Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier

Okay, so this is clearly the hardest to pronounce beer that I have reviewed thus far! Also, wait till I tell you what it supposedly tastes like... bacon! Yeah, gross eh? I had one beer expert buddy tell me it tastes like bacon and another tell me it tastes like a ham sandwich. Although, to me a sandwich would have veggies, mayo and bread involved so I was a bit confused by that and I pray to God (or Santa (or Satan)) that this beer does not have a hint of mayo or else my toilet may have a hint of mayo as well if you catch my drift. So to be perfectly honest my curiosity is similar to a car accident on the side of the road. I just have to see what this tastes like even though I might regret it. So I already have pretty low expectations in terms of the enjoyment factor. However, I will say that so far I am impressed by the fact that there is a beer out there like this and my beer buddy who said it tastes like bacon was in the midst of recommending it on it being a great beer not just a fucking weird one!

Now, there is a lot to read on the website for Schlenkerla. This beer is the original, the Marzen, as they also offer an Urbock, a Wheat, a Lager, a Lentbeer and an Oak Smoke. Sounds legit! This brewery produces smokebeers. It achieves a smoky flavour by exposing the malts to the smoke burning beech-wood logs. This is explained in more detail on the site but it does sound interesting. It does also warn that if it tastes strange on first swallow to keep at it and it'll become better. I'm nervous.

I've just opened the bottle and took a whiff and it definitely smells smoky. It pours out pretty smooth and dark but not nearly as dark as most stouts and porters I've had. The smoky smell is quite strong and I can instantly see what my friend was saying about a bacon quality and I haven't even taken a sip yet.
First sip, the taste is basically what you'd expect from the smell but it has a light aftertaste which makes it easier to drink. The smoky flavour hits you at first and then the flavour descends into more a bitter lager flavour with an almost metallic quality that is not really all that great. It is getting better with each gulp, but really I almost feel like that is due to the smoky taste disappearing and more of a stout-like flavour evolving out of it.

I'm now trying the beer with some savoury crackers. Already the cracker tastes amazing after the beer, lets see if it goes both ways. Hmmm, it's not so much that the taste of the beer is altered all that much but I found that I enjoyed the beer a bit more. Maybe this beer works best with food? Although I could only recommend salty, savoury, kind of food.

I will say that it is true that the beer gets better with each sip. I'm definitely enjoying it more than I thought would. However, I'm still not sure if I would get this again or even recommend it unless you just want to try a beer that tastes smoky.

70% : Decent beer, interesting smoky bacon-like flavour and scent. The aftertaste is more of a bitter lager though which is not amazing. Goes well with salty and savoury food. Only recommend trying this if you are interested in a more bizarre type of beer drinking experience.