Tasting Order: Smoked/Rauchbiers

Our tasting group is doing Rauchbiers and Smoked Beers on Sunday night, and I'd be grateful for any suggestions on a tasting order. I know that these types can often blow your palate, so I'm guessing we want to go from least to most smoky. Here's what I have lined up thus far:

Alaskan Smoked Porter
Schlenkerla Marzen
Schlenkerla Urbock
SA Cinder Bock
Stone Smoked Porter
Victory Otto Ale

I can also probably get some Charkoota, but when I had a sample at the NH brewery, I found it nearly undrinkable.

Thanks!

 

Thanks for your suggestions! I will let you know how it goes.

 

The list keeps growing. I tracked down the Schlenkerla Weizen as well as Clown Shoes Vampire Slayer, Dark Horse Fore Smoked Stout, Left Hand Smoke Jumper and Three Heads Bromigo.

From an historical perspective, I'm a little more inclined to go with herrburgess' suggestion of doing the Schlenkerla first. Set the benchmark and see how everything else compares. Here's my tentative list:

Schlenkerla Weizen
Schlenkerla Maerzen
Schlenkerla Urbock
Otto
Stone
Alaskan
Dark Horse
Vampire Slayer
Smoke Jumper
Bromigo
Cinder Bock

 

We started with the Schlenkerlas, and the general impression was that they were in a class by themselves. The integration of the smokiness into the overall flavor profile was phenomenal. My favorite turned out to be the Weizen. I appreciated the complexity and the interplay with the wheat. Overall, however, the preference of the group was pretty evenly split between the Maerzen and the Ur-Bock.

From there we went to the American stouts and porters. The Alaskan was definitely the closest to the Schlenkerla. Many of the group found a favorite in the Dark Horse Fore, appreciating the smooth richness and the chocolate notes. I was most impressed by the Clown Shoes Vampire Slayer, but I natural lean towards the bigger stouts. The consensus was that the Stone and Left Hand offerings, while decent, were on a lower tier.

Finally, we wrapped up the rest of the American options, none of which were found to match up with the previous selections. With the Otto Ale, the interplay between the Belgian yeast and smoked malt was not harmonious. The Bromigo had a lot going on, but the overall flavor was unappealing. Finally, the Cinder Bock, as herrburgess and tigg924 noted, was a little on the sweet end also.

In the end, everyone in the group enjoyed the tasting. There were a few guys unfamiliar with the style and a little cautious, but we all found a few that we really appreciated. As summer rolls around and grilling season heats up, I'll definitely keep plenty of Schlenkerla on hand. I'll also try to stock up on the Vampire Slayer and see what it tastes like with some age.

Thanks again for everyone's suggestions.