ONE MORE REASON TO MOVE TO BAMBERG
Heller Aecht Schlenkerla Bock Rauchbier Abv 6.5 IBU 40
If you’re lucky, you live close enough to a beer store that gets B United distributed beers, and if you’re vigilant, you’ll be able to welcome the seasons with a cycle of smoked beers from Bamberg’s Heller Brewery that brews the extraordinary Schlenkerla beers. If you’re not lucky, you might consider moving to Bamberg. Smoked beers are, of course, the local specialty, but as some of our choices for featured beers in the last week have shown, if you can’t get used to the smoke, you don’t have to get out of this kitchen.
We’ve talked a good deal about Bamberg in the last week. It’s a a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the people are as friendly to foreigners as any you could find in a tourist destination, the food is exceptionally good, and the beer is phenomenal. Bamberg has been lucky – centuries of prosperity and prominence slowly came to an end in the modern era and the industrial revolution blessed other regions of Germany. That industry, though, made them targets in the Second World War. There just wasn’t that much worth bombing in Bamberg and it came through in exceptionally good shape.
We end the week with a Bamberg beer we found in New Jersey. Glassboro has two very good beer stores and there’s good brewpub hunting an hour’s drive back toward Philly. It’s brewed only once a year in October — look for it in the fall. Next time we see this we’re going to get a case of it.
Tasting notes: The bock’s strength seems to be an almost perfect match for the smoke. This beer has everything you could want in a smoked beer. Lots of roast in the malt, evident hops to balance and a big dose of smoke that habituation sends into the background as you continue to drink it. The smoke seemed to us a bit grassy and herbal, but it blended incredibly well with the roast.
Food Pairings: You could pair this with any of the foods we’ve been recommending for smoked beers, but the extra body and substance of this beer gives it some extra versatility. It would go well with a good hard cheese, though we’d avoid the temptation to complement the smoke with a smoked cheese. A roast pork loin would be another contrast to the smoke; a good Bavarian gravy with the pork would hold up to the depth of the bock’s flavors. Review #0080 20170306
COMING WEDNESDAY– OUR BEER REVIEWS BEGIN A SERIES OF OUR FAVORITE BARLEY WINES. “HOPPING AROUND” OFFERS A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE STYLE.
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