Rauchbier
August Schell Brewing Company

RauchbierRauchbier
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From:
August Schell Brewing Company
 
Minnesota, United States
Style:
Rauchbier
ABV:
Not listed
Score:
89
Avg:
4.01 | pDev: 13.22%
Reviews:
44
Ratings:
53
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jul 29, 2015
Added:
Feb 26, 2011
Wants:
  6
Gots:
  2
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Photo of pat61
Reviewed by pat61 from Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
From tasting notes. L: Pours brilliant chestnut under a thin white foam cap.
S: Has all of the smoky malt aromas you would expect from a Rauchbier
T: The smoky malt tastes include dark bready malt and dark caramel flavors with just a touch of hops, which is appropriate for the style.
F: Medium body and medium carbonation.
O: Smoky malt flavors fall midrange making a drinkable beer that is not as challenging as some Rauchbiers.
Jul 29, 2015
 
Rated: 3.75 by NilocRellim from Minnesota

Sep 17, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by pisomojado8 from Minnesota

May 21, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by KAF from Iowa

Jan 20, 2012
Photo of Sammy
Reviewed by Sammy from Canada (ON)

3.27/5  rDev -18.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
This met the characteristics of the style, but was making me feel a little off. I was fine with the beers before and after. Decent head on a brown body. So-so, not too drinkable. Too carbonated, otehrwise average mouthfeel.Thanks John.Needs more better malting.
Jan 09, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by aliving1 from Minnesota

Jan 03, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by whartontallboy from New York

Jan 03, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by spycow from Illinois

Dec 07, 2011
 
Rated: 5 by I2uss from Minnesota

Nov 18, 2011
 
Rated: 5 by FreshmanPour77 from Minnesota

Nov 16, 2011
 
Rated: 2 by doucmehu from Oregon

Nov 16, 2011
Photo of armock
Reviewed by armock from New York

4.29/5  rDev +7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Thanks to chixdighops for hooking this bottle up in the Good People Farm System BIF

A - Poured a mahogany color with a thin tan head that quickly fades to a ring

S - Has a very nice meaty smoked malt nose

T - Like the nose the flavor is all smoked malt with some meatiness to it

M - This beer has a medium body with medium carbonation to it

O - I really like this beer to me you can never have too much smoke and a lot of Rauchbiers fall short to me but this one here has a very nice smoke flavor that I love if you like Rauchbiers this is a good one to get your hands on
Oct 03, 2011
Photo of birchstick
Reviewed by birchstick from Colorado

3.82/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5
A - pours a brownish copper color without much of a head

S - smells a little fruity with hints of smoked malts & meat

T - caramel malts up front and fade to more of a toasted grain malt bill in the middle. The meat/bacon/ham/smoked flavor comes through in the finish, but not as strong as I expected (which is good).

M - higher than average amounts of carbonation give this a sharp feel with a medium body

D - pretty solid rauchbier. This can be a very inapproachable style if the beer is too amped up on the smoke flavors. This had a nice balance going on amongst smoked and non-smoked malts, which increases its drinkability. Definitely worth a shot.
Sep 28, 2011
Photo of TastyTaste
Reviewed by TastyTaste from Minnesota

4.8/5  rDev +19.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5
A body that is about the color of strong iced tea. Just a shade of head on the pour, leaves a thin cream-colored skin. Deep smokiness in the nose, sharp and pungent. The underlying beer is a sweet, malty lager. The smokiness of the beer is done as well as any other. It is pungent and assertive, without being obnoxious or seeming like it doesn't fit in the beer. Overall, this beer is well made start to finish, a great representative of the style. This is the best non-stout smoked beer I have had the privilege of tasting.
Sep 06, 2011
Photo of UMNbeerhunter
Reviewed by UMNbeerhunter from Minnesota

4.1/5  rDev +2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Poured into a Russian River glass on 8/24/11.

Pours a dark brown with deep reddish amber hues when held to the light. Nice bubbly light colored head that dissipates quickly leaving no lacing. I would like to have seen a little lacing on this but otherwise very nice.

Smell is of some roasted malts and... Camp fire! really nice subtle smoky campfire aroma. Some sweet malt hits as well.

Taste is again a nice touch of smoke and some carmel malting. A little sweetness but not much. Interesting. I would like some more sweet to the flavor but its really nice.

Mouthfeel is moderate to medium but moves smoothly through the pallet with a nice tingle. Almost like a smoky, malty, lager feel to it.

Overall I am really surprised and impressed with this offering from Schells. I wish I could have this every fall around a Minnesota campfire in late October. Delicious.
Aug 25, 2011
Photo of Pintofbrown
Reviewed by Pintofbrown from Texas

3.92/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Appearance: A honey – brown appearance with nice carbonation. A thin egg white cap covers the beer, maybe half a finger width. As the beer is rotated around the glass, it leaves a film that dissipates slowly. It’s a very bubbly head, not very thick, more lacey.

