Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock

Brewed by Brauerei Heller
Style: Smoked
Bamberg, Bayern, Germany

Bottle. Poured a very dark brown with a creamy, off-white head that dissipated quickly but, left extensive lacing on the glass. Intense aroma of smoke when poured. Good flavor of malt with smoke flavor intense but, not so it overpowers the malt flavor. Clean and not too heavy on the palate. Excellent.

Bottle; poured a dark mahogany color with a medium to large off white head. Nice looking. Aroma of smoked meat, and well, maybe some caramel. I’m not sure I’ll ever be in to that aroma, but the flavor was surprisingly good. A nice blend of flavors. Flavors of caramel, smoked malt, meat, oak, with a small, but nice amount of bitterness. Palate worked well with the flavors. Overall this was a good brew.

Deep, dark mahogany pour with an initially fizzy, then diminishing off-white head which leaves trace ring lace. From the get-go, this brew weaves a wonderful bouquet of smoked peat and jerky spices. The flavors balance nicely between caramel malts and smoked sausage and Gouda characteristics. The finish closes with a light peat bitter that completes the pull and brings it to fruition. The mouthfeel is soft, but well-rounded and satiating. The carbonation levels are perfectly integrated, as not to detract from any of the fine integrations going on, but lending a slight lively note to the pull. Well-complex, and a darn fine offering for an exceptional "change of pace" from the traditional. As Ty5592 noted below, if you like a smoked, you will not do wrong to try this.

Out of mini keg. Medium brown color with big tan head. Greasy smoked pork aroma and flavor. This stuff is so smokey you’ll think the house is on fire. Semi sweet caramel flavors mixed with smokey malts. If you like smoked this will not disappoint.

500 mL bottle from Bieropholie, served at cellar temp in a tulip glass. DE19/07.

App.: Very deep mahogany, clear, rocky tan head. Aroma: Massive amounts of smoke – like smoked meat or cheese; a touch of caramel WAY behind that, maybe a little dark dried fruit behind that; as the smoke clears (haha), much more of the style’s deep rich malts appear. Palate: Medium body, soft but full effervescence. Flav.: Buckets of that meat smoke, some caramel and dried fruit in the distant background, maybe a touch of herbaceousness, off-dry with a little bitterness; after half the bottle, the smoke still dominates, but it is willing to share a bit more of my palate with the herbal maltiness.

It is what it is: a beer that demands the right foods to accompany it. A sensory overload on its own.

Bottle: Poured a deep brown color ale with a big foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma is totally dominated by smoked ham notes with some malt. Taste is also dominated by some smoked bacon notes with some nice malt backbone. Body is full with limited filtration and good carbonation. I am not sure if I am getting used to drinking smoke beer but I thought this went down better then the marzen that I had a year or two ago.

1/1/08: Bottle.
Enormous aroma of thoroughly smoked bacon. Garnet brown body. Full of flavor – smokehouse, bacon, malt and hops. Nicely executed, but I do not care for the style. I prefer my bacon in solid form, not liquid.

Delicious. I’ve had this beer several times and enjoy it immensely for its unique smokey flavor. This bock tastes as if the hops were barbecued or smoked before the beer was brewed. Flavors of smokiness and even mesquite are rich throughout. An incredible brew.