Klosterbräu Bamberger Rauchbier Beer Review

Klosterbräu Bamberger Rauchbier

Review Date 12/19/2023 By John Staradumsky

For Christmas of 2015, my wife bought me a really cool present: BeerAdvent Calendar 2015 froman Kalea. In truth, my wife got me a lot of nice presents (she’s the best wife ever), but the nice thing about the Beer Advent Calendar is you get it early. You have to, since it’s comprised of 24 different imported Germbeers in a box with little doors that you open, one per day from December 1^st through December 24^th. All of the beers are listed on the side of the carton, however, so be careful not to look and spoil the daily surprises!

I love German beer more than beer from any other country on Earth, so this was definitely right up my alley. My one criticism of the calendar is there are not enough bocks and doppelbocks (not fair!), but otherwise it’s just an amazing way to sample 24 German beers I’ve never seen before. I get mine at Costco here in Georgia and pay on average $59.95 for the box. That might sound steep, but when you distribute that price over 24 different half liter cans, it only works out to $2.50 per can. Not a bad deal at all looked at that way.

First week of September 2023 arrived, and that means I am out there at Costco weekly looking for my beloved Kalea Advent calendars. I didn't see them (and of course buy one) until September 24th, but I gleefully placed one in my shopping cart when I did. The price this year was stable from last year at $69.99 and I think that is a bargain honestly. $2.92 per can is still a bargain for beers from small German brewers I might never otherwise get to enjoy, that includes new beers and one I have had before and get to enjoy again.

December 16th arrived, I opened my Day Sixteen door to reveal-finally!-a can of Bamberger Rauchbier by Klosterbräu Bamberg GMBH. This is the beer I wanted most in the calendar, having seen earlier in the year a preview of beers that might be included for 2023. I love Rauchbier and this one particularly intrigued. The day I got my calendar at Costco my heart leapt-the beers featured in the display case atop the pallets of calendars included Klosterbräu Bamberger Rauchbier.

Once December arrived, I eagerly opened the doors of my calendar each day. And each and every day when I opened those doors on my calendar, for the first few weeks, I was disappointed. Others posted in the Facebook beer group 2023 Costco Brewers Advent Calendar from Kalea that they had received this beer on assorted days (there being this year much variation in the calendars from state to state). Not me though. I began to despair of ever getting a can of this impossible to find brew.

Oh me of little faith! I delighted on Day 16, and finally received my prize. I must say this beer was worth the wait. It is the best beer in any of the calendars I have enjoyed since 2015, one of the best beers I've ever enjoyed in the world out of more than 7600 different brews tried. It is also only yhe second Rauchbier I have received in the calendars, Zwönitzer Rauchbier being the other. Which is a perfect segue into the breakdown by style of all the beers received in all the calendars I have purchased over the years, up to and including this beer.

Dortmunder 8 4%
Munich Helles 51 25%
Oktoberfest 35 17%
Munich Dunkles 11 5%
Hefeweizen 12 6%
Dunkelweizen 13 6%
Zwickl/Kellerbier 12 6%
Kristalweizen 3 1%
Pilsner 21 10%
Bock 2 1%
IPA 5 2%
Doppelbock 5 2%
Maibock 3 1%
Pale Ale 7 3%
Weizenbock 5 2%
Vienna Lager 3 1%
Imperial Pilsner 3 2%
Steinbier 1 1%
Stout 3 1%
Rauchbier 4 2%

My can of Klosterbräu Bamberger Rauchbier describes the brewery as Bambergs Älteste Braustätte, or Bamberg's oldest brewery. On the can they advertise Craft Brewing Since 1533, and describe their Bamberger Rauchbier as follows:

Das Rauchbier ist tief verwurzelt in der Bamburger Brautradition. Der einzigartige Geschmack des bieres ensteht durch das Räuchen des Maltzes über Buchenholz. Während der Wochenlangen Reifung im historischen Klosterbräu Keller entwickelt sich sein urfränkische Charakter.

They even translate into English below the German:

Smoke beer is historically deeply rooted in the brewing tradition of Bamberg. The unique flavor of this beerstyle is created when the malt gets indirectly dryed with the help of beech wood fire. After brewing, the beer is stored in the historical cellar of the Klosterbräu, where it develops its original Franconian character.

Klosterbräu Bamberger Rauchbier has an alcohol content of 5.3% by volume according to my can. Ingredients on the can are listed as water, barley malt, yeast, and hops. My can is stamped EXP 2024/08. It also boasts this beer as a two times champion in the European Beer Star competition, winning a gold medal in 2021 and 2022, presumably in the Rauchbier category.

Klosterbräu Bamberger Rauchbier pours to a dark mahogany color with a thick and tall fluffy white head and a nose of acrid smoke. As soon as I popped the cap I took a whiff and was surprised just how much smoke wafted to my olfactory senses. Taking a sip, the beer is medium in body, just right for the style. There are toasted nuts and slightly dark malts to enjoy.

Then, immediately, there is the smoke. Thick and bacony, hickory woody, not as acrid as the concentrated puff I got from the nose, but nigh acrid indeed. There are notes of green olives and ham, and nights by the campfire. The beer finishes dry and smoky and really, delicious. I wanted the glass to never end.

One of the best rauchbiers ever to pass these lips, and indeed one of the best beers period to ever pass these lips. That's saying something, since these lips have tasted more than 7600 different beers. If I ever get the chance to drink this again, I absolutely will. It's simply wonderful.

I’m greatly enjoying my 9th annual Beer Advent Calendar with the day 16 beer. Here’s looking forward to the remaining 8, and another assortment of 24 in 2024. We’ll be on the lookout next year at Costco, and following the beers on their Facebook page.

The beers of the 2023 Beer Advent Calendar:

Day 1 Falter Export Hell

Day 2 Kauzle Helles Lager

Day 3 Kurpfalz Brau Kellerbier

Day 4 Graminger Kirta Dunkles Weissbier

Day 5 Erl Brau Erlkönig Hell

Day 6 Hösl Märzenbier

Day 7 Bambule Pilsner

Day 8 Landgang Helle Aufregnung

Day 9 Propeller Bier Turbo Prop Pilsner

Day 10 Gmoastier Weisser Bock

Day 11 Flötzinger Hell