The Drunken Polack

Alesmith Speedway Stout by itself is an excellent brew.  Once in a awhile Alesmith decides to age some of their wonderful nectar in barrels.  I’ve heard of this mythical creature known as Barrel Aged Speedway Stout but I never thought I’d get to try it.  I know it’s rarely released and it’s usually in bottles.  I believe the bottles are usually released at around the 250? or 500? mark. Once gone, it’s gone for a while.  So when I saw on BA that Alesmith had released it on tap at their brewery and it was available I quickly put up a post and begged for someone to trade with me.  I would of given up my damn car to get a growler of this stuff (OK not really but you get the point) I got one response and the gentlemen was nice enough to send me the growler and he didn’t want the car in return =)  So for 3 nights last week I enjoyed two glasses of what I like to call liquid heaven.  BA Speedway is easily of the top beers I have ever had.  Maybe in my top 5 or maybe in my top 3.

BA Speedway pours well you guessed it, pitch black.  Not much head is formed.  Small lacing of tan head around the glass.  Now with a lot of barrel aged brews, you’re punched in the nose with whatever barrel the brew was aged in.  In this case it’s bourbon but you’re not really punched in the face by it here.  It’s definitely there but I feel like this might be the best mixture and balance I have ever seen in a barrel aged brew.  The bourbon didn’t have to fight with the amazing espresso, dark chocolate, vanilla, and molasses.  This is a complex brew but like I said this is the most balanced version of a barrel aged beer I have ever smelled.

Taste is just like the smell.  The bourbon might of been a little more active here but it’s still balanced pretty much perfectly.  The dark chocolate lingers on the palette but then the slighty burnt espresso comes in and washes it away.  The brew ends with vanilla, brown sugar, and some dark fruit.  I just can’t explain how damn nice this beer is.  If I had to drink one beer for the rest of my life this might just be it.

The mouthfeel is medium bodied, oily, and sticks on the lips.  Low carbonation, smooth, and creamy.

This beer is pure heaven and like I said might be in my top 3.  Heck it might be #1 at the moment.  That’s just really hard to say though with all the great stuff out there.  But bottom line is if you see this stuff on tap, Run! don’t walk, have a few glasses and enjoy the greatness.  I think I’m going to pull out a bottle of the regular stuff tonight.

Found: Via a beer trade but straight from Alesmith themselves
Price: I hear it was about 36 dollars a growler.
Website: http://www.alesmith.com
What the company says: Nothing about this exact beer on their site
ABV%: 12.00%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Alesmith Horny Devil, Alesmith Old Numbskull
Other beers to try within the same style: The Lost Abbey Serpent’s Stout, The Bruery Black Tuesday
Rating: A++ (If I can go any higher I would of)

When I first dove into the world of craft beers I remember going to Beer Advocates top 100 beers and taking a look around.  I came upon Speedway Stout.  I had never heard of Alesmith and since I didn’t have access to West Coast beer I thought I would never get to try this stuff.  I just remember going through all the reviews.  Every single review was positive and the beer sounded great.  I just said to myself one day Dave one day.  Well thanks to South Bay I was able to try one of my first beer crushes.  OK I know that sounds stupid but for some reason I just remember this was the first stout I ever wanted to try.  Was it worth the wait?  Answer is yes sir!!  While it might not be my favorite stout of all time (that award belongs to Surly Darkness) it is truly a world class stout and deserves to be on that list of BAs Top 100.

Speedway pours pitch black with a huge creamy tan head.  The smell is fantastic.  Up front the coffee hits your nose big time.  It’s lovely.  I heard something that they changed the beans in this stout?  I believe they went with locally grown coffee beans?  If anyone has that info please leave a comment.  What follows next is a nice amount of bitter chocolate with a small amount of alcohol.  But the coffee dominates.

For the taste, once again the coffee is king.  The next layer of taste is the bitter chocolate.   Then I noticed something I didn’t get in the smell.  The taste of a dark fruit, maybe prunes. Some reviews I saw said they tasted cherries.  I didn’t get that at all in this bottle.  I’d love to try another one just to see =)  To top it off there is a nice sweet malt flavor with the small kick of alcohol.  Mouthfeel is stuck between medium and full bodied.  It’s creamy and just smooth as silk.  This beer is just dangerous.  It sits at 12% abv.  But you don’t notice it one bit.

If you see this one pick it up.  Warning though.  I was talking to someone the other day and they said that a little while back Alesmith was recalling a batch of Speedway.  Something was wrong with it.  Just make sure you check that out.  Bottom line is this beer has moved into my top 5 all time stouts.  It’s tasty and dangerous.  It will leaving you wanting more but run you over with it’s high abv.

