This past summer, my wife and I took an absolutely wonderful river cruise through the heart of Germany. The boat traveled along several major rivers and we stopped at the many small villages along the route where, as you might suspect, we sampled the local beers and wines. Each village had its own, unique special brew.

The most interesting beer we had on the trip was categorized as Smokebeer from the town of Bamberg. The color was fairly dark but not like a Guinness stout but the flavor tasted like bacon. The first few tastes were a little had to take; it was like drinking a thicker ale with slices of cooked bacon in it. However, once we finished the first stein, we order a second, and then a third. The taste really got better has we drank more. Hummm, that kind of works for all different kinds of beer!