The Beer Critic

Brewery Website: http://www.magichat.net/

Type of Beer: American Amber / Red Ale

Alcohol Content: 5.4%

Beer Review -

Appearance: Pours an attractive crystal-clear, golden-amber hue. The two finger, off white head that looked so nice when pouring the beer dissipates rather quickly leaving behind a creamy film on the beer. There didn’t seem much to any lacing. The one aspect of this beer that does stand out is the carbonation; even with a heavy pour the carbonation bubbling off the bottom of the glass is very noticeable.

Smell: Smell is what you expect from an Oktoberfest; sweet,toffee, malty and biscuity. The smell is nice and strong which I believe is due to the heavy carbonation. There is also a hint of something else in there, a fruity/melon scent. It’s not prominent but if you look for it you’ll notice it.

Initial Taste: The taste is one of familiarity as it tastes a lot like the other craft oktoberfests on the market. However there are a couple discernible differences. Starts off mild and sweet with toffee and caramel flavors dominating the palate. There is a slight hoppy bitterness that helps gives some energy to the sweet flavors. The carbonation is still pretty heavy taking away the smooth creamyness that this beer could have had lots of. The scent of melon (maybe cantaloupe)  has made it’s way into the flavor as well. It’s a funky flavor that is extremely hard to pin down. It doesn’t hurt the beer by any means, instead it adds a little mystery which makes you want to keep tasting it. The finish is a little dryer than I would have liked.

Thoughts:It’s important to remember that this isn’t your typical oktoberfest lager. It’s an ale (amber ale) with oktoberfest style ingredients. Magic Hat is well known for making slightly odd-ball brews with flavors you normally wouldn’t see in beers. Hex fits in very well to their lineup of strange brews. This “hybrid” oktoberfest or as they put it “Ourtoberfest” is a mild beer that tastes mostly like a Marzan with it’s sweet flavors and buscuity maltiness. There is only a slight hint that this beer isn’t a lager as the hops make the beer a little dryer than what you would normally see in an oktoberfest marzan style lager. The is also a special ingredient they fail to mention. I personally think it’s some sort of melon but you will have to taste to determine for yourself. The flavors are quite mild making this is a worth session beer. I would have liked a little less carbonation, more flavor and a little more balance to the sweetness but overall it’s a decent beer that I will certainly buy again. Cheers!

Brewery Website: http://www.saranac.com/

Type of Beer: Märzen / Oktoberfest

Alcohol Content: 5.4%

Beer Review -

Appearance: Clear amber-copper complexion with fluffy, two-finger, off-white head. Sadly head retention was just ok, lasting only a few moments and then settling to a thick film. Lacing was pretty much non-existent with only a skeleton of a spider web remaining on the glass. The mass of cascading bubbles show what should be some decent carbonation.

Smell: Scent is clean with a grainy, bread-like malt smell. Lots of sweetness comes through with notes of caramel and toasted sugar. Small sampling of hop spiciness makes it’s way across the nose but it’s only a wisp and grows more faint as you drink.

Initial Taste: Starts off pretty mild and sweet with vanilla, caramel malt and toasted sugar flavors hitting the tongue first. The flavor then starts to dry out with a hop bitterness that is spicy more than floral. While the hops are certainly present they only make a dent in the malt-heavy backbone. Finish is somewhat dry with little to no aftertaste.

Thoughts: Saranac has created yet another very drinkable seasonal brew. The flavor is what you would expect; heavy on the malts, just like most other American Oktoberfests, with a hop bitterness that tries to balances out the sweetness. This is a solid, middle of the road Oktoberfest that is easy to drink and pairs well with German food. While the flavor isn’t really all that provocative this is forgivable as the lager is really sessionable. I believe this to be an acceptable trade off. I recommend this beer as it’s usually easy to find (and drink) and sure to please even the most untrained palates. Though if you you are looking for an Oktoberfest beer with lots of flavor you are best to look elsewhere. Cheers.

Brewery Website: http://www.harpoonbrewery.com/

Type of Beer: Märzen / Oktoberfest

Alcohol Content: 5.5%

Beer Review -

Appearance: Pours a copper-red with a two-finger, off-white head. Head recedes slowly leaving behind incredible lacing that looks like it’s been painted on. Very attractive looking beer.

Smell: The first thing I noticed was the hops, they are quite fragrant but in no way do they seem overwhelming. The sweetness from the 3 different styles of malt helps to add some balance to the nose. There is a subtle fruitiness in the finish.

Initial Taste: The malt sweetness comes through first creating a very smooth and creamy mouth-feel. Much like what you would expect from a Marzan. The malt gives way to the hops that give a welcome but gentle bitterness that gains a little momentum towards the finish. The flavorful mixture of bready malts, bittersweet chocolate and citrus hops create a balanced and very tasty Oktoberfest beer.  Finish is dry and clean making this high in drinkability.