Found: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, San Diego
Price: I believe it was around 10-12 dollars
Website: http://www.alesmith.com/
What the company says: A HUGE Imperial Stt that weighs in at an impressive 12% ABV! As if that’s not enough, we added pounds of coffee for a little extra kick. Our special-edition Brewer’s Reserve Speedway Stout, which is aged in Bourbon barrels, has been rated the #1 BEST BEER IN THE WORLD at ratebeer.com. It was also featured on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” in a segment on the best dark beers in America.
ABV%: 12.00%
Other beers to try from this brewery: Alesmith IPA, Alesmith Old Numbskull
Other beers to try within the same style: Founders Breakfast Stout, Dogfish Head World Wide Stout
Rating: A

I bought this brew awhile ago from South Bay Drugs and like a lot of beer I buy, I let it sit.  I let the poor bottle sit in the fridge for a few months.  I know I’m a horrible person.  But I’m glad to report that this beer still tasted as fresh as it was a few months ago (at least I believe it did =) 

This is the first collaboration brew for Stone.  It was brewed at their brewery with guest brewers from Mikkeller and Alesmith.  They decided to give a Belgian Style Tripel a shot and they succeeded beautifully if you ask me.  This doesn’t reach the heights that Westmalle does with their Tripel (what does anyway?) but I still really enjoyed this brew.  I wanted another after my one 12 oz bottle was gone.  Sorry Dave but this was brewed once.  Sigh!

This beer poured a cloudy light orange color with a small fluffy head.  No lacing.  I really enjoyed the smell this beer gave off.  It was pretty big.  Aroma full of apples, candi sugar, Belgian yeast, mild spices and hops.  The apple was the highlight for me though.  Sadly the taste is a muted version of the smell.  The taste just didn’t have the punch the smell had.  Still it was a great taste.  Once again the apple and candi sugar up front fading into a good bit of yeast, spices, then alcohol at the end.  The mouthfeel was light and crisp.  It also had a bit of a tart taste in it.  Maybe from the apples.  Overall this is a highly enjoyable beer.  I would of loved to order more.   

Found:South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, Californa (Mail Order)
Price: 3 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.stonebrew.com/, http://www.alesmith.com/. http://www.mikkeller.dk/
What the company says:From Mikkeller: A friendship brew brewed in collaboration with the amazing Alesmith and Stone Brewing Co. from California. Belgian Style Tripel Ale is a ‘classic tripel’ with a little extra hops. Sold from Stone Brewing Company and a few retailers in California and Europe.
ABV%: 8.70%
Other beers to try from this brewery:Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale, Milkkeller Stateside IPA, Alesmith Old Numbskull
Other beers to try within the same style: Westmalle Trappist Tripel, Allagash Tripel
Rating: B+

What we have here folks is two of favorite things lately.  Barleywines and beers brewed by Alesmith.  Alesmith turns out some truly great beers and is quickly turning into one of my favorite West Coast breweries.  Hopefully when I go to California this summer I can fit in a visit to their brewery.  Oh heck I’ll make sure I do. 

Old Numbskull turns out to be another fantastic beer from these guys.  Oh does anyone know why a lot of Barleywines start with “Old”.  Leave a comment if you do.  This brew poured a dark and cloudy amber color.  From the picture you can see it poured a huge head with excellent retention and a good amount of lacing.  The aroma on this beer is big and complex.  Nice amount of floral hops, bready malt, caramel, grapefruit, and toffee.  There’s a ton going on.  Like I said huge, complex but yet somehow it still remains balanced.  It doesn’t turn into a mess and get out of control.

The taste is more of the same.  Just a total joy to drink.  Up front is a big dose of grapefruit and hops.  Maybe one of the more hoppier Barleywines I’ve had.  Almost Double IPA like in this manner.  The 11% ABV is finally noticeable in a slight taste and burn of alcohol.  The bready malt and caramel like characters come in and then the beer ends with a candy like ending.  Just awesome. 

The beer is full bodied and very rich.  From what I just said maybe you would think this beer is a little hard to drink.  No way!!  This baby goes down beautifully.  The beer finishes a little bitter and dry.  This brew easily goes into my top 5 of favorite Barleywines.  Still can’t match the greatness of Gnarlywine and Old Guardian but I would easily buy this again and the way I am, I don’t say that about to many brews.

