Yes, lately all the smoke in the air is a royal pain. However, there are times when a taste of smoke is pleasing.

Back in the day, a number of my family members smoked. There were those times when the family gathered for a meal, and then sat around the kitchen table talking. It was then when the smokers lit up and smoke began to fill the room. After a bit of time, there was so much cigarette smoke in the room that the ceiling began to become lower. Good time together, but awful time for our health.

Bringing the theme to current times, the environmental smoke we are all encountering is a pain for many. Like the cigarette smoke, the wildfires smoke is bad for us, and humans need to help each other to stop our climate from harming us.

All right enough with the downer talk. Let’s talk a bit about smoky beverages and see if we can find smoke to be a positive element.

If you’ve ever tasted a Laphroaig Peated Scotch, you know the taste of smoke. The malt for the liquid is set over smoking peat, and it is infused with that terrific peaty/smoke flavor. The scotch is worth tasting and enjoying — the intense flavor is especially noted in Laphroaig’s Classic 10 year old Scotch.

There are a number of smoky tasting beers for you to choose from. One of my favorites is Shiner Bock. It is well balanced with roasted malt and a touch of German hops, and it is flavor filled with a clean finish. Of course, you can enjoy smoked malts in any porter and in any strong Scotch ale.

Now to wines…

A good wine to start with is a Bogle Petite Sirah. It is a full bodied wine with tastes of blackberries with touches of mocha. It’s aged about a year in American oak barrels which helps to move the smoky vanilla taste forward.

Another red wine with hints of smoke is California’s Meiomi Pinot Noir. It is aged in French oak barrels, which enables the wine’s jammy berry taste to be enriched by the barrels toasty oak flavors. Very easy to sip and comforting for anyone.

A nice white wine with some hints of smoke is an Austrian Grȕner Veltliner. There is a lot of citrus flavors — think of lemon and grapefruit — in the wine with some very light peppery tastes. What will really grab your attention is the wine’s acidity. Where is the smoky taste? Search for it!

So yes, smoke can be a pain, but it can also be a pleasure. I hope you don’t have to inhale too much of the nasty side of smoke, but can enjoy the good side of smoke.

As always, eat and drink in moderation, but laugh with reckless abandon!

Cheers!