Thoughts: Like many of the other American craft Oktoberfest beers this is an American style Oktoberfest. Which really isn’t a true German Oktoberfest beer but rather a Marzan boosted with hops (us Americans love our hops!).  That being said, this beer is one of the best available for the style. Harpoon has created a perfect balance with what is traditionally a malty beer. They have mixed three different kinds of malt (chocolate, Munich and pale) with tettnang hops that give a spicy flavor that balances out the sweetness. The end result is a beautifully smooth beer that delivers on both the sweet and hop front making this a great session brew. This easily has become my go-to beer for American Oktoberfests. I highly recommend to Oktoberfest and craft beer lovers alike.

Type of Beer: Märzen / Oktoberfest

Alcohol Content: 5.10%

Beer Review -

Appearance: Nice light mahogany color with thick two finger white head. Head lasts almost entire beer but lacing isn’t that great. Very good looking beer!

Smell: Sweet malts with a little hops and grain added in for good measure. Smells a lot like other beers in the marzen style. A nice clean smell that is quite appealing.

Initial Taste: Not too bad. Very smooth sweetness of malts matched very well with a spicy hoppiness. Very little bitterness in this beer but JUST enough to balance out the sweetness of the malts that make up the core of this marzen. The flavor is sweet but light enough to keep on drinking. Aftertaste is a subtle lingering sweetness.

Thoughts: What a surprising beer. I didn’t have much hope for this beer when before I first tried it. Being made by Michelob I just assumed it would be like the rest of the American watered down brews like Budweiser and Miller…but boy was I wrong. This beer is one of the smoothest beers I’ve ever had the opportunity to drink. Michelob has done a great job in making a smooth, highly drinkable, German Marzen beer that does not fail to deliver. There are other Marzen beers that represent this style a little better…but none as easy to drink. Definitely my favorite beer from the Michelob lineup. Highly recommend.

It’s that time of year again people. That season where the weather is shifting towards winter and the smell of fireplaces are filling the crisp air. The time in which people gather together to sing,  drink beer and consume large quantities of sausages and pretzels. Yes people, I am talking about OKTOBERFEST! No other celebration in beer culture  is more anticipated.

Chances are while most of us have enjoyed many years of the Oktoberfest festivities very few of us actually know the reason behind the celebration.

History of Oktoberfest –

The Oktoberfest tradition started in 1810 to celebrate the October 12th marriage of Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig to the Saxon-Hildburghausen Princess Therese. The citizens of Munich were invited to join in the festivities which were held over five days on the fields in front of the city gates. The main event of the original Oktoberfest was a horse race.

Anniversary celebrations were held annually thereafter that eventually became larger and more elaborate. An agricultural show was added during the second year. In 1818, a carousel and two swings were set up for the revelers. Such amusements were few in the first decades of the festival, but party-goers were amply entertained by the tree climbing competitions, wheel barrow and sack races, mush eating contests, barrel rolling races, and goose chases. By 1870s, mechanical rides were an expanding feature of the festival and in 1908, the festival boasted Germany’s first roller coaster. When the city began allowing beer on the fairgrounds, makeshift beer stands began cropping up, and their number increased steadily until they were eventually replaced by beer halls in 1896. The beer halls, like the beer tents of today, were sponsored by the local breweries.

The festival was eventually prolonged and moved ahead to September to allow for better weather conditions. Today, the last day of the festival is the first Sunday in October. In 2006, the Oktoberfest extended two extra days because the first Tuesday, October 3, was a national holiday. Over the past 200 years, Oktoberfest was canceled 24 times due to cholera epidemics and war.

Modern Day Oktoberfest

Today, the Oktoberfest in Munich is the largest festival in the world, with an international flavor characteristic of the 20th century. The modern celebration has replaced the small tents with giant brewery-sponsored beer halls that can hold up to 5,000 people apiece. The party has also grown in length, to become a 16-day extravaganza ending the first Sunday in October. The festival opens with a grand parade of the Oktoberfest “landlords” and breweries, and features traditional dancers and costumed performers, the Riflemen’s Procession, music…and, most definitely, beer!

Oktoberfest beer

Oktoberfest beer is of a variety called Märzen. Darker and stronger than traditional beer, Märzen contains up to 6% alcohol, is bottom-fermented, and is lagered for at least 30 days. Before the advent of modern refrigeration techniques, this type of beer was brewed in March (as its name suggests) and allowed to age through the summer, so that it was ready to drink by late summer or early fall. Like all German beer, the Oktoberfest beer is brewed according to strict German standards (called the Reinheitsgebot and in effect since 1516) that precisely define the four ingredients allowed in the brewing of beer: barley, hops, malt, and yeast.

Just 6 Munich breweries – Augustiner, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu, Löwenbräu, Paulaner, and Spaten – are permitted to serve beer at the festival. 14 larger and several smaller beer tents and beer gardens provide enough seating for 98,000 visitors at a time. Beer is served by the Maß, a one-liter mug, and costs about 8 euros. Beer maids and waiters must be able to carry 10 of these beer-filled mugs at a time.

*Some information provided by Wikipedia and Destination360