Triumph Rauchweizen

Brewed by Triumph Brewing Company
Style: Smoked
Princeton, New Jersey USA

Poured a hazy amber color. Huge smokey aroma that smells a like spent fireworks, but not in a bad way. Flavor of smoke and bananas. Light to medium bodyied. Semi-dry finish with a hint of spice.

12 oz handbottle, via Dickinsonbeer. Pours a cloudy dark copper to orance colored body under a one finger foamy white head with great retention. Aroma is just beautiful. Images of smoky campfires, sausages, and bacon appear in my head. Behind that, spicy wheat, fruity esters, and yeast peek out. Flavor is well balanced between the smoke and fruity esters from the yeast. More of a subdued smoke versus some of the German classics, but way beyond the usual American brewpub’s efforts. Finishes fairly dry. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with a very soft well rounded almost creamy texture. Pinpoint soft moderate carbonation is just perfect. Overall, this was a pretty frickin awesome beer.

30.07.06 Tap at New Hope, also brought growler home, also had the Princeton version 14.07.06 from a growler courtesy of egajdzis at BCTC. These two versions are only similar, but each one was freaking fantastic. I didn’t take notes on the Princeton version, knowing that I’d be having it again shortly in New Hope, but not realizing it would be a quite different beer. Whatever, I loved them equally and will stand by my score as an amalgam of the two with notes on the NH version only.

The beer is a hazed dark amber color with small and fading tan head. Aromas immediately waft and I’m rapt by the woodsmoked siren’s song. The wonderful honey, clove, and banana notes do nothing to contradict the mission of the smoked malts, in fact enhancing the overall picture of the beer in such a beautiful way as I’ve never before experienced. Caramelized fruits abound on the palate as if lightly charred on a campfire stone. The interplay of hefeweizen tartness with the natural acidity of the smoked malt is a wonderful dance. I will say that the Princedton version leaned more heavily on the hefe yeast esters, while this New Hope concoction if more firmly rooted in its Bamberg soil. The finish is predictably long as the sweet and smoke tickle the palate forever. Even driving home I can still taste this beer and enjoy retronasal wafts of burnt beechwood. Why, I beg, has this style of beer not been better explored!?

Tap at New Hope Loc. Wheatloaf aroma with a touch of german bologna. Hazy amber beer looking well treated and substantial, with a low head. Tastes of cured meats, smoked cheese with lemon citrus stronger than the A.S.R. version. Modest palate, meaty mitty leathery feel. Darn good, best beer they had on tap there.

12oz handbottled from New Hope and sent to me in a trade by Dickinsonbeer! - Thanks Paul! - Pours murky brown/amber with a nice white head that stays pretty well and laces the glass some. Aroma is bannana, cloves, and some hickory smoke. Flavor is nice and smoky and the flavor blends so well with the bannana and clove of the hefeweizen. Wonderful flavor. Body is light and airy and very smooth to drink. Quite crisp and refreshing. This is a fantastic and unique beer that I’m very happy I got the chance to try!

Ohhh man!! I gotta get me more of this!!! This was at the Brewery and it was quite a treat. Nice and smokey!

Pour is hazed pale yellowish brown with a thin bright white head....smell is smokey with a lot of banans...not as much smoke flavor, but yeast and clove...good indeed....

Draught pint at Triumph New Hope. Murky apricot-brown body with a velvety white head. Aroma has great beechwood smoke qualities like a campfire, plus citrusy esters and some fresh wheat as well. Retains a vague hint of sulfur, but that doesn’t detract. Flavor is of medium, subdued smoke balanced by malted wheat and apparent yeast properties of clove and bubble gum plus some lightly tart acidity. Also has a pleasant note of vanilla and is medium sweet with lingering, mouth-watering smokiness. Very smooth with nice palatable texture. Great beer, with a very appealing blend of characters.