Alt Kanzler
Wildwuchs Brauwerk Hamburg

Had this beer by the bottle at a restaurant in Hamburg in July 2025. Given the last review from 2018, I think this beer has been improved. The base beer is solid, if nothing special, but the kiss of smoke is more noticeable than the last reviewer reported. Clean, and with a gentle, but flavorful smoke notes- think cedar. Not nearly so smoky as the classic rauchbier, but still a pleasant tipple.

Pours a murky deep golden coloration with a medium, foamy head and lots of fine particulates. Smell is not very expressive, with only quite faint aromas of sweet malt, herbal hops and smoke coming through. Taste follows the nose, with some rather unremarkable sweet'ish, doughy malts, herbal hops and a very light smokiness. Finishes with a light bitterness and really not much of an aftertaste, perhaps a little more smoke coming through. Smooth mouthfeel with a light body and carbonation.

This really has way too little smokiness going on to call itself a Rauchbier and the Lager underneath that isn't exactly very impressive either with its thin, slightly watery body and mouthfeel and rather faint malt/hop presence. This is okay, but that's pretty much it.