Found: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, CA (Mail Order)
Price: Around 12 dollars a bottle.
Website: http://www.alesmith.com/
What the company says: A West Coast style barleywine. A huge malt profile and a very aggressive dose of premium domestic hops give Old Numbskull a tantalizing complexity, from the aroma to the aftertaste.
ABV%: 11.0%
Other beers to try from this brewery:Alesmith IPA, Alesmith Yulesmith
Other beers to try within the same style: Flying Dog Horn Dog
Rating: A-

What we have here are a few beers I had over Christmas break.  I’m such a lazy blogger that I’ve decided to just wrap up the Christmas drinking into one big review.

First up is a beer from Alpine Beer Company.  I decided to ship this one from California for two reasons really.  Lately I’ve been in a huge stout mood and secondly the only other beer I’ve tried from these guys was Pure Hoppiness which was fantastic. 

Boris pours jet black with a small fluffy head. Mild carbonation.  What you’ll notice up front aroma wise is a very sweet vanilla with hints of bourbon, chocolate, and coffee.  The sweetness overpowers everything.

Same thing goes with the taste on this one.  The taste is very bitter and sweet.  Vanilla and bourbon really take over the taste.  The coffee is there but only at the end does it make it’s appearance and it’s a very small appearance. I think of it as a guest starring role =). To me this stout was just a tad bit to unbalanced for me.  Maybe with a little aging everything will calm down a bit but I could think of 20 different stouts I would rather have than this one.  This is not to say it’s not decent, just not fantastic.

Found: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, CA (Mail order)
Price: 7 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.alpinebeerco.com/
What the company says: Didn’t see anything about the beer on their site.
ABV%: 10.0%
Other beers to try from this brewery:Alpine Pure Hopiness, Alpine Ichabod
Other beers to try within the same style: Dogfish Head World Wide Stout, Southern Tier Jahva
Rating: C

Here’s another beer I decided to try due to myself trying another beer from these guys and loving it.  Last time it was their IPA (which is ranked on the top 100 beers in the world by BA) and it was fantastic.  This around it’s their American Imperial Double IPA.  I can tell you that this one did not disappoint at all.

As you can see by the picture this one pours a dark amber color.  But what is so fantastic about this beer is the head and lacing this brew gives off.  First off the head was huge and fluffy but the real surprise was the lacing.  This brew has the most lacing I have ever seen.  From top to bottom of the glass there was lacing.   Every sip leaves a huge sticky ring around the glass. 

Citrus, piney hops, and grapefruit are the highlights of the smell.  There’s also a nice caramel malt background.  The smell is big, sticky, and sweet.  Purely awesome.  The taste is just as good if not better than the smell.  It starts off as a huge hopbomb.  Citrus, grapefruit, and piney hops attack your palette.  It’s sticky and syrupy.  Then the malt kicks in witha good amount of alcohol that burns your mouth and throat a little.  Basically what I’m trying to say here it that this brew was a fantastic present during the holidays.  If this was a year round beer I would easily pick this up anytime.  A treat.

Found: South Bay Drugs, Imperial Beach, CA (Mail order)
Price: 6 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.alesmith.com
What the company says:During the summer, YuleSmith is transformed into a big, hoppy, Double IPA. The enormous load of hops requires a substantial malt background to create just the right balance for a Double IPA. Lighter in color, summer YuleSmith is available around the 4th of July and is packaged in a red, white, and blue bottle.
ABV%: 8.80%
Other beers to try from this brewery:Alesmith IPA
Other beers to try within the same style:  Avery Ale to the Chief, Port Brewing Hop-15
Rating: A-

How can you not try a beer with a gnome on the front? I mean come on!  It didn’t hurt that Kevin from Grape and Gourmet said that I really had to give this beer a try.  I trust Kevin.  We have the same taste in beer for the most part.  So that day the little gnome entered my fridge.

Now what we have here folks is a Belgian IPA.  Yes a Belgian IPA.  Before I get into the details just remember that this is not meant to be an American IPA.  It’s not a hop bomb (although it does use 3 kinds of hops but they aren’t the usual American hops).  They list the hops on the back of the bottle.  Also I say the following a lot.  Let this beer warm up a little before you even touch it.  This beer is a friggin mess if you try it really cold.  It’s just bitter and not good to drink at all.  Once you let it calm down, god is it good.  It’s fantastic.

Above I said that Alesmith Holiday Ale had a ton of lacing.  This one is no slouch either.  It pours a huge head that sticks around forever.  The lacing on this beer is everywhere and I mean everywhere.  The color on this one is a cloudy straw color. 

This beer reminds me more of a Tripel than anything else.  A hopped up Tripel.  Aroma and taste of bananas, cloves, lemon, and yeast.  The hops are there and mix in quite nicely.  They don’t get in the way at all and just add to the awesome taste this beer has.  The feeling this beer gives off is creamy with a nice dry finish.  Sour and a tad bit bitter.

