Smoked Malts

The history of smoked beer seems like it’s also clouded in smoke—people have enjoyed smoked beers for five thousand years, it seems, but the original and most famous German example is Schlenkerla. 

To make your own smoked beer at home, choose some of our high quality smoked malt to create your ideal recipe. We choose our suppliers carefully and provide and supply the best quality malts to microbreweries and homebrewers with quick delivery across the UK.

Want to know more about using smoked malt? Take a look at our YouTube channel, or get in touch. We love chatting about brewing.

What’s Smoked Malt used for?

Smoked malt is used to make smoked beers, a traditional style of beer that has been brewed for as long as beer has been consumed. Estimates by archaeologists and historians say that this could have been for as long as 5000 years.

Smoked beer isn’t the most popular style of beer in the world, but those who love it are advocates for its unique and complex style. The sweet and smoky malt that pervades through a sharp hop profile or a rich and dark porter adds character and intrigue, and to a smoked beer fan, there’s nothing better.

To create smoked malt, the malt literally has to sit above a fire made from woods with desirable aromatic properties—usually beech, applewood, or cherry. The smoke permeates each grain and gives it that unmistakable smoky flavour and aroma.

One of the most famous smoked beer breweries in the world is Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier, brewed in Bamberg, Germany. On July 23 1635, the first smoke-free maltings was patented, and so unsmoked beer became the norm rather than an exception. The fire in the Schlenkerla kiln is still burning, keeping the tradition of smoked beer alive. 

There are now smoked beer festivals all over Europe that celebrate this niche but beloved style, and breweries continue to use smoked malt to create complex, delicious, and surprising beers.