Oktoberfest Brau
Garrison Brewing Company

Oktoberfest BrauOktoberfest Brau
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From:
Garrison Brewing Company
 
Nova Scotia, Canada
Style:
Märzen
ABV:
4.9%
Score:
81
Avg:
3.52 | pDev: 12.5%
Reviews:
40
Ratings:
48
Status:
Active
Rated:
May 18, 2014
Added:
Sep 27, 2009
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
Germany’s most popular fall beer, this “Oktoberfest Brau” is brewed in the traditional maerzen style. Pleasant toffee-like flavors, medium body and low hopping make this a seasonal lager worthy of celebration.

16 IBU
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by allergictomacros:
Photo of allergictomacros
Reviewed by allergictomacros from Canada (ON)

3.35/5  rDev -4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
A - Clear amber-red. Thick white head. Looks pretty good.
S - Barely there hints of roasted grain, hints of fruit.
T - Moderately dry with strong acidity. hints of coffee and toasted grain. Nondescript hops and moderately bitter finish.
M - Light,crisp mouthfeel
D - Too much acidity up front for my taste. Wouldn't try this one again.
Oct 12, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4 by DreamDeath from Canada (NB)

May 18, 2014
 
Rated: 3.25 by DaPan from Canada (ON)

Feb 14, 2013
 
Rated: 2 by cfalovo97 from Canada (ON)

Nov 06, 2012
Photo of decimator
Reviewed by decimator from Canada (ON)

3.45/5  rDev -2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
500ml bottle poured into a pint glass. ABV 4.9%.

A - Poured a slightly hazy orange-brown with a foamy head. Foam reduces to a thin cap in a few minutes. Minimal lacing.

S - Caramel, toffee, some apple sour notes, sourness, some grass. As it warms there's metallic notes in the finish. The balance is definitely on the malty side.

T - Toffee/caramel upfront, some nondescript fruity sour notes, mild bitter finish.

M - Medium-high carbonation, medium body but finishes thin, smooth, sticky, a bit tangy.

O - Good beer. Easy to session on this one.
Oct 29, 2012
Photo of Kremlock
Reviewed by Kremlock from Canada (ON)

2.95/5  rDev -16.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
A: Caramel colour, pours a nice head that then falls to a thin film that laces the glace a bit. Beer is a bit hazy yet only malt on their bill is Munich.

S: Hints of caramel with some lemon on the background.

T: Hints of pepper, bubblegum and soft toffee in the background.

M: Thin and to high of a carbonation. Carbonation feels acidic and distracts from the flavours of the beer.

O: Not impressed for a Garrison product. The mouthfeel takes away from the experience. Aromas are very light, Head does not stand and beer is not clear. There is a long lasting aftertaste that is not bitter nor malty.
Oct 26, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by bcrocker from Canada (NS)

Oct 06, 2012
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Reviewed by SebD from Canada (ON)

3.57/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Appearance: It has a nice cloudy golden/amber color to it. It has a nice beige head that dies down moderately and leaves next to no lacing.

Smell: The aromas definitely give out hints of dark fruit, bready/grainy malts, caramel and grassy hops.

Taste: Like the aromas, it has bready/grainy malts along with some sweet caramel/toffee, grassy hops and slight dark fruit. There's almost a sourness to this beer.

Mouthfeel: It has a low/medium carbonation with a somewhat light overall balance and feel.

Drinkability: It's a very smooth drinkable beer accompanied with decent flavors and aromas. Probably not something I'll try again.
Oct 03, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by Molson2000 from Canada (ON)

Sep 11, 2012
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Reviewed by BGDrock from Canada (ON)

3.11/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
From notes:

Appearance: nice amber/red hue; clear with a thick head

Aroma: some spice notes; light malt; not a strong aroma

Taste & Mouthfeel: smooth texture, almost creamy; lightly carbonated; grain or a slightly woodsy flavour; mild spice; pretty good balance with malt flavour on the caramel/toffee side

Overall: a good session beer, but fairly average taste and not much interesting
Feb 27, 2012
Photo of Sammy
Reviewed by Sammy from Canada (ON)

3.33/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
Yellow bodied with some retained head. Neutral aroma. Light mouthfeel, with above average carbonation. Fresh bottle from LCBO. Easy drinking, tastes a bit more bitter than its 16 IBU. Nice job to input flavour coinciding with lower abv. A little sweetness, would like a little more flavour, such as a touch of smoke to make this more enjoyable.
Feb 10, 2012
Photo of TerryW
Reviewed by TerryW from Canada (ON)

3.17/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Pours dark copper with a short white head. Leaves behind just a thin film before long.

Nose is bready with cooked sugar malt. That carries on through to the flavour, which is dominated by caramel and grain. I'm surprised at the mouthfeel which is soft and creamy like an ale. This beer isn't particularly pushy in anyway and you need to work a bit to find what's there.

