Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier – Urbock

Reviewed By: Rick S.
Style: Rauchbier, Bock
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 6.5%
Serving Type: 16.9 oz Bottle

Look: 8
Dark brown color, clear, with a decent head and little lacing

Smell: 9
Bacon, malt, and slight must

Taste: 9
Mild Smoke up front, then a wave of sweetness, and then the two trail off together in the finish

Mouthfeel: 9
Medium to full body, slightly creamy, with low carbonation.

Drinkability: 8.5
Surprisingly good!

Overall Score: 8.7

Value: 7
Cost/12 oz serving: $3.79

Overall Impression:
I was expecting to be overwhelmed with smokey flavors, but that was not case.  This beer is surprisingly well balanced.  There is plenty of malt backbone to stand up to the smoked malt and mild hop bitterness.  

There are those beer drinkers who consider Rauchbier strictly an acquired taste, and will have none of it. However, when paired with the right foods, Rauchbier can become the star of the show.

Food Pairing:
Suzy-QCB and I tried this world-class Rauchbier with a Pork Tenderloin that I smoked for 2.5 hours accompanied by green beans with roasted pecans and butter, and all of the flavor combinations were superb! 

Rauchbier goes extremely well with bold, full-flavored foods, real BBQ, and smoked foods such as smoked ham, smoked pork, smoked salmon, smoked sausages or smoked cheeses.  The smoky flavors in the beer and food complement each other perfectly! Rauchbier is also great with Mexican food.

Bitburger Premium Pils

Reviewed By: Rick S.
Style: German Pilsner
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 4.8%
Serving Type: 16.9 oz Can

Look: 8
Straw color, very clear, with a thin white head and not much lacing

Smell: 7
Crackers, with very faint biscuit malt and floral hops

Taste: 7.5
Up Front: Very sharp & assertive hops giving way to light malt character, and a clean hoppy finish.

Mouthfeel: 8
Medium body & carbonation

Drinkability: 7
Balanced, but the metallic taste is a bit of a turn off for me

Overall Score: 7.5
Value: 9
Cost/12 oz serving: $0.87

Overall Impression:
I would have liked it more if the metallic flavor was subdued or absent altogether. Still, not too bad, and for only 87 cents for a 12oz serving, you really cant comp[lain too much.

Ayinger Altbairisch Dunkel

Reviewed By: Rick S.
Style: Dunkel
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 5.0%
Serving Type: 16.9 oz Bottle

Look: 9
Deep reddish brown color, very clear, with a dense tan head with nice lacing

Smell: 9
Bready malts, toffee, and a hint of smoke


Taste: 9.5
Up Front: Crisp hoppy flavor giving way to sweet malt and a touch of caramel. Finish: Dry, malty and grainy...YUM!

Mouthfeel: 9
Medium body & carbonation

Drinkability: 9.5
A malt-forward beer that finishes clean and dry...very refreshing!

Overall Score: 9.2
Value: 10
Cost/12 oz serving: $2.13

Overall Impression:
What can I say...Ayinger simply produces top-notch German beers! Sadly, Dunkel had fallen out of favor since the onslaught of Pilsner. Although it is a typically around 5% ABV, it is actually a very flavorful style.  Not to be confused with many European beers that are merely doused with coloring agents and passed off as "dark", this is an authentic Dunkel which gets it's color from Munich Malts and the German style of mashing known as decoction. This is the style of beer known as Liquid Bread, and one taste of this beer and you'll see why!  It's a great session-able beer that is great all by itself or with food.
 
Food Pairings:
Suzy QCB and I had it with Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Veggies, and it was amazing! The malt and mild caramel flavors are a perfect match with all types of roasted meats, particularly pork. Roasted veggies, sweet & sour foods, sauerkraut and even pickled veggies wouild match up with the sweet malt as well. Sausages, especially German styles are perfect with Dunkel. It even goes well with spicy dishes and Chinese food.

Ayinger Celebrator Doppelbock

Reviewed By: Herr Mike

Style: Doppelbock
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 6.7%
Serving Type: On Tap @ Local 44

Look: 9
Dark mahogany color, creamy beige head, light lacing

Smell: 9.5
Malty, chocolate, roasted nuts, caramel

Taste: 10

Up Front: Malt, dark fruit, burnt toast, toffee, vanilla. Finish: Chocolate with a slight fruity finish

Mouthfeel: 10
Creamy and smooth

Drinkability: 10

Keep em’ coming!

