Of course, I may think saying Rauchfetzen is fun because Rauchfetzen is a beer which I have recently drunk, and am therefore in a state predisposed to laughter. The Rauchfetzen I speak of is the latest from Harpoon Brewery's 100 Barrel Series, an amazing foray into limited relief craft brewing that I've been lauding since the experiment's inception a few years ago. Harpoon periodically makes and releases various styles of beer, some traditional, some inventive, in extremely curtailed quantities of, you guessed it, one hundred barrels. Whether hit or miss (and I will say most I've sampled have been fantastic, or at the very least interesting), after those one hundred barrels are gone, the recipe is consigned to the vaults of memory. Rauchfetzen Ale is the 25th session in the series, a German-style rauchbeir, characterized by smoked hops, with a clear golden hue, and fairly light carbonation.
This may not be a beer for everyone; it is exceedingly smoky in flavor, a bit like drinking a beer whilst standing directly beside a hardwood fire. Of course, that's the sort of flavor I can get into, and I find the taste a great character note on what would otherwise be a sort of flat style. See, I'm not actually a big fan of German beers, though that may see like sacrilege. But because of purity laws, true German beers are extremely limited in nature and complexity, and while I like the occasional straight-up Munich style ale and can appreciate the craftsmanship involved, I prefer more exaggerated and captivating flavors. Rauchfetzen appeals to me because of the twist on the familiar it offers. It's an excellent beer to drink with a meal, and I'd give my left arm to be drinking a pint in Jacob Wirth's in downtown Boston right now over a plate of wurst, or even over some smoked sausage at a good bbq joint. Goddamn, I'm hungry now. And thirsty. Time, perhaps to go get another bottle of session 25, while the getting it good...
Rauchfetzen!
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