Athanor
Holy Mountain Brewing Company - Interbay Brewery + Taproom

always a treat to get to drink some holy mountain beers, especially on draft, and ive been even more into the smoked beers than ever before lately, so this one was a must for me. surprisingly pale colored brew, lighter than a lot of rauch types look, a guess a rauch helles here, frothy white headed from the tap with huge bubbles slowly bursting, nice lace in the wake of this head, good clarity and shine, a nicely refined looking lager, surprised to see this so golden in color rather than amber or brown. the nose is amazing, the german smoked malt thing, beechwood, campfire, light iodine and minerals, wet soil, fallen leaves, golden raisin, and a little biscuit from the pils malt in here too, very german to me, even before the familiar lager strain, slightly floral and bready and really clean overall, faint citrus and grass clippings in the hops, light spice maybe too playing with the smoke, the more i smell it the more i get, good complexity in something seemingly quite simple and even delicate for a smoked beer. the flavor is identical to the nose, a woodiness to the smoked malt profile for sure, but less intense than many and staying well away from bitter or acrid intensity, its mellow to me, obvious as this element is. the freshness of the pils malt comes through, crackery and clean, lightens this a lot without sacrificing flavor, way cool. the yeast is old worldy, expertly put to work here, and it dries this out nicely after a faint honey sweetness for balance in the center. subtle herbal hoppiness now, all on the swallow, but this isnt bitter, its just crisp, especially for the style. lighter bodied but big on flavor, clean as they come, super refined and professional, even kind of springy to me, amazing. its the wild stuff that has always impressed me most about holy mountain, but dont sleep on their lagers, this one is on point, lighter than most, an all day smoked beer finally!

Can.

Crystal clear straw yellow with a dense white head with good retention and lacing. The nose is moderately smoky up front with a smoldering wood character, along with a deep, rich, snappy and mildly sweet. The palate opens with a blend of sweet malt and smoke, with the sweetness light and deft and balanced by an earthy and moderately bitter hop character, mildly resinous. Drying, clean, smoky and bitter on the finish. Light in body, moderately carbonated. Quite excellent.

16oz can (dated "smoke or get f@%!ed". Cute.) poured into 14oz teku. Poured a bright, clean, very clear bright gold color with 1-2/3 inches of white head that had moderate retention and light lacing.

A medium amount of smoke id the dominant feature in the nose, but enough base grains come through to be interesting. No real hop presence.

Same on the tongue; nice smoke, some grain.

The body was light, clean, crisp, and had a dry, smoky finish that lingered.

Drinkability will depend on how well you like the smoke. i could easily drink several of these.

Overall, a very solid and enjoyable brew. Certainly worth grabbing if you see it.

 

2018-11-29
16oz can served in a pint glass. Gift from a friend at work. No date on it. Just a stupid stamp on the bottom that says, "Now I'm High Pt 3".

Pours crystal clear brassy golden with a smallish head and plenty of carbonation. Smell is lightly smokey, more malty.

Taste is strong smoke characteristic but balanced nicely with toasty/grainy sweetness. Good level of bitterness coming from somewhere.

Mouthfeel is dry and crisp. Overall, nice beer. Not always in the mood for a rauchbier (truthfully, rarely am), but it's a good beer.

Crisp, light, clear. Super clean .Very light. Decent little white head, not much retention. No lacing.

Nose is clean smoke and crisp sweet malts. Some light grassy and spicy hops, but this is about crisp clean green smoked malts. While the smoke is clearly the star of the show here, it is by no means overbearing or overpowering or anything. It's an ensemble affair, where the smoke just happens to shine.

Flavour leads in with crisp malts and bitter/spicy noble hops. More bitter here for sure. The smoke comes in along the final third/finish. The finish also brings forth more of the bitter hops. This is actually really hoppy for a helles. It works, especially with the interplay between the bitter hops and the smoke, but it is aggressive per my understanding of the style (whether you want to focus on the rauch or the helles).

Smoke and bitter hops through the finish as mentioned. Light body, decent carb. Very drinkable.