AleSmith Wee Heavy Scotch Ale - Bourbon Barrel
This Barrel-Aged version of our Scotch-Style ale is matured in premium bourbon barrels for up to one year to add layers of complexity to its rich, malty flavor profile. Notes of vanilla, oak and bourbon from the barrels combine with the beer’s profile of caramel and toffee to make this an utterly unique beer that we think you’ll love. Enjoy it now or let it mature in the bottle for years to come.
4.1
538 reviews
San Diego, United States
Community reviews
Pours opaque chocolate with a decent buff head. Aroma delivers bourbon, roast malt and caramel tones. Flavor nicely echoes the aroma, fairly sweet but not cloying. Mouthfeel features good body and jazzy fizz. More than wee!
750 ml bottle. 2015 vintage. Aromas of bourbon, raisins, a little cola, and sweet roasted malts. Flavors of dark caramel, bourbon, oak, raisins and lots of malts. Much lighter than the barrelled stout and therefore seems more boozy, but still very nice. Doesnt need anymore aging IMHO.
750ml bottle @ Alex’s(Serguy’s Birthday). Pours a mostly opaque brown colour with a small beige head. Nose is huge, rich, and malty... lots of bourbon and oak. Flavour is a spicey-esque profile that derives from the bourbon heat and oak while the sweetness tames it.
Bottle - Vintage 2015 - Crazy bourbon hot woody notes. Deep dark brown with a small light brown head. Big dark toffee notes and tons of bourbon notes. A bit too big and boozy notes.
750ml bottle (thx, Robert G.!) at Alex’s in honor of my birthday and CPA PREP finish. Vintage 2015. Pours a dark brown with beige head. Aroma is sweet, dark fruits, bourbon, woody, and booziness. Taste is chocolate, oily, still hot, dark fruits, slightly buttery, bourbon. Despite it is still boozy, I love it and it is a very nice sipper.
Bottle shared, 2012 vintage. Pours thick dark brown with a small offwhite head. Aromas of heavy bourbon, vanilla, dark fruits, licorice, light oxidization, chocolate, malt. Taste is malty, vanilla, dark fruits, toffee, butterscotch, huge caramel, porty notes, subtle bitter malty notes.
Good grief this was good. Burnt bread pudding with caramel and molasses touch with oak and bourbon. Nice dark caramel color with a full and smooth palate. Near perfect.
Vintage 2012, gracieuseté de Yannick. Merci l’ami! Clairement le meilleur scotch ale que j’ai bu de ma vie. L’équilibre est parfait: ni trop sucrée, ni trop sirupeuse, ni trop alcoolisée. Toute en finesse, le bourbon n’est pas trop agressif, même au contraire. Ce dernier a je crois aminci cette bière dont la base est plutôt lourde pour moi. Effervescence parfaite et rondeur impeccable. Saveurs de fruits noirs, de caramel, de douce mélasse. Longue en bouche sans jamais écoeurer, un grand coup de coeur pour moi que cette bière qui a déjà 5 ans.
Pours a dark brown off white lacing and some floaties. The aroma is heavy vanilla, caramel, heavy bourbon and toffee
Dark brown color, large head, average to below average lace/retention. Aroma is creamy with notes of bourbon, chocolate, caramel, light vanilla. Full bodied, the barrel changes this beer more than a lot of others. It loses any touch of smoke but gets a sweeter choco-caramel thing going with an extremely drinkable vanilla creamy mouthfeel. Unlike a lot of other bourbon barrel beers, it doesn’t have any harshness and the alcohol is completely hidden. A treat, albeit an expensive one.
750ml bottle of 2015 release. Pours a dark brown color with a bit of head. Delicious brown sugar and toffee aroma. Intense bourbon at the start. But blows off with some time to breathe. A little hot.
Massive barrel aroma. Unfiltered brown amber caramel color. Foamy oily spiral head. Massive chewy caramel bourbon candy notes. Luscious. Viscous. Boozy, but really well done.
Bottle, shared with BBGTC. Pours a deep brown, red-hued body with a small beige head. Nose is creamy caramel, vanilla, biscuits, nuts and hints of wood, red fruits and muscovado sugars. Taste is dark sugars, caramel, cream and hints of alcohol, raisins and nuts. Full body, high to medium carbonation. Very smooth, creamy and elegant smooth ale. Highly integrated and fine-tuned, with the creamy sweet tones complimenting the alcohol and barrel tones.
Strong bourbon aroma. Oak. Like a toned down bourbon. Oak. Not boozy. Im generally not a fan of bourbon beers, but this is so smooth. Vanilla. Thx for the trade Malster85! Shared w Tony watching Blues playoffs.
