2008 Octoberfest Beer Time

This is my favorite time of year, OCTOBERFESSST. :cheers2:

So now that the breweries are starting to release product, lets hear what the best you've had this season is. I will continue to update this thread with all the different Oktoberfest beers I've had *this* season and my taste test results. The reason why I say this season is I've found that recipes change for breweries every year due to difference in hops, grains, weather patterns that year, and just mild changes they make anyways. So please, Keep your findings to this season only.

I will also start adding "Grades" to my beers to help people choose on a beer to buy when at the store.

My list so far:

Sam Adams Oktoberfest - Last year this was on of my favorites. This year it seems to have gone down in quality a little. Still mighty tasty. Can be found for around $6 a 6 pack. Grade: B **Update** I had this on tap finally, It is surprisingly better on tap then from the bottle. Maybe I had an old bottle or something? Giving the on-tap a different grade. On-tap Grade: B+ or A-

Bells Oktoberfest - This is one of the best Oktoberfest beers I've ever had. Full of flavor. This stuff is a bit spendy being had for $8.99 for a 6 pack at my local liquor store. I would highly recommend checking out Bell's other flavors also. Grade: A+

Surly Fest - Had this beer on the surly tour. They don't call it an oktoberfest because they add a few extra ingredients which you can taste. Still a very good beer. Expect it to be in 16oz cans here soon (I saw the empty cans on the line). I spoke with Omar, the owner of Surly, about homebrewing and canning. He choice canning because 1. It doesn't let any light in and 2. it allows the let amount of oxygen in. Except these to be in 4 - 16oz containers I'm guessing around $8 to $9. www.surlybrewing.com Grade: B+

Summit Oktoberfest - I have to admit, I had higher expectations. I felt it was mediocre at best. I won't be purchasing anymore of this. Flavor was there, but not as bold as some of the other beers. Grade: C

He'Brew Coney Island FREAKTOBERFEST - This is not an Oktoberfest beer. To start off, the beer is red. BRIGHT RED. Not like a "Oh it's a red beer" beer, no, this has some sort of additive to make it look like a Cranberry Vodka. It's some kind of lighter lager that has a red coloring (be it natural or not) added to it. It's pretty hoppy. Nothing that I would expect in a Oktoberfest. This beer is very limited production, so I'd say buy a pint or half pint if you can, but don't order more then that. Grade: D

Left Hand Oktoberfest - This was a delight after drinking that Freaktoberfest. A proper Oktoberfest beer full of Malts and grains without a ton of weird flavors not correct for a Oktoberfest beer. I'd rank this above Sam Adams, but not quiet to the Bells level. A solid choice if you're out at a bar though. Grade: B+

Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest - A good all around Oktoberfest. Nothing amazing, but far from crap. A solid choice if you're going to Gastoff house. Grade: B+ almost A-

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Below is the beers I tasted at Autumn Beer Review. Due to the large amount of tasting (at the after effects) I will only grade beers and write what little notes I have.

Schell Octoberfest - Grade: C

Barley John's Oktoberfest - This was cool because it was the first time anyone had tasted their Oktoberfest. Though it had been aging for 4 months, it still wasn't fully there for me. I think it was their different use of hops. Overall still good though. Grade: B

Great Waters Pflugenpflagen - Like He'Brew, this isn't a true Oktoberfest beer, but a "celebration ale made for Oktoberfest". Still, it was tasty, just not what I was looking for. Grade: B-

Lake Superior Oktoberfest - A solid choice. Grade: A

Rock Bottom Rocktoberfest - Finally, a proper oktoberfest in my mind. Something that will give Bell's a run for their money. This was one of my fav's of the whole day. I strongly recommend trying this one out. Grade: A almost A+

Vine Park Oktoberfest - Ok, just not there for me. I also slammed this beer to drink Surly's Darkness, so I didn't get a great taste of it. Grade: B

Boulevard Bob's '47 Oktoberfest - Maybe they call it '47 because that's how long it has been sitting. Not good. Grade: D+

Leinenkugel's Oktoberfest - Before I begin, I want to remind my readers that this is my personal feelings. I know my tastes are different then others. Personally, I had been dreading tasting this beer. Last year I thought it was total crap. This year, after having a lot of beers and feeling "festive" I tried it. Still is a let down for me, but not as bad as last year. The flavor is just lacking for me. Now, don't get me wrong, it's there, it's just light on the taste. It's like they cut the amount of malt used to make this beer. Overall, I won't be buying a 6 pack this year. Grade: C or C-


