ALESMITH NAUTICAL NUT BROWN

It’s finally happened. I’ve now tasted a brown ale that is exciting, delicious and a real serious contender with all those more decadent styles I’m always consuming (tripels, dubbels, IPAs and so on). It even beats my previous favorite brown ale, GREEN FLASH NUT BROWN (rated 8/10 here a couple years ago), by a whopping half-point. It’s also from San Diego, and from a brewer I’ve sort of suspected (based on the evidence, I promise) was a little overrated. ALESMITH NAUTICAL NUT BROWN ALE is just the smoothest, sweetest and best brown ale I’ve ever had. I imbibed it at a sushi place in San Diego on Wednesday night, mostly because the keg of VICTORY PRIMA PILS I wanted to try was blown. I’m really, really glad it was.

Dark, complex malts, with a real underlying sweet flavor profile that completely obscures the normal bitterness you’ll get from roasted malty flavors. It smells as good as it looks, and it drinks as good as it smells. Here’s the bad news: it’s not bottled. Get your San Diego pals to box up a growler for you, and/or put it on your must-try list next time you’re heading on a beercation to the bottom of California. 8.5/10.