Notes on beers in the style
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The SN Oktoberfest collaboration has come to be one of the more anticipated beers of the season for me. They've been producing some really excellent beers in the series and this is no exception. The color with its classic copper, bright clarity,...
Last can from Bine & Vine in San Diego, CA. Newish beer that has been here for about 6-8 weeks. Read all about it here. Beautiful reddish copper body with the usual Schlenkerla head that gives large bubbles, pitted retention and lace. Nose has...
A annual pleasure, always something to look forward to. This is a pretty beer. A lovely, light golden color with a fine, white head to match. Well-carbonated. The color is interesting since it falls between the deeper orange like hues of...
An annual pleasure when Sierra gets together and collaborates with a German brewer. Standard Festbier pour (which seems to be the norm with these collabs rather than the US, Oktoberfest style). Retention isn't great. Light, soapy bitterness greets...
Tavour has many faults - many, but it does have a few redeeming features. One of those redeeming qualities is access to a handful of breweries that I know from 20+ years ago, and Kuhnhenn is one such brewer. Couple that with a style that I...
The Oktoberfest is one of only a handful of Mad Anthony brews that I will go back to time and time again. It's solid, if not spectacular. Happy to have a local brew that fits style guidelines correctly. Good clarity and the requisite copper color...
I must have drunk this a million time before writing these notes in August of 2023. Classic copper colored amber body underneath a high white head, with great lace and some decent retention. Malt and bread nose as one would expect. Lovely rich...
Classic copper colored pour with a lovely head. Lace and retention aren't great, that's a shame, but overall the beer looks solid. The first gulps are little too bitter for my liking, but this quickly subsides into the richer, maltier part of the...
I love to come across a new Oktoberfest or Festbier or Märzen, and when there is the promise of some sensible Sierra Nevada old-school, no nonsense brewing associated with, it it all bodes well. The Sierra series of collaborations for these beers...
500 mL can, from the LCBO in Guelph, ON, Canada. Great color - a ruby reddish, orange Doppelbock/Märzen pour - but the head is poorly retained and offers little lace. It looks really good in terms of color, but the head is a bit disappointing to be...
Purchased on a whim. 4 pack, Belmont Beverage, Decatur, IN. $10.99 for the 16 oz servings. To be fair, I was ready to hate this before I had tried it. In the end, I was not horrified! I do hate the term, "American-Style Märzen Lager", and a few...
Westbrook? Märzen? Yes, you have my attention. Handwritten bottling date onthe label 9/17/13 The first thing that strikes me is that odd, slightly grassy, stinky malt aroma that comes with a genuine Märzen style. Nice and light in the mouth with...
Imperial Oktoberfest is a 'style' that I have encountered a few times in the past (Kaiser Avery) and it's sits very uneasily with me from a purely philosophical point of view. Pour is a pretty attractive, reddish mahogany one with some decent tea...
Apparently this beer is brewed to celebrate one Bob Werkowitch, Master Brewer, and his graduation from the US Brewer's Academy in 1947. Nice. Beautiful clarity with a distinctly orange hue, Bob's '47 looks like a classic Oktoberfest in the glass....
The latest in the Dank Tank series. Blue and white checkered motif in a nod to the Bavarian flag. Pretty good looking beer, with a nice, red-amber hue and a decent, off-white head. Retention of the head is pretty average, and there is little or no...
Surely the final Octoberfest of the 2011 season - surely? 12 oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA. Pour is an attractive, mahogany, dark copper/amber affair with a nice looking four finger head. Leaves some nice, sticky lace and it gives a...
My oh my, Thomas Creek is a strange brewer. On the whole I have found their beers to be largely mediocre, but with their production of the Monday Night Brewing beers, and a beer like Up The Creek, they occasionally do very much better than average....
Additional notes 09/16/23 (pictured) Of late I've been trying to fill in a few gaps in terms of notes and reviews for beers that I've drunk a lot of prior but have looked at old notes and thought, "what?"! This time of year there's obviously great...
12 oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA. Amber pour, with little head or retention. Head fades badly. Aroma is bereft of any necessary elements. Horribly disappointing. Light malt tastes, but weak when considering the O'fest category as a...
12oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA. Having been fairly disappointed with the Mutiny, 22oz series from CC/Heavy Seas, I was pleased to see a "back to basics" beer from the stable, and also in one of my favorite styles. Pour is a fairly...
