AleSmith Decadence 2006
Imperial Evil Dead Red Ale (also known as Dead by Dawn)
Alesmith's Decadence Anniversary Ale was originally brewed in 2005 to celebrate our first decade in business. The brewers at Alesmith had such a great time concocting Decadence that they decided to make it an annual event, and brew a new style each year to commemorate our Anniversary. The second release in the Decadence series, Dead by Dawn, was inspired by our own seasonal specialty ale, Evil Dead Red. What if we made it bigger, bolder and even more evil?
The result is Decadence 2006 Dead by Dawn, a devilicious auburn-colored ale with a complex sweet caramel maltiness balanced by the just the right amount of hop bitterness. Dead by Dawn showcases an enticing hop flavor and intense hop aroma that rounds out this rich, full-bodied ale.
Join our Anniversary Celebration with Decadence. You'll soon discover why Alesmith is known around the world as the place to find Legendary Craftsmanship.
Alesmith's Decadence Anniversary Ale was originally brewed in 2005 to celebrate our first decade in business. The brewers at Alesmith had such a great time concocting Decadence that they decided to make it an annual event, and brew a new style each year to commemorate our Anniversary. The second release in the Decadence series, Dead by Dawn, was inspired by our own seasonal specialty ale, Evil Dead Red. What if we made it bigger, bolder and even more evil?
The result is Decadence 2006 Dead by Dawn, a devilicious auburn-colored ale with a complex sweet caramel maltiness balanced by the just the right amount of hop bitterness. Dead by Dawn showcases an enticing hop flavor and intense hop aroma that rounds out this rich, full-bodied ale.
Join our Anniversary Celebration with Decadence. You'll soon discover why Alesmith is known around the world as the place to find Legendary Craftsmanship.
4.1
359 reviews
San Diego, United States
Community reviews
Dark brown with a small dissipating white heat. Nose is very malty with a slight faded hop aroma. Taste is very sharp and alcoholic, sweet with a bit of chocolate and toasty malts. This may be a bit old but it has held up well.
Thanks Peter for this gift - dinner at The Linkery, Nov. 2008. Consumed 01/09.
Gorgeous medium-dark chestnut brown with a fine, dense, medium tan head with excellent retention. Dark, citrus hops and nutty and toasty malted grains in the aroma surrounded by a soft caramel sweetness. More caramel sweetness in the flavor with subdued, sweet, fruity, citrus hops flavors. Aged characteristics of caramelized orange peel, slight oxidation, and nutty maltiness. The alcohol is very well integrated into the body making the 10% hardly noticeable, except for its essential contribution to this beers great structure.
Bottle.
This beer is so 2006. Not entirely in a bad way; but it makes me remember back when going over the top with caramel malt and then bathing it in hops was pushing the frontiers of American brewing. Today, it’s more like being molested by an ass-ton of caramel malt and aged hops. Not that it’s an entirely unpleasant experience but it’s certainly not a 100th-percentile beer in today’s brewing environment. Which is a good thing; we are awash with blessings today in 2010.
That said, it is a 100-th percentile beer in appearance. Fogging gorgeous beer.
Thanks to Kan for this one in a trade and shared with JMerritt on 2/12/10. Pours a very deep, hazy red with a small creamy head. Aroma is grassy with a strong roasted malt note, mild MO, lots of esters and a light raisin. Flavor stars with a nice raisin, nice modest malty biscuit note, sweet overall with some light caramel, toffee and light toasted ending. Body is really dense with a slightly oily texture, fine carbonation with a light dryness at the end with a mild alcohol bite. Great lacing from this beer. Overall a very nice brew that has aged awesomely.
A: The pour is a slightly hazy rich amber color with plenty of red notes to it. The head is bubbly and cream in color.
S: The nose is highly sweet, but what else do you expect from a 4 year old beer? Plenty of brown sugar and caramel with a feeble pine note.
T: Like I expected ,the flavor is also very heavy on the caramel with some sweet brown sugar and toffee notes as well. There is not much in the way of bitterness nor alcohol.
M: The body is quite full with a somewhat low level of carbonation. Not exactly syrupy, but it is rich.
D: A little too sweet without much else going on, and while the alcohol doesn’t announce it’s presence through heat, the beer still packs a bunch.
750 ml bottle
Rating #1300 : My second contribution of the night was a bottle of Alesmith Decadence that might be a little past its prime. I think this was better two years ago but could still hold its own with many other beers from other breweries. I would love to try the 2008 and 2009 versions to see what new tricks are up the sleeves of a great brewer.