Decent, evenhanded brew, but not overly exciting.
Feb 04, 2012
Photo of joemcgrath27
Reviewed by joemcgrath27 from Canada (AB)

3.53/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
big props to my BA in crime andrenaline for including this is our latest cross country swap
A - mostly clear amber copper colour, tall fluffy tan head dissipated slowly but consistently
S - a strong blood-like mineral odour with some grape fruitiness and grassy hops, reminds me more of a dunkel
T - caramel and light nutty malts, strong blood-like metallic flavour, light fruity and grassy flavour with a musty hint
M - medium body and a little on the flat side, somewhat creamy with a mineral feeling that lingers
O - a tasty treat from a brewer that I am generally pleased with, not an outstanding marzen by any means but worth picking up when the season arrives
Jan 07, 2012
Photo of PeerlessMark
Reviewed by PeerlessMark from Canada (ON)

2.1/5  rDev -40.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 1.5
This is only the second Märzen style beer I've had, the first being the Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Märzen.

I can easily say this is the worst MärzenI've ever had, more than that though it totally disagreed with me on many levels and I hated drinking this beer, will never try it again and probably will avoid Garrison Brewing Company in general.

It pours fine, average head that dissipates into a thin white collar. The smell is pleasant, suggests some honey and the general smell impression I had was that of "clean and crisp".

The initial flavour is fresh and made me optimistic but I was severely let down when the flavour rolled like a dirty fog over my tongue.

At first I got very tart cucumber. That's just not a flavour I welcome in my beer. Next I got assailed with an overipe honeydew flavour, but not the dark sweet part of the honeydew melon... more like the white part that is very close to the rind but far worse than that. It mixes with a cloyingly gross reminder of the worst medicine you had to take when you were little. I'm so grateful I'm no longer a child, and as I'm certain there are no medicinal properties in this swill I threw the rest of this out.

I gave it a few more sips just to make sure I hadn't missed out on some redeeming quality further in, but it kept getting nastier. I am introducing friends to new craft beers and one of them couldn't stomach anymore either, his girlfriend liked it and drank the rest so it apparently does suit at least one person's pallette. Not mine.

It has been a long time since I threw out a fresh beer. Avoid this.
Jan 01, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by beerhunter13 from Canada (ON)

Dec 01, 2011
 
Rated: 3 by oldp0rt from Canada (QC)

Nov 24, 2011
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Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)

3.53/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
500 mL bottle from the LCBO; packaged Aug. 25, 2011.

Pours a beautiful orange-copper colour, bright and clear. Seated atop the liquid is a creamy light beige head, about two-fingers thick at first but it soon settles down to a thin, equally-creamy cap. The malty aroma is pleasant but a bit weak in intensity. It consists mostly of toasted nuts, fresh bread and biscuits with some caramel or brown sugar notes as well.

Good firm malty backbone, lots of toasted bread with some nutty notes, sweet biscuits and brown sugar as well. Some light plum-like fruitiness in the finish, as well as some grassy bitterness that lingers briefly with sweet malts in the aftertaste. Medium-thin bodied, with fairly mild carbonation, just enough to make it feel a bit crisp. Very drinkable; probably easy to throw back but I'd rather enjoy it at a slower pace.

Good stuff, easy to like/drink but not worth the price in Ontario when there are equally good marzens being made locally. I'd drink this again no question, but it's not really spiffy enough to warrant seeking out.
Nov 20, 2011
 
Rated: 4 by jimctin from Canada (ON)

Nov 17, 2011
Photo of Phyl21ca
Reviewed by Phyl21ca from Canada (QC)

3.5/5  rDev -0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Bottle: Poured a bright clear copper color ale with a large foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of caramelized malt is enjoyable though not overly complex. Taste is really dominated by loads of caramel malt with not much else to report though that is kind of the point of the style. Body is about average with good carbonation and no apparent alcohol. Not the greatest interpretation of the style but quite enjoyable nonetheless.
Nov 17, 2011
Photo of biegaman
Reviewed by biegaman from Canada (ON)

3.8/5  rDev +8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Oktoberfest Brau has a toasty, nutty, orange-y colour, relative clarity, and a candle-like glow. The bottom of the glass is lined with what looks like quinoa but is, in fact, bubbles, which one by one take turns emancipating themselves from the base only to meet again in the thin white web of the surface. Eventually it goes completely flat.

The aroma showcases sufficient Munich malt to instill thoughts of bread and toasty bread crusts. There's no real caramel or butterscotch flavour present, but it is lightly sugary, enough so as to impart a good deal of sweetness in any case. The big and uncontested presence of maltiness gives it the definitive 'beer' smell.

The flavour is entangled in a thicket of bready malt and toasted nutty sweetness. It's like someone took the grain and stuck it in the toaster at a low temperature, just enough to lightly caramelize it and bring out nutty crunch. There's even some Noble hop spiciness that might evade less experienced palates. Despite the simplicity, this style offers a breadth of flavour and an easy quietness that only a lager could possess.

The Oktoberfest style is a bit of a curiosity: somehow limitless drinkability unfolds out of a rich, tremendously flavourful beer. This much malt would normally bog the drinker down, but not here: ample carbonation and an overall 'smooth' disposition makes it quite approachable. People who like bolder lagers have met their match.

Once upon a time the Germans thumped down a flag and proclaimed that the official drink of fall would be this smooth but rich malty lager and the rest of the world mapped out the style accordingly, including this Nova Scotian brewery. Garrison Oktoberfest Brau would pass any Germans' litmus test - it's a beer remade exactly in their image.
Nov 13, 2011
Oktoberfest Brau from Garrison Brewing Company
Beer rating: 81 out of 100 with 48 ratings