22 oz bottle as part of the Side Project Series, this one is #11. The usual gold-foiled presentation. Pour is a surprisingly dark amber in color. The head is largely absent and the retention and lace are close to zero. Disappointing. Nose gives...
12 oz single, Taco Mac, Marietta (Dallas Highwway), Marietta, GA, USA. Pleased to see this being distributed in bottles now after enjoy the same beer in various GB locations for many years. What I've also said about the GB Marzen when drunk on the...
12oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA. Pour gives a medium, dull-copper body but the level of carbonation and general "liveliness" is somewhat below average. Nose and tastes reveal a certain malt sweetness as expected, but at the same time...
12 oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA. Delighted to try this as the Marzen style is one of my favorite styles. Paradoxically, rye beers are some of my LEAST favorites so the the juxtaposition should be interesting if nothing else! Pour...
On tap, $4.50 served in 0.5 L German style mug with an O'fest logo. A surpringly, light orange body. Color has some macro characteristics. Head is OK but fades quite badly. Extremely yeasty in the nose and tastes with some light fruits. The alcohol...
Say what you like about GB beers, they do tend to look good and generally they produce a reliable quality. The Marzen is, for want of a better word their "flagship" brew and as usual it is pretty steady at the relatively new, Buckhead location....
12 oz bottle as a single from Total Wine, Perimeter, Atlanta, GA, USA. If the truth be known, disappointed considering the usual quality of Left Hand beers and my general enjoyment of the style. In an O'fest I'm looking for a few key...
Different presentation than the BA db picture for the 2009 version (and perhaps even before that), $1.79 for the single from Total Wine, Perimeter, Atlanta, GA, USA. Pour is a rather murky, dark orange affair with a well formed, tight head that is...
12 oz single from Total Wine, Perimeter, Atlanta, GA, USA. Poured into the Tücher Weizen glass (not pictured, rather the picture shown is from 08/15/21) , the color is alarmingly light for the style, IF we were talking a Märzen (we're not, BTW!)....
WOW and WOW, I wasn't expecting this! $4.99 for the 22 oz bomber in the usual silk-screened presentation from Green's on Buford, Atlanta, GA, USA. I usually approach Rogue with some trepidation since I often find their beers over-hopped but this...
22oz bottle from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA. I think that the basic idea of "imperializing" an Oktoberfest beer is essentially a bad idea since it's simply not a style that needs that kind of treatment, but let's take a closer look. Pour lacks much...
22 oz bottle from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA split with my brother-in-law over dinner. Excellent color on the pour, perhaps a little darker than some in the style, the depth of the mahogany is quite striking. Head is somewhat disappointing though,...
$0.99 from Green's on Ponce, Atlanta, GA, USA as a 12 oz single. Attractive colored label (classy green color) with a ridge on the bottle at the base of the neck that is reminiscent of a Westy bottle!! ;-). WHAT A SHOCK - AB marketing outdoes...
16oz pour a Taco Mac, East West Connector, Austell, GA, USA. $6.00 - first time I've really noticed the increase in prices recently. Hazed ornage appearance with a decent head and some lace. Lots of sweetness in the nose and the initial tastes....
2008 version sampled 11/7/08. Simple, clear and orangey/red/mid-brown pour with minimal head and lace. In fact, carbonation this low reminds me of a cask ale (a good thing). This brew pretty much nails the style nicely. Good, sweet malts are...
12oz bottle, thanks to nlmartn for the chance to try this as part of Secret Santa '07. Pour is a little dull - both in terms of the color and the lack of life in the appearance. Very malty aroma, with a touch of marzipan. The nose is the best...
Pictured 08/09/23 Original notes 01/24/08 Thanks go out to nlmartin as part of Secret Santa '07. 12oz bottle. Drinking this a couple of months after the best before date on the bottle. Not to worry, this hasn't suffered much in the interim. Amazing...
Pictured 08/29/20 Original notes 10/28/07 12 oz bottle, thanks to Hoppymeal for the "extra" in a recent trade. Very simple and solid beer. Great clarity with some good carbonation. Orange color, looks good. Small head; some retention and lace....
12 oz single, Mac's Downtown, Atlanta, GA, USA. Simple pour with nice clarity but very little life. Not much head and the retention is just not there. Very light lace. Slightly acidic nose with some sweetness. Some weak malty character and some...
