleSmith Brewing Company

blakesell

Ohio

3.8/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

this is the winter, red and blue release. I think from 2007, maybe 2006, aged in cellar conditions, poured from the 22oz bottle into a Belgian goblet.

Appearance- Beer doesn't pour all that red really. But it is a gusher just like it's summer partner. It's reddish orange with a thick cloudyness that I would say looks more like a wheat beer than an imperial red. It looks as if milk was added it's so cloudy and creamy. The head rises fully to about two fingers, then dies down to a lovely murk across the top. Lacing clings well to the sides.

Smell- Sweet river water with pine and floral hops. Usually I would bash river water, but with these hop additions pairing with the munich and base malts I'm catching here, it really comes together well. A lot of citrus as well on the nose with a grapefruit and blood orange zest. Imperial red? Seems more like an Imperial IPA to me, but we'll see.

Taste- Creamy, yet a husky grainyness comes through firstly, then the wave upon wave of hops that I suppose is more expected from the Alesmith brand. The sweetness and tongue numbing really screams Imperial IPA over here to me than Imperial Red, but I have to give this a passing grade as a beer overall because the flavor is great. Warming alcohol drifts through the beer and I really don't believe this 8.8% claim.

Mouthfeel- Slightly sticky, husky, not quite cloying with bitterness, warming, full bodied, and medium in carbonation.

Drinkability- I like it. I would revisit this one above the summer any day. This along with a revisit to Speedway Stout has revitalized my diminished faith in Alesmith.

Serving type: can

03-31-2009 23:29:52 | More by blakesell

Lepley

Pennsylvania

4.35/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I have already reviewed the Summer YuleSmith IPA under the bottle classification, but this is a different style so I selected the "can" category though this was from a 22oz. bomber.

2008 YuleSmith Winter Ale, Imperial Red Ale

A: Pours deep ruby red with a little less than a finger of lacing and good lacing. I poured slowly this time to leave the sediment in the bottle.
S: Sweet, hops, fruity almost like peach.
T: Light malty sweetness, hints of light fruits (another reviewer mentioned pomegranate, I would agree), citrus, smokey, good hoppiness and bitter aftertaste.
M: Smooth with just a slight tingle from carbonation.
D: Excellent red ale. I've only come across a few of AleSmith's brews but they never fail to wow me, they're one of the best out there.

Serving type: can

12-24-2008 04:23:59 | More by Lepley

EgadBananas

Louisiana

4.03/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Pours clear and sunny, with a bright white head dissipating to a foamy cap. Plenty lacing on the one. Big citrus and pine notes, indicative of a great west coast ipa. It's back by plenty pale malt sweetness and bready notes. Medium bitterness, with more of a citrusy finish, sweet malts, pine and resins, all pretty well balanced. Some hints of alcohol. It's full body, slighty rich and oily, creamy with good carbonation still.

Props to LSUPT!

Serving type: bottle

06-12-2013 00:29:51 | More by EgadBananas

KidsDoc

California

4/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75

32 oz "grumbler" gifted to me from my good buddy Greg after the birth of my son. I only had a single pint pour this sitting.

Appearance was a soft orange and completely clear with minimal white head and lacing.

Aroma was intensely resinous and herbal, pine with a very faint apple and citrus (orange/tangerine) scent sneaking in every once in a while. Mostly this was all earthy.

Taste was similar with huge hops. Predominant pine and grass/floral hop. A spicy herbal comination mixed well. Only true citrus I could get was some peach sweetness. Alcohol was a non-factor - didn't notice at all.

Mouthfeel was fairly light to medium body. The start was a slick, OILY light feel that then bit hard with a bittering dryness that sucked any remaining moisture out of your mouth for you to start clean with the next sip.

Overall: not at all the stereotypical west coast DIPA. This is a resinous, floral hop lover's beer. The hops were quite intense. A sipping, puckering beer that had a lot of surprising characteristics.

