Smoked beer

Schlenkerla Rauchbier straight from the cask

Smoked beer (German: Rauchbier) is a type of beer with a distinctive smoke flavor imparted by using malted barley dried over an open flame. The Rauchbiers of Bamberg in Germany, Schlenkerla in particular, are the best-known of the smoked beers.

History

Drying malt over an open flame may impart a smoky character to the malt. This character may carry over to beers brewed with the smoked malt. Prior to the modern era, drying malted barley in direct sunlight was used in addition to drying over flames. Even though kiln drying of malt, using indirect heat, did not enter into widespread usage until the industrial era, the method was known as early as the first century BC. Also, there have been various methods over the years of preparing cereal grains for brewing, including making beer from bread, so smoked beer was not universal.

Beginning in the 18th century, kiln drying of malt became progressively more common and, by the mid-19th century, had become the near-universal method for drying malted grain. Since the kiln method shunts the smoke away from the wet malt, a smoky flavour is not imparted to the grain, nor to the subsequent beer. As a result, smoke flavour in beer became less and less common, and eventually disappeared almost entirely from the brewing world.

Bamberg Rauchbier

Bamberg smoked beer

Certain breweries, however, maintained the smoked beer tradition by continuing to use malt which had been dried over open flames. Two brewpubs in Bamberg, Germany: Schlenkerla and Spezial — have continued smoked beer production for nearly two centuries. Both are still in operation today, alongside seven other breweries in the same town. Both dry their malt over fires made from beechwood logs, and produce several varieties of Rauchbier ("smoke beer" in German).

Smoked beers outside Germany

In Austria, the Upper Austrian brewery Braucommune Freistadt produces smoked beer.

In The Netherlands, Emelisse produces a traditional German Rauchbier, as well as a smoked porter and a peated imperial Russian stout. The De Molen brewery also have several different smoked beers, such as Bloed, Zweet & Tranen and Rook & Vuur

In Italy, Birrificio Lambrate in Milan produces "Ghisa", a smoked beer with Bamberg's typical features.

In Japan, Honshū brewery Moku Moku produce a smoked ale, the brewery's name being a reference to the use of smoke screens by ninja. The brewery is part of a cooperative that also smokes ham and makes sausages.

In the United States, Geoff Larson, founder and brewmaster of the Alaskan Brewing Company made a smoked beer, Alaskan Smoked Porter, in 1988 influenced by the Rauchbiers of Bamberg. In 2008, New Glarus Brewing Company in Wisconsin produced "Smoke on the Porter", a beer produced partially with Bamberg-smoked malts and partially with malts smoked at a neighboring smokehouse. Samuel Adams of Boston began brewing their "Bonfire" Rauchbier in 2011, making its premiere in Sam Adam's "Harvest Collection" alongside their well known Oktoberfest and Pumpkin Ale.

In Quebec, Montreal's Dieu du Ciel brewery has produced a Rauchbier called the Charbonnière since 1999. In Gatineau, Brasseurs du temps (BDT) produces a Rauchbier called Mille Neuf Cendres. In addition, Chicoutimi's "La Tour à Bières" brews a red rauchbier called "1912", in reference to the year when a large fire destroyed a big part of the town of Chicoutimi.

In Brazil, Eisenbahn produces a smoked beer called Eisenbahn Rauchbier, using malts imported from Bamberg.

In Sweden, Närke Kulturbryggeri produces smoked beers called Anders Göranssons Bästa Rököl and Tanngnjost & Tanngrisnir, Eskilstuna ölkultur produces Röksta rökbock, a bock type lager, and Nils Oscar Brewery produces Nils Oscar Rökporter, a smoked porter. Helsinge Ångbryggeri makes Helsinge Rököl.

In Denmark, Hornbeer Brewery produces a smoked beer, called Røgøl (Danish for Smoked Beer)

In Australia, Redoak Boutique Beer Café produces a smoked beer called Redoak Rauch Bier. Also Brewmaster Hayden Mokaraka at Blue Sky Brewery in Cairns brewed a Bamberg inspired Smoke Wheat Beer that picked up a gold medal at AIBA 2010.

In New Zealand, the Invercargill Brewery seasonally each winter brew a rauchbier named Smokin' Bishop, made using Manuka.

In Britain, Meantime Brewery in London produces Winter Time, a smoked old ale, and Kelham Island Brewery in Sheffield produces Brooklyn Smoked Porter in association with Brooklyn Brewery.

The Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, Texas previously produced "Shiner Smokehaus", a Helles style beer that used mesquite smoke for the taste. This beer is no longer being produced seasonally.

In Finland, Vakka-Suomen Panimo produces smoked beer called Prykmestar SavuKataja (smoked juniper).

In Norway, Haandbryggeriet produces a smoked, juniper-flavoured beer called Norwegian Wood.

External links

• (English) (German) Brewery Schlenkerla
• (German) Brewery Spezial
• (English) (German) Bamberger-Bier.de - Bambergs brewing tradition
• (German) Braucommune Freistadt
• (English) Alaskan Brewing Company
• (English) (Portugese) Cervejaria Eisenbahn
• (English) Chuckanut Brewery featured Brewery