This is just a fantastic and different beer.  That’s the best way to describe it.  Think Tripel, but think a different kind of Tripel.  A Tripel with a nice hop bite to it that doesn’t go overboard like our American IPAs.  

Found: Grape and Gourmet, Virginia Beach, VA
Price: Around 12 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.achouffe.be/en 
What the company says: The HOUBLON CHOUFFE was brewed for the first time in 2006. It is an ‘Indian Pale ale’ type of beer, with a harmonious balance between a marked bitterness (three types of hops are used to make it) and a pleasant fruitiness. The HOUBLON CHOUFFE is unfiltered, and re-fermented in the bottle as well as in the keg.
ABV%: 9.0%
Other beers to try from this brewery: First time I’ve had a beer from this brewery.
Other beers to try within the same style: Stone Cali-Belgique IPA
Rating: A-

Out of the 4 beers in this review this one was the biggest surprise.  For one this beer is actually made in my back yard.  The Hampton Roads area consists of 7 cities.  Virginia Beach is one and one of the other cities is Hampton, where Olde Richmond resides. Another surprise is that this brewery has only ever made 2 other beers.  A red ale and a brown ale.  They are actually contracted with St. George Brewery.  This beer is everywhere around me now and it’s not a bad thing because this is a damn tasty IPA. 

Color on this one is a light and cloudy amber.  Head pours small and disappears quite quickly.  Good amount of carbonation.  As for the smell it’s full of caramel malt, grassy hops, citrus, and grapefruit.  With the taste you get a rough and grainy caramel malt flavor.  Grapefruit and citrus is juicy and mixes in perfect with the malt and grassy hops.  Everything lives together nicely.  Not a hop bomb.  But there’s enough in there.  You also get a huge kick of alcohol in this one.  Especially when you let it cool down.  Hits your throat and stomach nicely.  It also has a nice bitter finish.  This IPA took me by surprise.  I love the rawness of it.  I really hope these guys make more and are able to out on their own one day.  If their other stuff is as good as their IPA they’ll do just fine.

Found: Total Wine, Chesapeake, VA
Price: $6 a bottle
Website: They do not have a website
What the company says: No website for this company.
ABV%: ???  Need to go check out the bottle when I get home.
Other beers to try from this brewery: Have not tried any
Other beers to try within the same style: Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA, Alesmith IPA, Ballest Point Big Eye IPA
Rating: B

Found: South Bay Drugs
Price: Around 6 dollars a bottle
Website: http://www.alesmith.com/
What the company says: Deep golden to light amber color, and a nice off-white head, with good retention when properly served. Starts off with pleasantly strong hop flavors, balanced by a firm malt backdrop, then fades to a dry finish with a lingering hoppiness.

What I say:Another great beer from the state of California.  This time it’s an IPA (yes another IPA) from Alesmith Brewing.  I first heard of Alesmith, when I heard about their Speedway Stout.  I’ll get to that brew one day but as always my love for everything IPA has taken over.  As you can see there is nothing fancy with this bottle, this must mean they rely on the quality of their brew than any fancy marketing stuff or fancy labels.  If this is the case, they are right.  They don’t need anything extra here, this beer stands by itself. 

The Look: This one pours a light orange color, from the picture it looks like it’s almost glowing.  Huge fluffy head that doesn’t go anywhere.  Huge lacing on the glass as you drink.

What the nose thought: Smells fantastic.  Caramel malt sits up front. Citrus and grapefruit notes are big in this one but mix well with the malt.  Well balanced.  A small but noticeable smell of alcohol sits in the background.

And the tastebuds?:This is one of the more enjoyable IPAs I’ve had in a while.  It’s not extreme but it’s not wimpy.  It’s huge on grapefruit and citrus taste while balancing almost perfect with the caramel malt.  Like with the smell, the alcohol is there but it doesn’t get in the way.  Just a good beer to sit down with and watch tv and when you’re done with that bottle, pick up another.  It’s just a joy to drink.  I honestly wonder how long it took them to get it just perfect because it almost is perfect.

The feel: Clean and creamy.  A slight burn from the alcohol will hit your throat. 

Ending notes: Like I said above this one is just plain awesome because it doesn’t kick your ass.  It’s just fantastic to just drink and chill out and when you’re done pop open another one.  It’s just that much of an enjoyable IPA to drink.  Hopefully more Alesmith reviews coming soon.  I hope they can top this one but I don’t know.

Rating: A