Smoked beers

Rauchbier can be a top- or bottom-fermented beer style. It has an alcohol content of about 4-6% and a color ranging from amber to dark brown.

The name "smoked beer" comes from the smoky aroma that the beer exudes in the nose and on the palate. The smoked beer style is, as the name suggests, brewed with smoked malt. During malt production, the still-germinating grain is smoked using beech or oak smoke. The wood smoke penetrates the grain and gives it its unusual and unmistakable taste. This type of malt is also used in other beer styles, such as porter and stouts , to give the beer a light smoky taste.

Smoked beer is a malt-based beer in which hops still play an important role. The hops have to be very intense in order to stand out against the smoked malt and create a contrast.

The taste of the smoked beer is reminiscent of liquid ham. This means that a Franconian snack platter with smoked ham and strong, intense cheeses is a perfect counterpart to a cool smoked beer.

Probably the most famous smoked beer in the world is the Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier from the Bamberg brewery Schlenkerla .