Smoke Follows Beauty
Blind Tiger Brewery & Restaurant

gabf gold medal winner this year for smoked beer, and its real good, these guys are on a roll it seems. smoked bock, amber mahogany colored, crystal clear, frothy headed on draft, looks awesome, smells even better. the smoke is bold, but the malt keeps some german identity, the lager yeast is right, and the proportions are spot on, this is immediately appealing, and if you liked smoked beer, this should really hit for you. nose is softer than so many, not acrid or harsh at all, but really smoke forward, peat, raisin, caramelized malt, and maple all come out, but i get a little earthy bitterness too, and it seems balanced, lager yeast is subtle but present for sure. the flavor follows, baked bread, maple candy, something slightly burnt, raisin, fig, old leather, oak. there is some bitterness here, maybe from the smoke, maybe from some long boiled noble hops, a bready depth to the yeast too, this has a lot going on. it feels maybe slightly thin for all the flavor, but that also lends to drinkability, which is high for something like this, and it seems perfect for mid fall sessioning. i cant quite place the smoked malt, could be alder or cherry or some combination, would love to know more details. i dont think its the best ive ever had, but i think it is plenty deserving of its award here, really solid, these guys have my attention now after a couple of next level smoked beers! i think i like their osage orange smoked pils even better than this one!