Rauch Helles
Von Ebert Brewing

Look: Opaque dull yellow with a lively head that quickly builds and slowly settles to a pillow, leaving spotty lacing behind
Aroma: Wood smoked barley, savory/umami, smoke, some pilsner malt, and barbeque
Taste: Wood smoked barley and barbeque kick it off and hold for a bit before layers of smoke, pilsner malt, and savory come in tow. These all weave in and out of the forefront through the close
Mouthfeel: Light, medium-high carbonation, clean, and with a crisp and clean finish
Overall: I dig it. A tasty Rauch Helles with a nice balance of malt, smoke, and umami that all interplay well and come together to make a good, well-made, Rauchbier. I’d love to try this again and fresher too as my can is a whopping 14 months old (!) but it held up nicely, like I figured and hoped it would

draught
Straw color. Moderate, beech wood smoke aroma, with an underlying, lightly toasted, caramelized malt note. Subtle, beechwood smokiness, makes the beer taste off-dry, with the lightly toasted malt, hand in hand, of course. A subtle beer, even with the smoke, and finishes with finesse.

Had on tap. Cloudy golden body with a plump white head. Smell and taste are clones: wood fire smoked grains, biscuit with a hint of honeycomb, light earthy hops, hint of bacon, general smoke is pervasive but it has complex character, fruit esters linger faintly, this is really well balanced. Feel is strikingly medium bodied, smoky and crisp. A wonderful smoked helles lager!

Pours a golden. This rauch helles was definitely brewed with me in mind as it is one of my favorite styles of beer. There's kind of a deli ham type of aroma that lets you know what kind of adventure you're going to go on. It's definitely ham forward - honey ham is my preferred deli meat and this definitely comes along those lines. There's some nice white bready malt character. There's a touch of creaminess in there as well that's really setting this off. There's a touch of meat juice on the finish. All of these are good things and this is an extremely enjoyable rauch helles.

Can from Market of Choice

A crystal clear straw yellow with a rapidly receding white head that leaves little lacing, this looks solid. The nose is delightfully smoky, soft, delicate oaky, with a hint of plastic to go with the earthy hops. Unique here is a fatty, meaty smoke character that is undiminished in the lighter smoked helles one finds. The palate opens smoky and clean with a blend of wood smoke, smoked meat and a clean, lightly fruity lager yeast character. Drying, smoky on the finish. Crisply carbonated, light in body, this is an impressive smoked helles.