Ruachbier

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oakbarn

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One of my brewing buddies wanted to experiment with a Ruchbier. We made it as a second brew on a brew day making a five gallon batch. We used 20% by weight of smoked barley (All Grain). I just transferred to Secondary today and it fermented fine. I always taste the hydrometer and also smell it. The smell and taste remind me of a smoked ham. After reading some comments about Ruachbier online, this may not be that odd. Am I crazy?:mad::eek:

And yes, I do not like it!
 
That is a normal taste, and that's going light on the smoked malt. Some people go much higher approaching 100%.
 
I made one a few years ago because my brother really likes them. I used a lot more smoked, can't remember but I think it was 80%. It tastes like beef jerky. My brother loved it, I wasn't such a fan.
 
That's about right. I used 40% smoked wheat and 5% peat smoked barley and got something like smoked ham. That batch took a loooong time to drink.
 
I absolutely hate smoked beers, and swear I could taste a single grain in a double IPA.. :)

That being said, what's the dankest of all dank commercial samples that I could try (you never know, I might come around !)
 
Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier is probably the best one I can think of. It's not the absolute smokiest, but for my money it's one of the few smoked beers that I actually enjoyed (in very limited quantities).
 
Here's one from your wingman that i'm quoting from a previous thread from another brewer "...the smoke flavor will mellow with time so lagers are a good bet." So stop drinking from the hydrometer & judging the batch then! - let it become beer, 5 months will put a 'short black velvet dress' on that lager & you'll love it!!! (At least it will be a lot smoother than that smokey peat crap scotch you allow to past your lips!). :)
 
Here's another quote from previous thread "...One thing to point out, if it does come out too smokey. Just let the beers age. The smoke flavors do mellow out over time."...(Have you warned everyone reading this thread that you open your presents prior to Christmas & then rewrap them?, that would 'relativize' things!) ;)
 
We transferred to the Final Corenelius from the secondary. The beer is quite clear and we could not detect a smoky smell. Much less hammy and more like smoked wood with just a hint of ham. The original wort was cloudy and dark. The beer is now about 8.5 SRM. Will lager a while and judge again. I think Lancer may take it home.
 
Ok, we broke out the beer for Ranger's Opening Day and It was my beer of choice that day. The smoke is very mild and the beer goes very well with salty things and meat. So I am a convert. We will be making St. Michael's Rauchbier again.

smallstmichael.jpg
 
Ever since learning that Shiner would no longer make their Smokehaus summer-seasonal, my buddy and I decided that we would do smoked-beers only.

Our first batch was basically an Irish Stout with hickory-smoked grains. It tastes fantastic but there's barely any smokiness to it. I only had the grains on the smoker for about 60 minutes because it was quite hot and I didn't want to roast them.

Our current batch which just got pitched last weekend is a Helles (ala Smokehaus) which has some wonderful mesquite grains that were under smoke for 5 hours. The aroma is very prevalent in this so we have high-hopes.

We're recreational brewers and always smoke a meat with the grains. The Stout was with pork-butt and this Helles was with a turkey breast :ban:
 
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