Aecht Schlenkerla Helles Lagerbier

Brewed by Brauerei Heller
Style: Dortmunder/Helles
Bamberg, Bayern, Germany

Bottle. Pours a clear golden yellow with hardly any head. Aroma is a bit skunky (which faded only slightly as the beer warmed) with some sweet malt notes. Flavor of more sweet malts (bready), some light fruits as the beer warms. I was surprised to learn this is classified as a "smoked", I guess I would say there are some smoky notes in this beer, but only if you look hard enough for them. Just ok.

Bottle. Aroma of pale malts and smoke. Flavor mostly keeps the smoke in the background, restraining it to generalized earthiness, with the malt opening up into a nice, sweet breadiness, at times lightly fruity. This bready malt, definitely the highlight of the beer for me, also dominates whatever hop presence there is. Nice beer, nothing terribly remarkable.

Not too bad, but relatively unexciting. The aroma is definitively smoky and peat-y, as is the aroma, but you have to work to find it. Great mouthfeel though.

Bottle: Slight haze to the golden pour with a thin bubbly white head. The nose has mild smoke, but it’s there. Some doughy, damp German malts and a very mild hop character. Has some wood and earthy as well. Great creamy mouth feel, especially for the low ABV. Nice bready malts give it sufficient body. The smoke is apparent, less so when compared to their other offerings. It leans toward woody and earthy, and it’s nicely balanced by a mild Euro-hop bite in the finish. Pretty solid, just needs more Smoke!

Smoked ham and hop aroma is not very strong but pleasant. Deep golden color with a medium/small head. The start tasted like most German pilsners, crisp and clean, medium bodied.More smoked ham flavors arose in the finish with very little or no bitterness.

Pours very pale gold with a frothy white head. Aroma of yeast, smoke, and spice. Light, highly carbonated body. Initial taste is crisp and clean, pilsner like hops.....lagerlike. Finish is nicely (and not overwhlelmingly) smoked which definitely elevates this otherwise unexciting beer. Not my favorite of the Aecht Schlenkerla line, but a clean, crisp, refreshing beer.

Pours golden with a small white froth. Light ham aroma, some smoke, and skunky German hops, sweet smelling. Taste is much the same: salted ham, grassy, lightly smokey. Nice bubbly light body, fine carbonation, glassy. Seems like more of a pils than a helles. A nice easy drinking accidentally smoked beer =)!

I thought this was a decent beer overall. You get just a hint of the smokiness in the nose, but more herbal hoppiness, and a hint of ffresh cut grass. The flavor is got a nice malt profile, a bit of honey sweetness, but very biscuity. The smokiness lingers giving it a nice bitterness in the finish. Enjoyable and uniquely different.