Smell- The smoke is noticeable, it reminds me very much of bacon. Not the maple variety however, just that nice smoked bacon flavor on the nose, a little bit of woodiness also. It’s not pine, definitely more like camp fire. It’s a nice addition to pick up here.

The hop profile is non-existent, but that’s just fine for this style. Overall, this rauchbier gives off a gentle smokiness that isn’t overwhelming, and that’s a big plus.

Taste – Yeah, that’s good. The smokiness on the palate leans more towards the camp fire than the smoked bacon flavor. As it recedes, the smokiness changes to roasted malt profile. The bitterness is there, but only slightly. Not much snap to it, but this means there is more time to focus on the smoked flavor. It’s not really a “big” smoked profile, this is more of an ease you in offering.

It’s light and swiftly changes to a roasted malt taste you might find in a porter. The smoked wood / sauna taste is there and gone.

Mouth feel - What is an appropriate mouth feel for a smoked beer? It doesn’t need to be big and chewy, this is more medium and smooth, which fits the profile very well. It’s not caustic, and the smoke taste doesn’t lend itself to an overly dry finish. It’s very neutral.

Maybe falls a little farther on the ale side of the spectrum. Still, what to take away overall is that it is a fairly smooth finish, and definitely drinkable.

Overall: So far, this smoked offering is one of the easiest to drink if one is new to the style. The smoke is not overly done, as in it’s not trying to go really big. So it won’t scare new smoked beer drinkers off. And it finishes with a relatively generic roasted malt flavor.

This familiarity will also help ease in the smoke beer drinker. Add to that the fact that it’s an easy drink, and there’s no reason why the Schell’s Rauchbier shouldn’t at least be tried by those that come across it.
Aug 17, 2011
Photo of gatornation
Reviewed by gatornation from Arizona

4/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
from 12 oz bottle into pint glass BB 071711

A- pours a a clear dark mahogany color with beautiful garnet hues a nice 1 finger khaki color head leaves lacing and a fresh collar thru out

S- smoked malts up front with sweet caramel and baked bread a hint of beef jerky

T- smoked malts hit the palate first with a sweet caramel baked bread middle followed by some dark fruits like blackberry or elderberry, some fig a nice light smoke finish of dried meats play out nice

M- robust with smoke and meat taste but not overpowering,has some creamy texture to it,lots of malts and caramel/fruit

O- a great representation of the style.. well made tasty
Aug 14, 2011
Photo of EgadBananas
Reviewed by EgadBananas from Louisiana

4.05/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5
Big thanks to brewseum for the local! Love smoked beers!

Pours a very nice dark mahogany color, with a light tan head consisting of big bubbles. Nice smoky, campfire aroma with some supporting malt sweetness. Again, nice smoky notes on the taste. Not huge, but it's assertive and well balanced. The lightly sweet, caramel malt background adds to that balance. It's a little be on the light bodied side, lacking a little desired creaminess, but nothing too detracting.

Overall, a very well-balance, tasty Rauchbier! Very glad to have tried it!
Aug 13, 2011
Photo of Greggy
Reviewed by Greggy from Minnesota

4.09/5  rDev +2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A- Pours a dark amber color with hints of brown. The very light tan head is rather quick to dissipate leaving no lacing.

S- Deep caramel, prunes, raisins and smoke! Minnesota butcher shops comes to mind with smoked venison. A little bit of campfire comes through as well.

T- Starts out very malty with some dark fruit notes, nice bits of smoke and a slightly dry finish.

M- Very round bock-like feel. Appropriate carbonation.

D- Schell Brewery lists this as 6-7% abv. Overall it's very drinkable and a great beer, especially with food. I hope to find more!
Jul 25, 2011
Photo of AgentZero
Reviewed by AgentZero from Illinois

3.03/5  rDev -24.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Bottle thanks to Chris.

A - Copper colored beer with an off-white head that faded to a ring with minor sick on the sides.

S - Sweet caramel malts, reminds me a little bit of a bock beer in some ways. There's a lot of smoke in there, but the flavors aren't blending very well, and it gives the impression that somehow it's watered down.

T - Rauchbiers have a tendency to taste watered down, and this one doesn't seem to be an exception. Lots of smoke, sweet caramel walts, with kind of a watered down taste.

M - Moderate carbonation, lighter side of medium bodied.

O - Style this is hard to impress me with, and I found this a little bland and boring. Nothing I'd go for again.
Jul 09, 2011
Rauchbier from August Schell Brewing Company
Beer rating: 89 out of 100 with 53 ratings