Last updated: 9/29/08

 

oh my god, Im inspired by this thread.
Im definatly a fan of sams,
But Bells is absolutly hands done my fave. Im also HUGE fan of the 2hearted ale from them. I made it out to the brewery a few times this summer, so Im gonna miss it once I move to mn.
But I am however Im excited to get up to the brew house in Duluth for some of their seasonal offerings. I'm going to start a list too, and update mine if you dont mind. As well as update what i thought about it.Happy Drinking!:cheers2:

 

ryan ... you made me do this.

HA HA HA! OKTOBERFEST!!!!1!

 

Tony: Don't worry. Your local homebrewer is here to help. There is a lot of good local brews and brewpubs that don't require a 2+ hour drive to Duluth. Once you're in town we'll meet up at firestone and talk beer. I could talk beer for hours (and I have). Also if you're interested in homebrewing I'm always down for teaching. I'll be homebrewing again here soon (next few weeks hopefully). I'm finishing up a batch as we speak. It's an IPA.

Steph: That was 1/2 my goal in this thread. I knew you couldn't resist.

HA HA HA OOOOKTOBERFEST!!!!

 

had the summit OOOOOKTOBERFEST, last weekend,
very nice.

 

:woot: for fellow homebrewer!

I need to get my butt moving on making some more beers.

I'm looking forward to Octoberfest specials at local pubs - German food rulz!

 

mmmmmmmm...wursts and croquettes

 

Might just have to go to the liquor store tomorrow just to look around

 

Octoberfest of the leinenkugel's variety is pretty good...but I'm now a hardcore sunset wheat man.

 

:bowdown: you will be my yoda, and I will be your luke. teach me

 

das Oktoberfest bier, ja? Sei gut!

 

I just had the Sam Adams Oktoberfest tonight. $2 a pint at Minnetonka Champps!

 

I have to pick up a keg of Sam Adam's Oktoberfest for the party tomorrow. They're putting the 18 lb. brisquet on the smoker right now for serving tomorrow about this time and nothing goes better with smoked meat than a Marzen-style brew. I'm hoping the Sam Adams is good since it got a "B" on BA and a few here recommend it. Normally I don't like Sam Adams but their seasonals are usually and exception. I was trying to get Rahr's Oktoberfest but oddly my keg distributor can't get them in for a few days even though the brewery is the other side of I-35 in Fort Worth. Wierd. Hopefully our party doesn't wash out tomorrow, we're still supposed to get a pounding by what's left of Ike when it gets this far inland. If I can't make the drive I'll just tap that keg here...

Bell's is one of my favorite American breweries. Oberon is probably my favorite beer, or at least the one that never gets old to me. I don't get Bell's much down here, only a few places carry it and people buy it quick. You'd think I could get kegs since it sells so fast but no. They really don't have a weak offering anywhere in their line and I salute them for that.

Lately I've been hitting Double- and Triple-IPAs and hop-bombs. Ever since going to Dogfish Head in Maryland and having 120-Minute through the Randall I have craved hops. And that was over a year ago! Winter will be here in December and I'll go back to porters for a couple months.

 

Bump, updated first post

 

Added another beer.

 

You dropped the shandy for the sunset wheat? Is leinienkugel going to start sponsoring your car anytime soon?

 

Mmmm, Bell's makes about the best beer around.

Also, that Hacker-Pschorr stuff is very good, although I've only ever had it on tap at Gastov's.

 

Where oh where can I get the Bells? You are close to me so tell me the local liquor store at which you shop.

Please?

 

usually, when I'm trying to find a more obscure beer, I go to Haskells (on Ford Parkway by the Ford plant)

 

Chalet Liquors - 36th Ave N & Highway 100. http://www.insiderpages.com/b/3716574858

They don't have the greatest beer selection, but they have some good stuff. I've talked to them about getting more micro / craft beers, but the fine people of crystal apparently enjoy the MGD/Bud/Coors/Miller selections uke:

 

The small liquor store on Bass Lake Road between 169 and 494 has it. I bought some today.

It's awesome. Bell's Octoberfest is some of the best beer I've ever had the pleasure to drink. The lady at the counter said that she can't get anymore so when their stock is gone it's gone. I'm going to go buy some more later tonight.

