Aecht Schlenkerla Helles Lagerbier

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

Sampled at the RBPG; bottle courtesy of yinzer. The aroma of this particular beer from this brewery is perfectly described by two words: smoked honey. Pours clear golden with a thin white head. Medium bodied with light carbonation. This is a fairly simple lager, with a dry light maltiness that’s not really complex. Unlike some of the other beers from this line, the smoked meat taste is not overpowering, but rather you’re left with some smoky honey notes. It’s light, tasty, and in no way overpowering when compared to the others. A bit thin, but nice.

No brewer does smoke like Brauerei Heller-Trum. Being based on a helles I knew it wouldn’t be as strong as their others. Aroma was nice. Smoke and not much else. Pour was a light gold with a white ring for a head. Taste was bland (as I consider a helles to be) with not much coming to the front other than the mild smokiness. I like my smokes so strong that I cough after a sip. Good but not great.

Bottle sampled at the Ratebeer meet-up 01.27.08 at the Sharp Edge Creekhouse. Beer courtesy of Yinzer.

Pale yellow with white head. Aroma is malt, honey, ham. Flavor is the same and smoky but has a weak body. This was dubbed "liquid bacon" or "bacon grease," I can’t quite remember the exactly wording. Personally I would have preferred more of a bacon flavor. :)

bottle. golden pour, carbonated with clarity. almost no head. sweet grains, wheat, yeasts and caramel malts in aroma. flavor is much the same iwth some rice and mild hops. dry mouth. texture a bit of syrup.

Pours a crystal clear straw colour with a large puffy white head, quickly reducing to a sudsy film. The nose is muted and uninspiring, with floral, saaz hops, honey, corriander and a whisper of smoked malt. The flavour brings out the smokiness of the brew, but its dominated mostly by floral hops and honey-sweet malts. There is an herbal, almost medicinal mid-palate flavour profile. The body is thin and the mouthfeel is sharp, watery and crisp. Dissapointing.

Bottle: Poured clear golden yellow color lager with a medium white foamy head with average retention and limited lacing. Aroma of floral malt with some sweetness also noticeable. Taste is a mix between some floral malt with some sweet notes but I could not distinguish any some at all. Body is quite full and slightly oily with some medium carbonation. Interesting but not really smokey.

Bottled (BB 01/2008)
Very pale color, small white head. Sweet maize-kind of aroma, very tiny smokey feeling there. Light grassy hoppyness, metallic malty flavor. Smoke in the aftertaste. Heller-Trum has better products than this, looks overrated.

Bottled. Yellow colour, small white head. Aroma is mild smoke, maize and diacetyl. Flavour is diacetyl diacetyl, maize and some mild hoppyness. Mild smoke as it gets a bit warmer.