Cigar City 110K+OT Batch #1 Der Rauch Gott

Brewed by Cigar City Brewing
Style: Smoked
Tampa, Florida USA

A: Pours a very black hue. Small thin head with no retention. Looks thick, oily, and evil. S: Holy Smokes! This one smells like a Cub Scout camp fire. Tons of smoke, earthy wood, and ash. Hints of smoked meat, brown sugar round things out. This one is smoked to the max. T: The smoke transfers through is such a good way. Smoked bacon, and fresh beef jerky up front. Hints of chocolate and caramel attempt to provide a bit of balance, but if you love smoke this one is for you. M: Full bodied, thick, and creamy with a smokiness that overcomes your being. D: Rather good actually. Give me a rack of ribs off a green egg smoker and a bottle of this and I am set.

Thanks so much to Joey for sending me a bottle to share at DLD. Pours a really hazy brown color wtih a good tan head. Aroma is full of smoke, syrup, brown sugar, caramle, toffee, pipe tobacco and roast. Flavor is unreal. The best smoked beer I have EVER had. Period. End of story! Smoke, tobacco, booze, caramel, roast malt, vanilla, and damn just plain goodness. Call me a homer, but this beer kicks ASS!

Almost everything a smoked should be and more. Shared by the all powerful Daknole, taken from notes. This beer was the most well rounded smoked I’ve ever had. Pours a deep brownish red with a perfect head. Exceptional lacing. Flavor profile is awesome, nice toasted malt, with lots of smoke, and a juicy meat backbone. Not quite as smokey as *I* like, but then again, I like ridiculously smokey beers, so this is actually damn near perfect. Amazing palate on this one, toasted and creamy and slightly slick mouthfeel. A fantastic beer.

Bottle. Pours dark brown amber with a one finger tan head that fades leaving good lacing. Aroma of smoke, caramel, a touch of dark fruit, and a slight nuttiness in the finish. Taste is the same as aroma with the caramel and dark fruit really coming through with the smoke in the finish. Full mouthfeel with a mild to moderate amount of bitterness and smooth alcohol. Freaking delicious.

Bottle 4/29 courtesy of CCB, thanks a ton for this damn good beer. Pours dark dark brown with wafer thin tan head. The aroma is big bold smoky rauch-ness with a smokiness getting close to but not reaching Schlenkerla levels of bacon-y camp fire char. I get caramel, molasses, a hint of earthiness and some chocolate all hanging out behind the veil of smoke. The taste is the same with a solid smokiness up front moving into sweet slick sweetness coming from caramel, molasses and faint malts. Nearing midway chocolate notes sore to the front and lead into burnt malts and scorched molasses just as the smokiness re-doubles its influence. Into the finish I get brunt notes and solid lingering smokiness hanging around for a while as I come to grips with the full body, full flavor, full velvety creaminess of the experience. I think what this beer needs is a bit more balance in the nose and taste with either, dare I say, bolder notes around the smoke or a little less smoke. To me that would take it from stellar to frikin’ amazing (4.3 to at least 4.6).

Sample at DLD thanks to Dakine. Dark brown almost black with burnt tan head. Aroma is smoke, roast, sweeter malt, this is meat city. Flavor is sweet roast, chocolate, roast, less smoke in the flavor but still present, tasty. Full body with Creamy body. Fantastic smoke, roast, sweet, very nice.

Bottle at Papsø’s - Thanks. Clear dark reddish - offwhite head. Lovely smoked, chocolate, berries, fruity, ashtray, tobacco, sweetness, dark bitter chocolate, roasted, wood, dark bread, smooth body, nice light acid sourness. Lovely - Thanks Paps.

A very special thanks to Daknole for sharing bottle 16 / 29, Batch 1 at DLD ’09. Pours an opaque and thick muddy brown colored brew with an average sized tan head with some nice retention and film lacing. Aroma of smoked toasted dark malt, some chocolate, vanilla, a hint of tobacco and brown sugar. Taste is very full bodied, flavors of sweet chocolate, smoked and toasted dark malt, some vanilla, and brown sugar, Finish is syrupy, creamy with a distinct smoked dark malt with chocolate and molasses aftertaste. Very nice!