Directions via google.maps

 

I'll be running to the liquor store after work and hopefully getting one more grill session in tonight.

What beer does MNsubaru recommend I get? You have 12 minutes before I leave work

 

Bell's Oberon. All that is left of it. If not that then any other Bell's beer.

 

bells oktoberfest.

 

well with 1 minute to go...that may be my only suggestion

EDIT: oooo 5:00 and now I have two options

 

I ended up with the Leinenkugel's Oktoberfest. Pretty good...

 

Little update: Next weekend I'll be an exhibitor at Autumn Beer Review (volunteering for Finnegan's Beer has its privileges). I should have a nice healthy update of some Oktoberfest beers at that time.

 

Yeah, Schells makes some good beers. They always seem to surprise me.

 

I've got a tickets to that with a few friends so I'll be flying in later this week. Can't wait.

 

I'll be there, not exactly sure what I'll be wearing, probably flying some Finnegan's stuff. We should try to meet up. I'll try to remember to PM you before hand.

Another little update: I was at The Herkimer last night. No Oktoberfest for a few weeks. I think he's brewing it here soon because I saw all the bags of grain set out plus he has an empty fermenter.

 

had sams oktoberfest last night. very very good. lighter than i remember for some reason.

 

Had 2 new oktoberfest beers last night with Soupboy, Bullwinkle, Shibbs, and the MNSOC crew down at HIN. We all meet up at Stub and Herbs. Good times guys.

Also for anyone that will be at Autumn Beer Review today, I'll be sporting a dark blue t3hw00t d0t c0m hat. Feel free to say hi.

 

Pfft, I drank all of mine. And it was 22oz! I would have to agree with Ryan's beer rating, though. Not a great beer.

 

Yeah, I think that was Eli who left the fallen soldier. I don't blame him. I'm considering downgrading it to D-. It was nasty.

A huge update after going to Autumn Beer Review. Good times.

 

I had to split out at 5pm to make another event. Actually as I was leaving I stopped at the water keg to rinse my glass and the guy in front of me broke his glass and got the big 'boos' :laugh:

I'm glad I was able to hit most of the special taps that were offered like Darkness (I didn't have to wait in that stupidly long line), Two Brothers Trippel, cask IPA from Rush River, and someone's apricot ale. There were a lot of great beers and only a few that I had to dump. I think I was most impressed with Furthermore's limited offerings, but there were so many more worth mention that I'd have to go through page by page through my guide to cover it all.

Who were the winners of the event?

 

I didn't stick around for the end of it, but I can find out.

 

I had some Sam Adams Octoberfest yesterday, not bad at all. Ditto on the lighter presence than I would expect, but good overall flavor. I'm not a big beer drinker, but I do enjoy the variety of flavors that exist. You got me thinking about heading down to the store and seeing if I can find some of those "A" beers.:biggrin:

You're going to have to make a regular appearance on the forum for the various seasons of beer.:laugh: I'd love to see your take on other options throughout the year.:biggrin:

 

Funny you should talk about the Sam Adams because I had it on tap yesterday and it was much better then the stuff i had in bottle. I gave it a different on-tap grade.

As for other beer review threads, I have no problem keeping a personal journal of beers to try. I don't know how well I'll be able to grade some because things always change. Also my taste in beer is different then other people. I love hops. LOVE THEM. IPA and Double IPA's are some of my favorite beers. Most people can't handle the bitterness of hops. If there is interest though, I have no problem doing a write-up of beers to try.

 

You need to make a trip to Dogfish Head to have 120 Minute through the Randall! I'm a huge hop-head too and that experience changed me.

 

Hofbraeuhaus Oktoberfest straight from the source at the HB tent in Munich Germany. Best beer I had while I was there.

 

There is much to be said about beer overseas. I've been to Belgium, Germany, and the British Isles on trips only for beer. I've had good, I've had bad. The one thing that gives them an advantage is that they don't have such strict standards for pasteurization which can make a big difference. For that reason I can no longer drink Guinness here as it tastes like ass compared to the stuff overseas.

Belgium is THE place to go for beer, without question. It is like heaven on earth for beer lovers.

 

Stopped at Chicone's in Hudson on the way back from the Phun Run. Celebrating with various seasonal beers. Each one tastes better than its predecessor.

Next: Beer + Entourage.