Smoke Beer
BY CHRIS KELLER
I like to joke with people that I work in the beer business so that I can tell anyone “ This beer puts food on the table !” In reality I ’ m just really into beer . I love its history , culture , process , business , and variety . I love introducing people ( especially those who had previously written off beer ) to styles that they really like and even love . Something else that gets me excited is hunting down elusive styles and brands that are unavailable near me . Whenever I find myself traveling , I make a point to visit a beer store to hunt down something I ’ ve never had . While visiting my sister in Seattle 15 years ago , I found in a small beer store something that I ’ d been wanting to try for years : Alaskan Smoked Porter . At that time Alaskan Brewing Company wasn ’ t available in Texas ( it is now , thankfully , and has been for a decade ) and I had only read about this beer . I was really excited to get my hands on one .
Since its 1988 inception , Alaskan Smoked Porter has won 75 awards in competitions around the world with 35 of them being gold medals . To make this beer the brewery smokes a portion of the malt with alder wood giving the beer a deep smokey flavor . That combined with dark roasted malts and a medium hop bitterness make this beer a very memorable experience ( it has now been five years since I ’ ve had one and I remember how it tastes as well as if I ’ d just had one today ).
Smoke beer is not a new innovation in brewing . In fact most early brews had a smokey flavor . The production of malt requires drying over heat . Woodfire , being the most abundant heat source of the time , would always add smoke flavor to the malt just as it does to food . In 1635 Sir Nicholas Halse patented a smoke-free kiln and in the early 19th century , Daniel Wheeler patented a “ drum kilning ” process that revolutionized malting . The drum kiln protected the malt from the fire thus preventing any smoke character in the malt . It also heated the malt more evenly , allowing maltsters to have more control over the process creating a variety of malt flavors and colors . This in turn helped to create more variety of beers . Smokey beer wasn ’ t completely eradicated , however . Some people like their beer smokey !
In Bamberg , Germany Schlenkerla and Spezial breweries are still producing smoke beer ( or “ rauchbier ” as it ’ s called there ) using fire kilns for their malt . These breweries are well known for their smokey lagers and wheat beers that have become a regional specialty for Bamberg . The beechwood-smoke adds a rather striking flavor that blends nicely with the sweetness of the malts . Your first taste of these beers might take you by surprise as the smoke is very prominent . The smoke flavor gives way to delicious caramel and dark fruit flavors with a clean , dry finish . If the smokiness is too pungent for you , try the Schlenkerla Helles . It doesn ’ t use any smoked malt but still retains a mellow smokiness from the yeast which is pitched from the smokey batches making it nice and refreshing with just a hint of smoke .
Polish Grodziskie is a smoke beer that would have been lost to the ages if it weren ’ t for Polish and American homebrewers keeping it alive . Grodziskie is made with 100 % oak smoked malted wheat . It ’ s light , hoppy , extra fizzy , and has a much milder smokiness than the beechwood-smoked Bamberg beer . Austin ’ s Live Oak Brewing worked with those homebrewers as well as maltsters in Germany and Poland ( even sourcing a preserved original yeast strain from Poland !) to bring this beer style back to life . If you find yourself in Austin , you should support this historic project : drop by Live Oak and try some oak-smoked Grodziskie !
Craft breweries around the world experiment with smoked malt in their beers . You ’ ll find the most variety in the United States . Most tend to be heavily influenced by the Bamburg beers , but you ’ ll find some deviations . Smoked malt is available from malt suppliers in many varieties of woodsmoke like cherry , beech , apple , or pear . Peat smoked malt in the Scottish whisky tradition is also available . Many , including Alaskan Brewing , smoke the malt themselves giving them more control over the end product as well as a uniqueness to the beer . Another really great method of getting a nice smoke profile while the beer mellows is aging a strong beer in barrels previously used to age peat-smoked Scotch whisky .
Most of the smoke beers that you ’ ll find tend to be on the darker side . Darker beers tend to have the type of flavors that compliment smokiness . Smoked beer ages exceptionally well too , melding the flavors into a smokey union . While it can be an acquired taste
30 WINTER EDITION 2023