749. SanTan Brewing – Oktoberfest
It’s the day after Thanksgiving, and we had a wonderful time yesterday with the family here at our house. I had plenty of my homebrew on tap, as well as lots of food. Today, I had to work from home, because with my new job I still don’t have a lot of vacation saved up. So, after getting plenty of work done, I decided to crack open this canned craft beer. SanTan Brewing sent me this beer a couple of months ago to try, and I...
734. Solemn Oath Brewing – Oktöberface
As you could see in my last couple of posts, I’m in Chicago for work, and thanks to @SubBeerBia I got some some recommendations for places to hit in the Chicago suburbs, including Lunar Brewing and Beer House Chicago. I already stopped at Lunar Brewing and had their Moondance IPA and Hopping Cow Cream Ale. So, the next stop was Beer House Chicago where I ordered a burger from Tom & Eddie’s next door and sat at the bar....
670. Penn Brewery – Märzen
I’m home from work a bit early and the snow is just starting to fall. Everyone’s in a bit of a panic, since we’re supposed to get between 8-10 inches of snow tonight. After throwing some salt on the driveway, I reached in the beer fridge and grabbed this beer. My dad and sister gave me this beer, along with many others, when they stopped at the brewery for lunch when they were in Pittsburgh. The bottle says,...
597. Spoetzl Brewery – Shiner Kosmos Reserve
It’s Thursday night and we’re back from baseball practice. I was looking for a lighter, but still flavorful, beer as a refreshing relaxer. I find that Spoetzl’s Shiner beers usually fit that category, so I thought I’d give this one a try. I believe I got this beer from my friend Betty, as part of a mixed six-pack of Shiner beers when she moved from Austin last year. Location: Poured into a Stella Artois chalice...
491. Pennsylvania Brewing Co – Oktoberfest Lager
As I’ve mentioned in my last few reviews of Penn beers (Penn Weizen and Penn Overlook IPA), my dad and sister brought several beers back for me from a recent trip to Pittsburgh. Since there’s only a few days left in the month of October, I thought I’d better have the Oktoberfest beer they brought me. Location: Poured into a large tulip shaped pint glass from the bottle at my home in Bloomington, IL. Numbers: 5.5%...
Best Oktoberfest Beers
I don’t usually do this, but last October I tried an Oktoberfest challenge. I tried a different Oktoberfest or Pumpkin beer every day in October. I learned a lot, and I’ve decided this year, to help you, by posting my favorite Oktoberfest beers. Oktoberfest is a 2-3 week festival held annually in Germany, running from late September to the first weekend in October. It’s an important part of Bavarian culture,...
Hacker-Pschorr Bräu – Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest Marzen Draft
This beer is #196 (Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest) on my list, but I took the opportunity to try this beer on tap today. My birthday was yesterday, and I thoroughly enjoyed the Goose Island Bourbon County Stout. My dad came to town today and we went out again to celebrate. We went to Bayern Stube, a German restaurant in Gibson City, IL. It’s a really interesting place, and since Oktoberfest is about to kick off, I wanted to...
365. Left Hand Brewing – Oktoberfest Marzen Lager
I’m in Boulder, Colorado for a couple of days for work, and I’m hoping to make the most of it by trying a few new brews. My hotel was on the north side of Boulder and I was excited to see that Upslope Brewing was right around the corner. I walked down to the brewery, but unfortunately, it wasn’t open. So I walked down the street and found this little pizza place that had a few local brews available....
309. Gordon Biersch, San Jose – Märzen Draft
As I mentioned in my last post, I’m at the Gordon Biersch in the San Jose, California airport while traveling for work. My flight was delayed, as there’s terrible weather in the Midwest, including around Dallas. That gives me time to have another beer while they continue to announce more delays to our flight. I just tried their Maïbock, which was good, so I thought I’d give their Märzen a shot. Location: On tap at...
259. ABInBev – Michelob Marzen Oktoberfest Style Beer
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I brought my sister almost a case of homebrews for her and her friends to try. So, when we came in over Christmas, she brought me a few Michelob beers from a sample she had, which I hadn’t had yet as part of my 1000 beer challenge. The label says, “March Beers, or ‘Marzenbiers,’ were originally brewed at the end of the Bavarian brewing season and stored in caves through the warm...
214. Brauerei Beck & Co – Beck’s Oktoberfest
I’m down to the last couple of beers in the beer fridge for my Oktoberfest Challenge, and I think I still need one or two more. I remember covering Oktoberfest beers during one of our ABNormal Brewers club meetings last year, and remember being somewhat surprised at how much I liked Beck’s Oktoberfest in comparison to the others we tried. So now in the spirit of reviewing it, I thought I’d give it another go around....
210. SABMiller / Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing – Leinenkugel’s Oktoberfest German-Style Märzen
It’s starting to get pretty difficult to find Oktoberfest beers for my Oktoberfest Challenge. However, a trip to Friar Tuck after work netted a few new options. I still need a few more, but I’ll worry about that later this week. I was familiar with Leinenkugel’s, as it seems to be a brand some locals try when they’re looking for a microbrew. I tried one of their beers once and wasn’t a fan, but I made...