Serving type: growler

06-11-2013 03:55:04 | More by KidsDoc

KevT

California

4.44/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I had this beer on-tap at Original Gravity in San Jose California. $8 for a 12 oz pour served in a tulip glass. Beer appears a clear, darkish yellow color with a well-formed head and nice streaming carbonation bubbles. Nose is mostly pine and grapefruit. Very pronounced hop flavor with a decent malt backbone tying it al together. They should make this a year round offering!

Serving type: on-tap

06-11-2013 02:55:45 | More by KevT

wethorseblanket

California

4.25/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bomber - new batch.

A: Pours clear golden yellow with a one-inch white head which leaves rings and spots.

N: Grapefruit, orange, tangerine, some tropical fruits. Very floral with some dankness and faint sweet malts.

T: Citrus and pine with mild bready malts for a good balance.

M: Medium body and carbonation. Sticky, dry, and bitter finish. Lingering pine resins.

O: Pretty classic and enjoyable. Best fresh.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2013 01:51:39 | More by wethorseblanket

sukwonee

Washington

4.41/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Surprised to find this bottle today at a local shop. Quite pricey though at $9 for 22oz.
Bottled date 5/21/2013 - consumed on 6/4/2013. Super fresh!

A: Clear yellow body with 2 finger white head. Great retention. It looks quite refreshing. I love IPAs with lighter color body like this.

S: Grass, orange zest, citrus, sweet malt. It's quite awesome. The moment you open the bottle aroma bursts out and fills up the room.

T: Grassy, piney, spicy, citrus, some sweet malt in the middle. Quite nice but not as nice as it smells. I cannot tell this beer is 8.5 ABV at all. Quite refreshing - although I wouldn't say it's easy drinking. Bitterness throughout but definitely kicks in towards the end.

M: Tad bit on the light side for a DIPA and decent amount of carbonation.

O: Very very good DIPA. Very west coast. I prefer Enjoy by IPA by Stone but it's quite comparable in terms of the style except that this one is spicier and slightly less fruity.

Serving type: bottle

06-05-2013 03:49:08 | More by sukwonee

evanforbeer

California

4.35/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bottle date 5/21/13 (SCORE)
Pours a crystal clean strawy strawberry blonde

Smell- dank fruit, tangerines and oranges, hop zest

Taste- hop bitterness with fruit up front- orange, and sweet tangerine/tangelo, touch of pineapple, some floral notes, a touch of mango, bitter grapefruit with some Earthy and spicy hop zest. Finishes dry with some pine, earthy hop resin, and tangerine

Feel- fairly light on the palate, juicy and dry and way drinkable

Another fine DIPA from San Diego County (maybe one of the best), has a similar distinct dry characteristic (hay note) that Alesmith IPA has, which is really nice.

Serving type: bottle

05-24-2013 22:31:03 | More by evanforbeer

bambam2517

Arizona

4.18/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

From the bomber to the pint, served cold at 40F. Scored a bottle thats been on the shelf for 8months, so bearing that in mind...

A - Caught me off-guard, its very cloudy with a strong off-white froth. Straw-gold in color. The froth ring stays around and really leaves nice lacing all the way down the glass. arbonation is tight and lasting too, thought this would blow up during the pour, but it came out nicely. Looks more like a top-notch Belgian quad than a IIPA to me.

S - Sweet breads, warm spices, something fruity I can't think of a way to describe. Really complementary to the taste and very unique.

T - Malty and grassy at the same time. Some hop character on the back end but the malt is the star for sure. Taste that fruit ester as well, maybe its mango-like? Still cant quite place it.

M - Great. It has 3 distinct characters to me. Its initially very creamy, then settles down and really lets the flavors shine, and lastly quickly dissipates leaving almost no aftertaste. Alcohol presence is well-hidden, just warms the face and belly as I go through the bottle.

O - This is my first AleSmith offering and it holds up to everything I've heard. I really enjoyed this one, really unique.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2013 20:07:19 | More by bambam2517

Phelps

Arizona

3.85/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottle into a tulip.

Pale almond orange with perfect clarity. The one inch head of pure white froth settles atop the beer soft as goose down and leaves thick, feathery trails on the glass as it recedes.

