Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock | Brauerei Heller-Trum / Schlenkerla | Bamberg, Germany | Rauchbier | 6.6% ABV
Now that the hottest week of the year has come and gone, I am really ready for FALL. The leaves changing colors, NFL back on TV (Free Brady) and pumpkin beers on every shelf. Yet fall also means Oktoberfest, which means I'll be craving some good German brews. I was over at my local grocery store this past week and came across this bottle. I had been craving a good Rauchbier since trying Fire in the Ham by Jack's Abby back in July, and figured I'd check this out, especially since Rauchbier's are so difficult to come by in the States. At $5/pint, this was something I was willing to sample.
Served chilled from a 16.9 oz bottle and poured into a Franziskaner Weissbier glass. Pours a deep brown color with a reddish tint and a three finger tan foam head. Smell is smokey and burnt almost, and there are hints of smoked meats. Carbonation is moderate to light with a medium body. The malt flavor is dark and roasty, with the beech wood adding a tremendous amount of flavors. There is a slight sweetness as well with a medium bitterness on the back end.
This is a true traditional German style beer. The German purity laws only allowed water, yeast, hops and barley to be used in the creation of beer, and this beer certainly follows that. Rauchbiers get their smokey and campfire like flavors from smoking the barley over beech wood before being used in the wort. It is definitely an acquired taste but I would highly recommend checking one out this fall. I went over and picked up another bottle almost immediately!
94/100
93/100 Beer Advocate
$5/pint
Now that the hottest week of the year has come and gone, I am really ready for FALL. The leaves changing colors, NFL back on TV (Free Brady) and pumpkin beers on every shelf. Yet fall also means Oktoberfest, which means I'll be craving some good German brews. I was over at my local grocery store this past week and came across this bottle. I had been craving a good Rauchbier since trying Fire in the Ham by Jack's Abby back in July, and figured I'd check this out, especially since Rauchbier's are so difficult to come by in the States. At $5/pint, this was something I was willing to sample.
Served chilled from a 16.9 oz bottle and poured into a Franziskaner Weissbier glass. Pours a deep brown color with a reddish tint and a three finger tan foam head. Smell is smokey and burnt almost, and there are hints of smoked meats. Carbonation is moderate to light with a medium body. The malt flavor is dark and roasty, with the beech wood adding a tremendous amount of flavors. There is a slight sweetness as well with a medium bitterness on the back end.
This is a true traditional German style beer. The German purity laws only allowed water, yeast, hops and barley to be used in the creation of beer, and this beer certainly follows that. Rauchbiers get their smokey and campfire like flavors from smoking the barley over beech wood before being used in the wort. It is definitely an acquired taste but I would highly recommend checking one out this fall. I went over and picked up another bottle almost immediately!
94/100
93/100 Beer Advocate
$5/pint
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