Rauchbier

Rauchbier (German for "smoke beer") is a German beer, typically dark in color and smoky in taste. The smokiness is due to the drying or smoking of the malts over a fire before the brewing process. Rauchbier is most commonly brewed in the town of Bamberg, where it originated.

"It's like Liquid Ham" proclaims the promotional material from Bamberg's Tourism board. In fact, the beer is intensely smoky. It is also balanced with a very dry sweetness from the relatively dark roast of the malt. The smoke flavor comes from the smoking of the malts rather than a more typical roast. Although this style of beer is especially characteristic of the Bamberg region of Germany, it is believed that this is a very traditional way of roasting the malts. One of the best examples of the beer is Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier (which translates roughly to the Original Schlenkerla Smokebeer).

See also

• German beer