Overall Score: 9.7

Value: 10

Cost/12 oz serving: $6.50 - it's $4.00 for bottles (green ones)

Overall Impression:
Had this one on tap and it was De-LISH! This beer has great depth to it, but it’s not overpowering, so you can have more than one. Herr Rick took a sip of my beer and he liked it too!

Paulaner Salvator

Reviewed By: Herr Mike

Style: Doppelbock
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 7.9%
Serving Type: 12 oz Bottle

Look: 9
Light amber color, fluffy off white head, nice lacing

Smell: 9
Bread, malt, toffee, honey, chocolate

Taste: 9

Up Front: Malt, alcohol, caramel, spice
Finish: Alcohol and then a hit of malt

Mouthfeel: 9
Dry and chewy, almost like eating a dark sweet bread

Drinkability: 9

I’m not a big lager fan, but this is the style I can drink during the cold winter months

Overall Score: 9

Value: 10

Cost/12 oz serving: $1.52

Overall Impression:
This is a beer that is the benchmark for the style and it’s a great value to boot! If I had to drink this during lent, I’d be one happy monk!

Brauerei Weihenstephan 1809

Reviewed By: Herr Rick
Style: Berliner Weisse
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 5.0%
Serving Type: On Tap @ The Devil's Den

Look: 8.5
Pale golden color, cloudy - yeasties dancing all over, with a head that dissipates very quickly

Smell: 9.5
Lemon zest, vanilla, wheat, acid funk - very aromatic

Taste: 9.5
Up Front: Nice and tart, lemon zest. Finish: Sweet. Good balance of malt and wheat flavors

Mouthfeel: 8.5
Thin, and very smooth

Drinkability: 9
Super quaffable session beer! Uber refreshing! Not sure how many I could have in a row. I'll have to test that one day.

Overall Score: 9

Value: 8
Cost/12 oz serving: $5

Overall Impression:
This is a style that will appeal to people that enjoy Tart Belgian Ales, and Wild Ales. I strongly recommend against getting the syrup poured into it, thus making it a foofoo girly drink.

Aventinus Eisbock

Reviewed By: Herr Rick
Style: Eisbock (Wheat)
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 12%
Serving Type: 12 oz Bottle

Look: 9.5
Deep ruby/brown, slightly cloudy with a nice head that hung out for a while, yet left little lacing

Smell: 10
Cloves, and dark fruit - raisins & prunes

Taste: 10
Up Front: Alcohol bite, cloves, and other spices. Finish: Banana, raisin, clove, caramel, sweet malt - very complex

Mouthfeel: 9.5
Medium body, and smooth. This is 12% abv??? I never would have guessed. Having said that, the carbonation is also higher than expected, but still on point

Drinkability: 10
I am savoring every sip!!!

Overall Score: 9.8

Value: 10
Cost/12 oz serving: $2.75 - Less than $3 - are you fucking kidding me?

Overall Impression:
This beer is essentially a concentrated version of Aventinus Weizenbock. The flavor is intense and the incredible finish just keep going and transforming. Seriously, I did not think it could get any better than their Weizenbock, but I stand corrected. Hey, sometimes it feels good to be wrong ;)

Aventinus

Reviewed By: Herr Rick
Style: Weizenbock/Wheat Dopplebock
State/Country: Germany
ABV: 8.2%
Serving Type: 500ml Bottle

Look: 10
Deep reddish brown, slightly cloudy. Big head, but it dissipates quickly with a little lacing

Smell: 9
Cloves, and dark fruit - plums mostly

Taste: 10
Up Front: All kinds of spices, but cloves stand out
Finish: Banana, raisin, prune, clove, sweet & roasted malt

Mouthfeel: 9.5
Medium body, smooth & thick with low/medium carbonation

Drinkability: 10
Oh My ME, that was easy to drink! So smooth and decadent!

Overall Score: 9.7

Value: 9
Cost/12 oz serving: $3.10 - when you consider how good beer this is, that's a bargain!

Overall Impression:
This Weizenbock from Germany is hands down, the best one I've had to date. Very complex from start to finish. I truly have never cared much for Wheat Beers, but this one changes everything. I could drink this any time! Highly recommended!