Bottle [2013] @ weekly tasting shared with Joes and Dutchdrebus to celebrate the fact that the cast which has been on my left leg since March 4th (55 days ago) was removed today.. Thank god for that. I know I have a long way to go as far as full recovery goes, but I’m so happy that the cast is gone. Also, thanks to all RB friends who have wished me well during this period. It was and still is really really appreciated. -- [Rating] Nice deep dark red-brown color, small off-white head. Aroma is malts, nice bourbon. Taste malts, again firm bourbon, sweet, dark fruits, raisins, some alcohol, caramel and brown candy sugar. Full body, slow drinker, average to moderate carbonation. Heavy, full and a very very nice beer. Lovely.
Bottle @ benzai. Dark brown colour with no head. Smells sweet, cloyingly sweet, plums, malts, alcohol. Tastes appelstroop, sweet, toffee.. Amazingly deep. Kinda hits ypu like a hammer though. Feel like I need a nap after every two sips. Full body, soft carbo.
Bottle, shared with BBGTC. Pours hazy, dark maroon, with a creamy off white head. Aroma is sweet roasted malts with bread, toffee and heather, as well as cocoa and leather. Full body, with soft carbonation. Flavour is sweet roasted malts with bread, cocoa, leather and wood, as well vanilla and muscovado. Lingering sweet malty finish. Very drinkable, and nicely balanced.
18.02.2016, 0,75l bottle shared @ BBGTC tasting:
Nice creamy mediumlasting head. Aroma is very mild and balanced, yet it?s not a wow experience; weeds, dark malts, vanilla, minerals, oak, chocolate, caramel, nuts, bark, dark sugar. Taste is slightly dry boozy, weeds, dark malts, minerals, caramel, chocolate, oak, vanilla, alcohol, nuts, mild bourbon. Medium bitterness, slightly mineraly mouthfeel. Nice and very balanced, but not fantastic...
Bottle shared at rbwg 2016. Oily reddy caramel brown no head. Aroma is barrel, oak, vanilla, boozy, wood. Flavour is composed of spicy cinnamon. Oak, vanilla, cherry. Tangy. Woody. .
Bottle, courtesy of PotjeBier. Thanks! Delicious aroma of strong bourbon vanilla and a little raisin, I could sniff this for hours. Rich taste of earth vanilla, subtle bourbon booze, caramel and some malt body. Fantastic beer.
Bottle thanks to Potjebier, medium sample. Slight hazy copper color, short head. Aroma of lots of toffee and caramel with buckets of cookie and vanilla from bourbon. Quite sweet, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, slight boozy. Wonderful.
75 cl bottle (from an IP trade with richiesd) @ home, shared with caesar, borresteijn & MarcodL. Pours a deep brown color. Off white head, short retention. Aroma’s: full on bourbon, sweet, vanilla, caramel, really nice. Flavor is sweet, a bit boozy, hints of marzipan. Fairly strong alcohol feel and rather full bodied. Long finish. Wonderful, much nicer than the base beer.
75cl Bottle shared, thanks for tonight’s beers Potje! Dark brown colour, beige head. Aroma of pure bourbon, sweet, woody, caramel, vanilla, very decadent and lush. Flavour is sweet, malty, caramel, full on bourbon, quite sweet but well - balanced, rich and luscious. Full bodied. Great.
From a 75 cl bottle shared at home. Bottled 2/11/14. Pours black with a tan head. Aroma of bourbon and oak. Flavors of milk chocolate, bourbon, caramel and butterscotch. Smooth boozy finish. Yum
Bomber to a taster. Hazy brown with thin head. Caramel, vanilla, toasty malts... Smooth bourbon finish... Amazing!!!
Bottle. The pout is a dark brown with a thin head. The aroma is is a nice mix of the bourbon and the toffee. The taste israthler smooth, not too much booze, not overly toffee, a great tasting wee heavy.
Draught at Alesmith Observation Room. Very dark almost black beer with a nice beige head. Fruity caramel aroma, raisins, figs, vanilla, bourbon notes, grapes, chocolate, some cream. Fruity vanilla flavor, grapes, licorice, raisins, woody, figs, some earthy notes. Slightly boozy, but a great beer.
750 mL bottle shared by me with Gus and ebone1988. The pour is a dark muddy brown/light black with a thin collar of khaki head and a couple spots of good lace. The aroma is brilliant. There is a lot of malt and a great light candy. Bourbon barrel. Lots of oak and vanilla with a light booze. The flavor is great. Lots of caramel and a great maltiness. There is a light booze and a great vanilla and oak barrel presence. The mouth feel is thick and creamy with an excellent carbonation and a lingeringly beautiful aftertaste. I love this beer!
Bottle shared with koleminer20 and Gus. Aroma is wonderful, caramel, toffee, barrel, vanilla, chocolate. Appearance is dark brown and ruby, tan head. Taste is amazing, wonderful vanilla, caramel, toffee, chocolate, marshmallow, and oak, with the perfect balance of booze. The mouthfeel was creamy and delightful, with medium carbonation. Overall, holy shit this is good.
1pt 9.4fl.oz 2012 bottle. Thank you FatPhil! Sugary, raisins, malty, clear bourbon, thin, slimy, not sticky, dry for what it is at the same time, smooth velvety texture. Complex and interesting creation. But is definitely overpriced.