Wee Heavy - Barrel-Aged
AleSmith Brewing Company

 

I liked the rum version as a match most but this one is not to disown. Coconut in barreling -present. 2025 version whatever they used, Bourbon and port-barrels.

Brown color. Medium-sized, off-white head. Caramel malt, dark fruits, bourbon, and rum in the aroma. Malty, sweet but not cloying.Interesting rum notes at the end.

 

Poured a dirty brown color, generally opaque, with a thin, patchy, light khaki colored head. Nice, earthy sweetness; a bit of spirits cutting through. Rich flavor; cocoa; tobacco juice; leather; mildly boozy. Heavy body; thick and velvety on the palate; semi-dry.

A tremendous beer, rich and complex. It has a deep balance throughout, and is surprisingly easy to sip, no harshness, just soft beauty caressing your palate and tickling your brain cells.

Pouring temperature: 50 °F; bottling info: 2022
Source: Tavour

2022 version poured from a 12oz bottle into a plastic cup. I didn't enjoy the rum element as much as I'd hoped.

 

 

2022 vintage. Pours dark brown with mild lacing. Notes of dark fruit, caramel, and bourbon barrel on the nose. Taste follows suit with the same flavors. Light to medium bodied, strong boozy presence. Tasty.

 

 

 

 

Like the port barrel-aged version I had recently, my inclination is that this is a 2016 bottle based on the mixed case that this was included in. A sweet, syrupy wee heavy kicked up a notch with that smoky, buttery, bourbon flavor. Seems a bit past it’s prime as it is quite mellow, but delicious nonetheless.

 

750ml bottle poured into a snifter. 2017 vintage.

A: Deep mahogany brown color. Thin beige head settles out rather quickly and leaves no lacing. Not unusual for barrel aged beers.

S: Sweet corny bourbon up front, though there is no alcohol kick. Soft oak. Loads of malt depth. Brown bread and crust, fig, raisin, caramel, candied nuts. Touch of black cocoa. Subtle undertones of sherry and paper are beginning to develop, but aren't yet too noticeable.

T: As in the nose, the bourbon is up front on the attack, but not hot whatsoever. Corny-sweet, with an oaky vanilla backing (which is augmented as the beer warms) and kiss of barrel char. From there, deeply complex malt flavors blossom. Rich caramel, toffee, and treacle syrup. Cola. Faint smoke. Brown bread and toasty bread crust. Fig and golden raisin. Somewhat of a tootsie roll/fudgey note. Evidence of oxidation is super subtle, but there is a bit of sherry. Faint whisper of alcohol. Drying crusty finish with some lingering chocolate covered raisin and a bit of oak tannin.

M: Very heavy, thick, and rich. Full-bodied with a sense of pressing weight. Rife with residual sugars, but it stops barely short of being syrupy. Carbonation is moderate, and pricks a little at the tip of the tongue. Wonderful coating, silky, and pressing malt texture.

O: I live for beer like this. The malt complexity is so deep, layered, and nuanced, and the barrel flavor profile fits like a glove. Everyone loves to chuck an imperial stout into a bourbon barrel -and that's great- but I've always thought that scotch ales were sneakily the best beer to bourbon barrel age. Case in point right here. This beer is an all-time great as far as I'm concerned.

750mL (vintage 2013 based on my notes) into a tulip. Pours a deep dark mahogany brown w/ a 1/2-finger head that settles to a narrow beige collar. Looks dense and chewy in my glass.

Aroma is rich and complex. Bourbon, vanilla, rum-soaked pipe tobacco, toffee, dates and figs. Pretty much what one would expect from a bourbon barrel aged scotch ale/wee heavy, old ale, or English barleywine (all of which are pretty close together in my mind). Surprising how many notes are readily apparent while this is still fridge-cold, and I look forward to observing some changes as it warms.

Taste is likewise complex, rich, and exceedingly well balanced. Very malt forward but not syrupy or cloying. Molasses, brown sugar, caramel, sweet stone fruits, and a nice chest-warming booziness on the finish.

Mouthfeel is chewy and and the heavy side of medium. Lingers on the palate.

Overall a really outstanding scotch ale/wee heavy. Better than I'd expected for some reason.