Bright. A smash of citrusy tangerine and grass before a potent smack of sugar and caramel. A touch of biscuit. Alcohol.

Grassier in the flavor, and more tropical. A little mango, lots of grass and orange pith, a touch of dank weed. Sweet and more malty up front; the swallow delivers the big pithy bitterness and a snap-clean finish. It clears the nostrils. A touch of biscuits. Alcohol flavor is evident but not unappealing.

High, near painful carbonation. Light body, mild fizz. Super bitter. Alcohol heat is like heartburn. This is an attack on the tongue. Spears of bitterness, tongue numbing booze.

A bitter, biting version of a double IPA. Very West Coast.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2012 21:12:41 | More by Phelps

jrenihan

Ontario (Canada)

4.23/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Beer is hazy golden in colour with a good-sized white head. Dissipates quickly. Good lacing.

Scent is a nice mix of toasty, bready malt and grassy, floral, citrusy hops. Hops are the focus but the malt is present and good. Very nice.

Flavour is similar to the nose- hop focused but not without a malt presence. Pine, grass and citrus (orange) flavours are all present. Bready, caramel malt providing backbone.

Full bodied, moderate to high carbonation. A bit oily.

Overall, very good. I was quite impressed.

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 20:00:36 | More by jrenihan

dgilks

Australia

4.05/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Very slightly hazy golden colour with a creamy and thick off-white head. Nice lacing. Good head retention.

Non-sweet malty aroma with a line of citrussy hop running through it. Simple but effective.

Slightly sweet malt with a moderately-high bitter edge on the back end. Lots of cohumulone. Some earthy, citrussy hops. Good.

Medium body with moderate carbonation. Good.

A solid IIPA. Lots of hoppy flavour and an appropriate malt backbone.

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 07:45:21 | More by dgilks

pkalix

California

4.03/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

beautiful color for a beer. neat little head. 'wet' lacing down the sides and 'spotty'. a bit hazy.
smell: pure hops
taste: pure hops; some malt in there also. i'm beginning a journey here in IPAs, slowly.... never liked hoppy brew, but since a co-worker brought a bag of hops in to work and it smelled amazingly similar to something else i USED to enjoy in a previous life . . . but still prefer the malty-er versions. very bitter. i remember 'bitter' was what miller lite tasted like when i was a kid secretly sipping it from my dad's can. today i wonder what my taste buds would have delivered if i had actually tasted THIS.... i might never have tried another beer in my life.
mouthfeel is full and bitter.
overall.... geez, i guess i can rest assured knowing the other BA'ers gave it such high scores and that at least i am trying a sample of something superior. i am still finding hoppy beers to be a bit like licking a baseball bat (you know, the pine tar?) and i dont much prefer the bitter hops to the sweet doppels, but i can appreciate this and compared to the other 'hoppy' brews i've sampled, i can drink this and taste the stuff inside. i wouldnt drink more than two of these together, but i appreciate what i have just experienced.

Serving type: bottle

09-30-2012 01:19:27 | More by pkalix

Oakenator

Pennsylvania

4.48/5  rDev +5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance is golden yellow and could be a bit concerning if not for the ample head with finer carbonation. Nice speckled lacing is left on the glass. The aroma is a piney hop - bold. Mouthfeel is excellent from front to back with different spices along the way - bitter pine up front but changing to a tingly sweetness on the back end.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2012 23:21:11 | More by Oakenator

macrosmatic

Florida

4/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Thanks to millerbuffoon for this one! Reviewed from notes. Poured from bomber into CCB pint glass.

A: Pours a pale gold that is quite hazy. Forms a one-finger white head that fades fairly quickly to a ring of foam, with mild visible carbonation.

S: Grassy, spicy, melon and tropical fruit hops, but not overly sweet. A bit of cracker malt sweetness.

T: Follows the nose at first, especially melon, dank, and tropical fruit hops, and just a touch of malt sweetness. But then there's a harsh, alcohol flavor before the swallow. Hop bitterness and alcohol in the hang. The alcohol heat does seem to fade a little as the beer warms, or perhaps as my palate adjusts to it.