Aroma / Appearance - The fizzy beige head was the first sign that this might be going downhill fast. The deep reddish body was still up to task however. The nose was still strongly malty with cherry and a trace of hops that have settled in the last three or four years. I don’t know when this was bottled but it is still decent.
Flavor / Palate - The mouthfeel is dense and heavy. Full of textures like a creamy malt it sits on the throat reminding you that the guys in San Diego know their stuff. The finish lingers which teases the palate into desiring another sip until soon the entire bottle is gone. I hope this has resurfaced or will resurface soon in another name. It deserves another wide release.
Bottle at home - Thanks to Sune. Cloudy red/brown - offwhite head. NIce hoppy, resin, grassy, roasted, berries, caramel, toasted, lovely bitterness, bisquit, chocolate, nutty. Nice complexity.
4th October 2008. Imperial Evil Dead Red edition! Cloudy dark brown beer with a frothy tan head. Thick chocolatey malt start leading in to a sweet and sour mid with more chocolate and some fruit. Lingering sour brandy tones in the aftertaste. Complex and tasty.
Thanks wetherel! Man what a nice beer, aging better than I thought. Loads of sweet caramel jump out of the glass with some citrus hops. Flavor is sweet, tons and tons of caramel, light wood, fruit and perfect hops. damn nice brew!
pours blood read/brown with large white head. aroma is citrus, light fruits, spice, and caramel. drinks sweet and fruity with a real nice malt backbone showing through. very tasty and once in a lifetime for me.
Poured a deep red/brown clay with a foamy eg shell head.
Nose was juicy with amarillo hops and red fruits.
Taste was very fruity, rasberry, strawberry, sweet cherry, nice clean bitterness. Big sweet caramel body, tons of non cloying sweetness, hops giving off tons of flavor that compliment the big malt body perfectly.
Pours a deep ruddy brown with a huge rocky head on top. Aromas of sweet fruit, some spice, and hops coming through as well. The flavor follows the aroma with a bit of floral and spice coming through initially. The finish is rather hoppy and spicey.
Served from 750 mL bottle picked up that’s been aging for a few years. Appearance is a slightly hazy deep deep red with brown edges. A huge full and frothy light brown head. The aromas are sweet cinnamon, malt, and aged hops. The flavors are sweet caramel with dashes of cinnamon (even the texture). Full and complex malt profile, white and black pepper notes, vanilla cream. The mouth if full bodied with a chewy and creamy texture. Delicious!
Bottle special thanks to danielcurtis81 for having the self-control to purchase and save this for 3 years thus sharing on his wedding week. Pours a dark reddish/brown with Gigantic cake-like, foamy, bubbly head. Has a sweet, juicy fruit aroma that teases that palate. Taste is a complexion symphony. Sweet, smooth malt, fresh red fruits, marshmallow, wine like and alcohol hints. Very strong in all aspects.
Pours a deep red-brown with a small head. Aroma is pretty alive with both hops and malt. Maybe some floral aromas as well. The flavor is of very sweet malt, also some tar underneath. The hops are still there, though subdued now. These flavors aren’t mixing well. I don’t know if it needs more age, but it seems that the flavors are clashing, not working together. Palate is full, rich, elegant. Overall, good.
My god let this one age. I’m sure by now you have. Malty nose with chocolate notes. Malty body, sweet, with chocolate, candy sugar, liqueurish notes. Hides alcohol well.
750 ml bottle - opened in Dec ’08; pours clear, reddish brown with frothy off-white head; musky, rich, almost bourbon-like nose; texture is thin, flat and soft; caramel, sweet candy malts, dank fruit and a little syrupy; almost BW-like flavors and nothing off-putting or oxidized; bready, dry and sweet; pretty tasty overall and interesting with the age on it
08/07/08 - Really amazing smell, hops are fading but the beer still tastes pretty good and could probably age another year or two. Warms the stomach...
02/16/08- I cracked a bottle of this and wow I liked it a lot better this time. Delicious malts, some hop bitterness, sweet caramel, piney, reminded me a little of Yulesmith. What was I thinking the first time I reviewed this?? Excellent beer, Damn you Alesmith!!!
9/29/07-This was indeed quite red in color. The smell was a little hoppy but nothing impressive. The taste was also a little hoppy with some malts but again nothing stood out as being decadent. The mouthfeel was astringent and decently carbonated. I would not purchase this again and I can’t imagine this improving with age as the label suggests.
