YuleSmith (Summer)
[2011 Summer] This years brew is quite light pouring from the bottle and light tan / orange in the glass with a short-lived, fluffy head. The hops profile is terrific: floral, sweet, piney, some citrus. The malt keeps the hops from going over the top, but definitely stays in the background adding just bit of grainy sweetness. The aroma is rather faint, but the taste is plenty robust. The mouthfeel is medium-light and the finish is very nicely sticky. This is a great IPA! [2009 Summer] This is the lightest color for YuleSmith that I remember. (My bottle has more yeast in the bottom than I remember noticing previously, to.) The color is light hazy yellow--not quite as light as a Hefeweizen, but lighter than many IPAs. The hops don't seemed to be reduced at all, but the malt profile is definitely thinner and weaker--on the plus side, maybe this lets more complexity in the hops profile stand out. Always a good brew; an interesting variation this batch. [2008 Summer] This may be the best version of YuleSmith that I have had (and I think I've had every version since 2006 Winter). The color is a bit brighter than with previous incarnations. The smell is piney hops. Given the hops shortage, I'm a bit surprised at how hoppy this year's is--more a double IPA than an "Imperial Red." The malt is there in the background, but the hops is stronger for sure. The mouthfeel is perfectly resiny--I love it! My overall rating is going up because I bumped up the smell, taste, and mouthfeel.