M: Medium body, good amount of carbonation. The alcohol flavor at the end is mouth-puckering.

O: Overall, this is pretty good, but that flavor at the end really took it down a few notches. I don't know that i'd actively seek it out again.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2012 23:05:45 | More by macrosmatic

zeff80

Missouri

4.3/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Poured out a clear, golden-orange color with a one-finger, white head of foam. It left sudsy patches of lace on the glass.

S - It smelled of pine, citrus, and bubblegum. A toasty aroma in the background, too.

T - It tasted of strong pine flavors with spicy bitterness. Good toasty malt backbone with sweet caramel.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A medium bodied ale with a dry, clean finish.

O - This is a very tasty double IPA. I'm glad I finally got to try one.

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2012 00:57:33 | More by zeff80

vfgccp

New York

4.23/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Gold body with light sediment. Stellar foamy white head with sheets of lace and great retention.

S - Nice soft hop-forward nose. Big floral notes, honey, bready malt, orange rind.

T - Bitter up front. Plant stems, marmalade, resiny bitters, flour, honey, and white bread. Lingering bitterness clings to your palate.

M - Full for the style. Ok carbonation.

O - Big alpha oil bitterness and relatively dry; an uncommon combination in a DIPA.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2012 22:21:44 | More by vfgccp

Brad007

Vermont

3.73/5  rDev -12.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

First ever AleSmith release that I've reviewed. I also have a bottle of Speedway Stout in my fridge.

Pours a light yellowish gold with a huge head and lots of lacing around the rim of the glass.

There's a good dose of citrus on the nose with nary a hint of the malt backbone.

Ditto for flavor. Lots of citrus and unfortunately, lots of alcohol burn with it. It's not too boozy but the alcohol does take away from the hops themselves.

Lingering bready malt and citrusy hops. I can dig the mouthfeel as the alcohol quickly fades, leaving the flavor I was seeking.

Worth a try. I would probably age it at least 1-2 months top to mellow the alcohol some more.

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2012 00:04:42 | More by Brad007

VaTechHopHead

California

3.98/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Light orange in color with a light lacing head.

S - A nice floral and citrus aroma overwhelms the senses and a rich light caramel malt backbone pulls the beer together. Not very dynamic but very aromatic.

T - Similar to the aroma except a 3rd dimension of an Earth sap flavor is added to the flowery and citric aromatics. It is not very tonal from start to finish and the flavor doesn't shift but is tasty. Hops taste fresh and not too aggressive.

M/O - Medium body with a slight syrup-like texture. Nicely carbonated and lightly chewy. Finishes semi-dry and sticky but not a hop bomb by any means. A great beer from AleSmith (most beers are) but for the same, if not lower price, I'll stick with the regular IPA.

Serving type: bottle

08-24-2012 03:50:28 | More by VaTechHopHead

IronLover

Pennsylvania

4.38/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Golden orange in color and hazy. Poured with a thick, bright, white foam that slowly reduced to a soapy cap that leaves random sticky lacings on the glass. Lightly pungent citrus orange and ripe pineapple aroma with hints of sweet malt and alcohol. Lighter bodied feel that’s boosted by assertive, foamy carbonation that tends to rush the flavors through a bit. This is like biting into a juicy orange slice that’s been dipped in pineapple juice. Citrus hop flavors ride atop a malty backbone from beginning to end. The middle has a a tangy bite and the finish is semi dry and fairly clean with a lingering citrus and pine hop bitter aftertaste.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2012 02:07:42 | More by IronLover

zac16125

South Carolina

4.28/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

22oz bottle poured into a tulip
no born on date, but 2012 summer bottle (usually released around the 4th of July but I believe this batch was a little early so this bottle is probably about 6 weeks old)

A big thanks to Redbeeron for sending over a pair of these in a trade.

A: Pours a clear dark straw yellow with a huge 2.5 fingers width of bright snow white colored head, which takes forever to dissipate down to a drinkable level.  Sheets of lacing coat the glass all the way down.  A touch light in color, otherwise it would have been a perfect 5.  

