The Brewery: Bierbrouwerij Emelisse (Netherlands)
The Brew: Emelisse Rauchbier
Availability: Bottles/Draft
ABV: 6.8% | IBUs: 34
Rating: 7.8/10
Location: Home
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center
The Story? I'll give any Rauchbier a shot and the price on this one was far too reasonable to pass up!
The Beer? Poured out, Emelisse is a murky, bubbly dark caramel-brown with almost no head. Strong notes of smoke, vinegar, and fennel cut sharply on the nose.
Through the first few sips, this Rauchbier is quite wet, while the smoke does coats tongue. The body is thinner than with some smoked beers I've encountered, leading it to be somewhat more refreshing than sipping.
There's a notable wet, woody flavor Emelisse along with a less enticing vinegar and fennel tartness that conflicts with the smokiness at first. These complex flavors mellow in and hit their stride further along, but at first there were a few notes that were slightly off-putting.
As per the Emelisse site, Emelisse Rauchbier has a new label, so I may have caught this one a bit too late. There's enough going on that I'd gladly give the new batch a go around.