12oz single from Mac's Downtown, Atlanta, GA, USA. Best Before 11/22/07, dot-matrixed on the neck. Not quite sure why this is listed as an American Amber/Red in the BA db since it is called Octoberfest, drinks like a malty Oktoberfest brew and it...
On-tap at the Taco Mac on the East West Connector, Austell, GA, USA. Lifeless looking pour with a head that dies away quickly to leave almost nothing on the surface of the beer. No lace. Mid-brown, uninteresting to say the least. Sweet malts in the...
Thanks go out to Vancer for sending this as part of the CEO/Old Farts BIF. 16oz "big" bottle. Label looks "Germanic"! Nice appearance. Good clarity, a great orange/amber color with some head and a little lace. A high quality Fest/Marzen with some...
Purchased as a 12 oz single from Total Wine, Kennesaw, GA, USA. So, it's the season for delicious, malty, full bodied Oktoberfests and some delcious Pumpkin brews. All of them with great color and body and plenty of taste. Then comes this....oh...
12oz single, Jax, Sandy Springs, Atlanta, GA. Excellent copper color and (for me the most important in this style) great clarity. Clear as a bell. Small, creamy, short-lived head with not much lace. retention poor. Big and malty up front and...
Pretty standard offering in the style, not bad but nothing to write home about either. Pour was a little on the flat side for my liking against the clear amber body. Standard nose with some spice and sweetness apparent. Taste had the usual...
A decent and drinkable Marzen with mid amber color and a good clarity to the pour. Not much head or lacing. Some bubblegum notes in the nose. Nice malty beer that serves a very simple purpose. Simple fare and average tastes, but you could do much...
Short and squat, growler type small, swing-top bottle. $4.99 Cheers, Carrollton, GA, USA. Had a typical Dubbel type appearance. I always think this is a disappointing look to a beer - all drab, murky, muddy brown in the glass, not especially...
Copper haze with a lot of cloudiness, initial decent head, but this fades very quickly to leave no head and no lacing. Rather flat looking all around. Pretty bland in all departments. Sweet malts and a little bit of a bitter finish, but outside of...
On tap at Vreny's, Atlanta, GA, USA 12/03/05. Medium body that lacks the richness of many O'fests. Lack of punch in the mouthfeel and taste departments. Goes down well, has session potential. Aroma muted too. For fuller notes see; See...
Imperial Oktoberfest? Well, for all intents and purposes I think we have a beer that is basically a Barleywine. Massive sugar, with the associated cloying sweetness, large alcohol up front and all the way through and very little subtle respite from...
Crystal clear, light copper colored pour with only a fleeting head and little or no lacing. Some mild hops and very, very mild spice in the nose. Mild flavor all around. Some light malts start the taste and then the shortest of stinging hops finish...
Hazed light brown/orange body with a modest head that fades quickly. No lacing. Aroma? Well, I don't get much at all except some really dry hops. Taste is really quite dry for the style. Dry hops are present but the brew is smooth and not bitter,...
Additional notes 05/11/24 (pictured) - Now called Oktoberfest Märzen Lager, likely to jump on the the "lager" bandwagon. BB: 02/29/24, still selling them on Craftshack. I mean I bought it in May so assumed it would be nearing this kind of date, but...
Additional Notes: 05/03/2022 This is the bottle pictured. Reading my original notes (below) from 17 years ago I’m a little surprised, since now I really enjoy this beer. To be honest, much more than a couple in any 12 month period is about all that...
Good, dark copper color and an attractive head. Lacing apparent, but not sticky or much of it. Good solid beer, with some bitterness that runs all the way through from start to finish. I didn't get that typical, full bodied, sweetness that one can...
Additional notes 10/01/23 (pictured). It was over eighteen years ago that I wrote the notes below. I've drunk this beer a multitude of times since, but even though those 2005 notes might seem harsh I have never really loved this beer. The head in...
Very, very solid example of the style, with good macro type availability and price; this beer is hard to beat from a value and fallback point of view. Drinks very smooth, with a degree of sweetness that I always associate with the style. It really...
Pictured 09/18/15 Additional notes 10/10 Six years on since my original review, I still really love this beer. Today I paid $8.23 for a sixer, so this is still fantastic value. Color in 2010 seems even richer than ever and the malt depth is always...
Pictured 04/06/23 at Ein Prosit, Frisco, CO, USA Original notes 10/04/04 Crystal clear golden, orange pour, that really does look nice in the body of the beer, but the lack of head and or lacing was rather disappointing. In fact it looked...