Aecht Schlenkerla Fastenbier

Brewed by Brauerei Heller
Style: Smoked
Bamberg, Bayern, Germany

Draft at the Brickstore Pub. Shorty glass. Deep wooden color, beautiful creamy off-white head. Aroma of a freshly extinguished campfire. SMOKEY. Lots of salami. Flavor is light smoke. Sweet body. Light bitterness. There seems to be more hop on the palate than the smoke. The smoke flavor seems to be stuck in my teeth. Sticky texture, thick & heavenly. The best beer from the unique Brewery.

On tap at the maproom. Pours clear orange brown with a fluffy beige head. The nose is abundant, rich, and delicious. Smoked meat, salty ham, and burnt wood. Flavors start out with that smoked ham and earthy flavors that are followed by sweet caramel malts. Finishes bitter and earthy. The richness and depth of this smoked beer is excellent. Delicious. Props to the maproom for getting this rare treat.

On tap at Rich O’s - Glad to catch this one at GravityHead. Pours orangish amber with a mostly receding white head. Aroma of rauch, toffee, meats, sausage. Taste is smoky, meaty, toffee and rauchmalt. Medium to full bodied with moderate carbonation. Not sure how much nuance is in this beer, but it’s still an enjoyable drink. Would be a nice substitute for meat.

On tap at j-betskis. Amber pour with fluffy off white head. Nice smokey flavor without being over the top. very nice stuff

tap at the maproom....thanks to the chicago forum for the headsup on this one. it totally flew past my radar..... poured a semi-transparent cinammon amber brown with a thin soapy milky white head.... nose had some nice bacon smokiness and some burnt wood. just exactly what i was expecting.... nice smoky flavor that doesn’t overwhelm by any means. it pairs nicely with an underlying malt profile. carbonation was at an adequate level and it had a nice mouthfell overall.

On tap @ redlight. Holy campfire, Batman! I was excited to try this (first smoked beer, much less German rauchbier), but when I got my first whiff, I was worried I had gotten in over my head. It smells like your clothes do the morning after a huge bonfire. It was stupefying that a beer could smell like that. However, I proceeded to take a sip, assuming my mouth would be engulfed with smoke. Much to my surprise, a very balanced flavor. Smoke on the front, a solid malty middle, and a mild hop presence at the end. A good ten second flavor. I was left feeling the slight tingling in my mouth wondering if it was the hops or the smoke (probably both), but either way it was enjoyable. Poured a rich copper with a white head. I would be quite happy if I could have a few of these every Lent season, though not all on the same night. Brent, thanks so much for bringing this to Orlando.

On tap at Maproom Chicago. Poured a deep tannish color. Very smokey flavor, but the meat taste was not overwhelming. I’m not a huge smoked beer fan but this one was one of the more enjoyable ones I have had.

On draft at Redlight. Poured a deep, burnished copper color. Aroma was full on smoked meat, toasted malts, and a touch of acrid smoke. The flavor, as expected, was brutishly smoky and intense, though oddly completely balanced and harmonious. Beguiling and contemplative, this is truly a beer that deserves it’s spot in the Pantheon of great beers.