by Mark Meli

Rauchbier is a type of lager or wheat ale coming from the region around Bamberg in the German state of Bavaria. These are very unique and impressive beers on account of their smoky aromas and flavors, which come from malt that is dried directly with smoke.

To be used in brewing, barley must be malted: grains are soaked in water so they sprout, just like when planted in the ground. This germination produces enzymes that will convert the starch in the seed to sugar. The malt must then be dried, to prevent it from growing into a new barley plant. These days, this is usually done with indirect heat. Rauchmalz, however, is dried by direct heat, over a wood fire, so that the smoke rises up and passes through the malt and imparts its flavor to it. Until the 18th century, it is likely that almost all beer contained portions of such malt, since the technology for indirect kilning was not yet in use. Nowadays, however, smoked malts are used selectively, to impart woody and smoky flavors.

Smoked malts can be used in various kinds of beers, from porters and stouts to lighter ales, but the only continuously existing style of smoked beer—as opposed to a revived style—is the Rauchbier of Bavaria. There is evidence that brewers there never wholly shifted away from using smoked malts dried over a fire of aged beech wood logs.

Rauch beers are often startling to the uninitiated, with aromas of bacon, wood, and smoked salmon not normally associated with beer. Flavors are similar, although a whole spectrum of “smokiness” is possible. In some beers, just a bit is discernable, while others seem to taste of smoked bacon all the way down. They should not taste burnt or roasted like a stout, however.

Most traditional rauch beers are märzen lagers, deep amber to medium brown in color, though we can also find smoked helles, bock, and weizen. Rauchweizen can be especially interesting, with banana and clove notes blending somewhat uneasily with the smoke. All of these beers tend to be very lightly hopped, with almost no hop aroma whatsoever.

The classic example of rauch beer is Schlenkerla from Bamberg. Their Märzen, Ur-Bock, Weizen, and Eiche Doppelbock are full, luscious beers with rich malt character and tons of smoke. All are quite easy to find in Japan. There are many other great rauch beers in the Bamberg area, but you will have to travel there in order to enjoy them. In my opinion, however, the best rauch beers made outside of Bavaria come from Japan. Though usually less intensely smoky than the originals, the rauch beers from Tazawako and Fujizakura Kogen are as authentic as any you will find in the world. The latter also brewed a Rauchbock and a rauch weizen in the past, which we can’t wait to try again. Other convincing examples have come from Mojiko Retro, Baeren, Echigo, Okura Brasserie, and Gotemba Kogen. It seems brewers in Japan really have a taste for smoke!

These are great beers to pair with food. The traditional pairing would be with Bavarian sausages or roast pork, and that is hard to beat, though these beers will also complement the flavors of grilled Japanese foods, such as unagi or yakitori, or even katsuo tataki. Here in Kyoto, I dream to have rauch beer with a fine botan nabe—wild boar and miso stew. People in Bamberg drink rauchbier all year long, and I will too if I can, but to me it seems naturally suited to the Japanese winter.

All Beer Styles articles are written by Mark Meli, author of Craft Beer in Japan.

This article was published in Japan Beer Times # () and is among the limited content available online. Order your copy through our online shop or download the digital version from the iTunes store to access the full contents of this issue.