Serving type: bottle
Reviewed on: 09-29-2007 17:44:10
Bottle shared with mspindler and JoeTheYounger.. Pours a milky brown with a khaki head.. Some caramel in the aroma but you can tell it has oxidized.. Flavor is caramel with surprisingly a hop bite. Lots of carbonation left for being almost 3 years old..I enjoyed it.
Courtesy laroja, thanks Morgan. This one pours a dark reddish brown color topped a by a foamy tan head that leaves some spotty lacing behind. The aroma is really nice and shows rich, sweet caramel, toffee, piney hops, and some vanilla cream. The hops seemed to have faded a bit, but you can tell they were a big component when this was fresh. The flavor is very malt forward with rich caramel and toffee that the pine hops try to balance out. Chocolate and caramel with some vanilla cream dominate in this beer. Full bodied and smooth with nice balanced carbonation leading to a sweet, malty finish with a touch of warming. This is a really tasty beer now and still holding up well, but I can see how good this would have been fresher.
This is clearly over-the-hill, and a shadow of the beer it once was, but it’s still deliciously malty and full-bodied.
Brown with a lasting light brown head. Aroma of biscuit malt, lots of hops and a little alcohol. Malty and hoppy flavour, though a little too sweet and a hint of hot alcohol.
750 ml bottle shared by shigadeyo. Pours a hazy deep copper color with a large beige head. The aroma is big toffee/caramel that enhances the sweetness of the citrus and dark fruits. As this had some age the hops have become more blended than fresh. The flavor is more of the same: bread covered by rich caramel and toffee, dark fruits and candied citrus, there is still a bit of bitterness to balance the sweetness somewhat but this is still malt dominant. Medium-full bodied with a smooth presentation. This has to be one of my favorites from a solid brewery.
Bottle thanks to Ibrew2or3 for the share! Poured a dark, cloudy honey color with a thin beige head. Nose is quite boozy with hints of over-ripe fruit rasin maybe, wood, and hops. Medium bodied with a decent amount of carbonation. Flavor is vinous with strong caramel malt notes, rasin or prune, wood, and quite a bit of tongue burning alcohol. Dry boozy finish with notes of sherry.
From the Bottle at Tom’s Ultimate Glasgow Tasting, Blackfriars 01/12/2007
Hoppy pine aroma. Mid brown coloured a little rich on the palate and spicy with a crisp and slightly bitter lasting finish.
Nothing I can comment on hasn’t already been stated before, probably more eloquent that I can too. Just a world class beer. Shared it with my brother, and buddies Gary and Mike D. Chock full of flavors and aromas and it was just an explosion of goodness.
The beer pours out a cloudy, chestnut brown color with a thin 1/2" white head. Aroma has a near perfect blend of french toast, caramel, earth/wet dirt, dark fruit, light chocolate and old leather. The flavors really mirrored the aroma blow for blow. French toast (with the maple syrup), dark fruits, caramel chews, toffee, lightly floral, wet paper with a nice spiced finish. Just incredible to enjoy, and thankful I kept it this long for a milestone review.
750ml bottles acquired in trades with mreusch and WeeHeavySD (thanks!). Poured a dark/deep amberish and almost brown color with a huge sized off white head. Aromas of caramel, earthiness, dark fruits, chocolate, and nutty. Tastes of caramel, dark fruits, nutty, and some citrus in the finish. Light alcohol in the finish.
’09-750ml bottle @Noogfest High5–pours an off white ring for a head and cloudy amber color. Aroma is earthy, medium malt. Taste is very earthy/spicy, sweet medium malt. *’11-750 bottle-Natifest courtesy Craig-pours a tan head and hazy copper color. Aroma is sweet medium malt-caramel, secondary spice. Taste is alcohol, sweet medium malt-caramel, secondary spice. 3.8
Sampled in 2009 at Noogfest High 5. The body was mahogany with a yellowish head. The smells were like caramel frosted cake donuts with some molasses. Very sweet. The taste was sweet caramel and iced tea. This was fairly malty with a slightly oxidized finish. Well made and still very good.
750 ml shared at RNH Charity event. Pours a deep dark hazy coppery rusty amber with a big fizzy head- diminishes slightly. Aroma is slight metallic, some fresh hops but hints of staleness creeping in- cheesy, funk, leathery, orange peel, and lots of big caramel malts. Flavor is moderately hoppy still, turing slightly cheesecloth like, cheese rind, lgiht salty oxidation toffee, molasses, and a big sharp dark crystal twang in the end. Still holding up ok, but also past its prime.