Oktoberfest
Arbor Brewing Company - Plymouth Taproom

 

 

No canning date (released on 8/25/22, so presumably canned within a few days of that date); consumed on 10/10/22

Pours a clear, golden copper body capped with two and a half fingers of fluffy, white foam; solid head retention leaves just shy of a finger of craggy cap, moderate, frothy collar, and an ample spread of webby, splotchy lacing along the walls of the glass.

Aroma offers a bready overtone into a mineralic prickle, with floral honey guiding semi-sweetness toward fresh pretzels as choppy lager yeast is interspersed and sweet dough lingers.

Taste brings pumpernickel bread into a tinge of burnt grain, with lingering honey over the mid-palate easing into florality contrasting burnt toast on the back end.

Mouthfeel shows a medium-light body and a rounded, moderate-high carbonation; a slight prickle engages a dry, semi-bitterness over the mid-palate, while a subtle grit fades through a largely clean finish.

Toasted malt prominence is amplified by a prickly minerality, an ever-present contrast to the meager sweetness maintained in the backdrop; direct in its expression of crisp, verging on roasty, grain character throughout.

 

 

 

 

 

Below average Oktoberfest in my opinion, has some off flavors that remind me of cheap beer and doesn't quite fit the style. If I tried this beer without knowing what it was, Oktoberfest probably wouldn't be my first guess.

 

12 ounce can into dimpled mug, canned in 8/2019. Pours crystal clear deep golden/amber color with a 1 finger fairly dense and fluffy off white head with great retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lasts. Nice dense spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big honey, brown sugar, brown bread dough, and toasted biscuit; with lighter notes of caramel, nuttiness, wood, peppercorn, and herbal/floral/grassy earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of bready malts and light-moderate earthy hop notes; with big strength. Taste of big honey, brown sugar, brown bread dough, and toasted biscuit; with lighter notes of caramel, nuttiness, wood, peppercorn, and herbal/floral/grassy earthiness. Light-moderate herbal, floral, woody, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of honey, brown sugar, brown bread dough, toasted biscuit, caramel, nuttiness, wood, peppercorn, and herbal/floral/grassy earthiness on the finish for a while. Awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of bready malts and light-moderate earthy hop flavors; with an awesome malt/bitterness balance, and no cloying/astringent flavors after the finish. Very clean on lager flavors, with minimal fruity/yeasty notes. Light-moderate increasing dryness from lingering bitterness. Medium carbonation and medium-plus body; with a very smooth, creamy/bready/grainy, and fairly sticky mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol for 5.5%. Overall this is an awesome Marzen. All around awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of bready malts and light-moderate earthy hop flavors; very smooth and easy to drink with the mellowly bitter/drying finish; awesome soft feel. Awesome clean/rich Pils/Munich malt showcase, with great noble hop presence/balance for the style. Light residual sweetness with lingering dryness. A really enjoyable offering, and outstandingly spot on style example. One of the best new Oktoberfests I've had in a while.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is the fourth beer I've had at ABC, and they continue to be absolutely unimpressive.

A: A weak brown-orange with mild haze and no head whatsoever.

S: It had the characteristic smell of ABC beers I am noticing, which is a slight weak malty sweetness.

T: Probably the worst Marzen/Oktoberfest I've had, ever, which is saying something. It wasn't an appallingly bad beer, it was just clearly below average. It tasted nearly identical to the cask IPA I had the week before and even a similar flavor profile to the HXL ESB, which is just bizzare. Imagine extremely weak malt sweetness with absolutely no depth of hop character. I'm contemplating lowering my rating below 2.0 just out of my rising anger, but I don't need to be ludicrous here.

M: Thin, with no good carbonation giving it any body.

D: If you can get past the taste, it's totally drinkable. You certainly won't get overwhelmed with flavor.

To be avoided, truly.

i had this brew at a pub in ypsilanti. arbor brewing actualy calls it "hoptoberfest" and let me tell ya it's no hops at all. i drank it yesterday and took some notes.

A- poured a light golden with a thin lacing head. noticed the bubbles running up which were kickin the whole time drinkin it.

S- with something with hop in the name i wouldv'e expected to smell them but nope. just malts.

T- prolly one of the most watery microbrews i've ever had. nothing there at all. a budlight has more flavor.

M- light bodied. very carbonated.

D- i can say it simply that it's a carbonated water with just a dab of a malt pressence.

Overall- this beer is terrible if you're looking for something that a microbrew should have. completely watery and just hits you with the carbonation.

A decent Oktoberfest, somewhere toward the middle of the road however.

Served in a standard pint medoum gold/amber in color with a thin light head. Nose is a bit weak, a tad bready and slightly malty. Taste is quite nice, very bready overall, a decent malt background and bitterness profile, but remaining fairly light, in fact a tad weak. Mouthfeel is quite light. This is a fairly sessionable beer but not overly impressive.

Slàinte!