S: Ton of sweet, juicy citrus hops including massive pineapple aroma along with mango and tangerine.  There is also a significant dank, resinous hop aroma, some malt sweetness, the faintest hint of booze, and a grassy/herbacious character.   Awesome.

T: Tons of hop spice on the tongue, which I didn't get much of on the nose.  A solid, sweet malt backbone.  Citrus, but in the taste the citrus character is  more lemon and grapefruit, and unfortunately the juicy pineapple notes dont come out.  Lots of piney bitter characteristics do though, and this remains very tasty even with the citrus profile that falls short of the nose.  

M/D: Pretty heavily carbonated, which when mixed with the bitterness, give it a biting quality.  Medium bodied with a big, quick drying finish.  ABV is exceptionally masked, and drinkability it great.  This one doesn't have to be a sipper, in fact, you have to make a conscious effort to slow down.  Drinks much lighter than its ABV.  

O:  Overall, a fine DIPA indeed!  A DIPA that drinks like a (great) single IPA.  This is one of those beers that would certainly make my regular rotation if it were available locally and year round.  Needless to say, Im glad I got to try it, and I highly recommend.  This is only my 3rd Alesmith offering (Speedway Stout and regular IPA being the other two), but all 3 were home runs.  Id like to try a fresh one of these side by side with the fresh standard Alesmith IPA.  From what I remember I think I like the regular IPA better, but its close.  Great beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-13-2012 00:44:23 | More by zac16125

Momar42

Maryland

4.25/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22oz bottle into Duvel tulip

A - pours a hazy deep yellow, dense fluffy head of white tight bubbles. Dissipates slowly with decent lacing.

S - a deep, malty sweet resinous pine aroma. Actually SMELLS chewy hehe.

T - piney, resinous, spicy. Very UNwest-coast which is interesting. Booze is pronounced but not overpowering. Almost a nutty aftertaste that accompanies the bitterness from the hops. The AleSmith yeast is present as well. Complex and interesting.

M - medium. the yeast and chewiness stick with you but are not a bad thing. Aftertaste is there for sure but not unwelcome either.

O - Not your typical west-coast DIPA at all. The AleSmith yeast is in full effect here and it does itself well because of it. Sweetness is subdued and hops are a nice balance. I honestly dont think I would have liked this as much if I had been expecting it...hard to explain. This is far greater than the sum of its parts. I really enjoyed drinking this offering and have yet to be let down by AleSmith. Wish they were easier to find.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2012 03:36:42 | More by Momar42

LiquidAmber

Washington

4.3/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Review from 10/2010 notes. Poured into a Nostradamus flute glass. Pours a medium orange amber with a huge, long lasting white head and nice carbonation. Hoppy citrus aroma. Flavor is aromatic hops and citrus balanced by a nice malt base and interesting fruit backbone not often notable in big IPAs. I like this quite a bit. Nice job

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2012 19:39:01 | More by LiquidAmber

Viciousknishs

Virginia

4.28/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A- pours an orange amber color with a finger and a half of white head. Solid head retention with lacing.

S- rich hops on the nose with orange and floral notes. Hop oils and and leafy fresh hop characteristics in the middle with a subtle biscuity malt bringing another dimension and balance to the beer.

T- citrusy hop flavor with orange and grapefruit peel hit the palate at first. Spicy white pepper notes with a resiny hop oil hit mid palate with a continued aggressive hop bitterness. Subtle biscuity malt for a touch of balance on the finish with a lingering floral hop flavor in the aftertaste.

MF- slick resiny mouthfeel with a medium body. Average carbonation.

D- great drinkability

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2012 01:30:28 | More by Viciousknishs

Greywulfken

New York

4.5/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: deep gold; fat head settles into a filmy lid with laces draped along the glass' interior

S: pine, lemony citrus, bitter hops, bright yeasts

T: follows nose: pine and citrus up front, buttery, bitter

M: fat and bold, bitter and rich, but with a sharp, crisp finish

O: bias alert! I love DIPAs and AleSmith - thought this was a great beer - great tasting and finishing. Absolutely give it a try.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2012 21:35:33 | More by Greywulfken