Aging and Tasting Notes for Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier (Urbock)
By jason on Apr 12, 2008 in Bocks, IPA's, and More, Reviews
Name: Rauchbier - Urbock
Brewer: Aecht Schlenkerla
Style: Rauchbier
Vintage: 2007
Cellared On: March 21st, 2008
Original Tasting: April 12th, 2008
After popping the cap on this brew, there’s no doubt what you’re dealing with here. Smoke, and a whole hell of a lot of it. Powerfully smoky smells came off of this brew. I was reminded of a roaring campfire with a pound or two of bacon cooking over it. The appearance of this beer perfectly matched the smell - it was a dark brown with fire read streaks running through it. It looked like a fading ember in a dying flame.
The big surprise here was the first sip. It wasn’t smoky! Assertive roasted malts flavors dominated, with a touch of sweetness a bit of smoke hiding in the background. It was also much lighter bodied then I was expecting, owning to it’s lager nature I would suspect. As the beer flavor progresses, the smoke flavor comes on stronger and stronger until it thoroughly dominates this beer. Even with how strong the smoke flavor gets, it never unbalances the beer as a whole. The finish is long and smoky, with maybe a touch of sweetness on the tongue.
Overall I fun beer to drink, and surprisingly easy to sample. The smoke flavor did build up on me the more I drank, and it would be tough for me to have more then one of these at a time. I would definitely recommend having that one though!
Cellar Outlook: I have no doubt this is going to hold up just fine. The smoke should fade over time, letting some of the malt flavors come more to the forefront.
Next Tasting: September 2008
Jason
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