Festbier
Reuben's Brews

16 ounce can poured to wine glass
Sight: light amber, appears clear, slightly hazy minimal head head, lacing
Smell: fragrant aroma
Taste: slightly bitter, some sweetness
Mouthfeel: good carbonation, creamy, long finish, medium body, long bitter aftertaste
Overall: Very good beer. ok to repeat, look for

Look: Orange and somewhat bright at that, with a silky white head that settles to a lid and holds, leaving a ring of lacing behind

Aroma: Freshly baked bread, raw dough, lightly toasted crust, floral hops, and wafts of toffee

Taste: Opens up with, as expected, layer after layer of bread-driven malt from warm bread to dough to toasted crust, along with some light toffee. Floral hops weave in and out throughout and closes with a nice doughy note

Mouthfeel: Full, clean, medium-high carbonation, and clean, smooth, and crisp on the finish

Overall: I dig it. I love Oktoberfests enough that I’d drink them year-round if I could and so scored this new-to-me one in mid-November to continue to get my fix as stores try to move the last of their stock. It’s a tasty and well-made Festbier that checks all the style boxes and is quite enjoyable. Prost!

Pint can pkgd 08/09/23. Served in a pint glass. Brilliant golden color, perfect clarity, and just a bit of white head. Neutral aroma. Flavor has a biscuity grain flavor, just a bit of coppery caramel (apparently both Vienna and Munich malts, along with Pilsner in this one). But above all it is crisp. To my palate, as far as Oktoberfests go, this is just a great German style Pilsner.

Crystal clear grainy gold. This beer has a lively bubbly head, almost reminded me of soda. No retention or lacing.

Very strong grainy and herbal aroma comes off of this beer, little bit of citrus as well.

It tastes just like the nose but the herbal note is even stronger, almost medicinal like in intensity. It is balanced out by some extra bread like notes that were not present, or overshadowed in the nose.

Drinks very nice, full bodied but very smooth and clean. There is a strange slight herbal bitterness that comes out on the finish.

 

Pours a clear yellow-gold with long-lasting foam in the big IPA glass. Plenty of spritz on the tongue and a light body. Some malty sweetness to start followed by the zippy hop notes. Clean and crisp with the usual resiny Oktoberfest aftertaste. Just slightly bitter, a little gummy. Bread, or more likely pretzels, and herbs.

Totally quaffable with the classic flavors. The 2021 version is a slight rebooting of the 2018 brew with the name now "Fest Beer" and the ABV at 6.0. From the 16 oz can purchased at Elizabeth Station.

 

 

 

 

Clear, dark gold body; lively carbonation; respectable head, a bit thin yet lasting; spotty sheets of foam cling to the glass. Nice herbal and grassy smells with a touch of floral elements. Very mild malt base; a suggestion of honey; hop bitterness is bold and lasting. Medium-light body; coarse with the carbonation; pretty dry overall.

Personally, I find this beer a bit weak for the style. Granted, the brewery's web site states the beer is " Less malty and more drinkable than marzen", and I do prefer a maltier type of fest bier. Still, it's not bad and certainly has some fantastic noble hop aroma. One point of interest is that the beer can label has the ABV at 6% whereas the brewery's web site has the ABV pegged at 5.8%. No big deal.

2020-09-18
16oz can served in a can-shaped glass. Packaged 8/24/20. Bought it at the brewery on Wednesday.

Pours clear golden with a medium to small head that collapses to a thinnish cap. Smell is barley and grass.

Taste is really rich. Lots of barley, a lager yeast funk that hits just the right balance for me, some grassy bitterness.

Mouthfeel is medium, maybe a little still. Overall, tasty, refreshing, enjoyable beer.

Clear golden color with good cap and lacing.

Aroma of sweet malt with floral, spicy hops.

Taste is cleanly, richly malty in a restrained way that approaches elegance. Hops are spicy with floral overtones and present is just the right amount to balance the malt. Complex and delicious.

Medium texture with balancing carbonation.

Very nice surprise here, much more substance than our usual fest/oktoberfest beers.

Poured from 16oz can into a tulip. Packaged 8/16/19. I like the can -- it reminds me of the old Hilliard's cans.

Appearance: crystal-clear body with a medium golden hue and a light effervescence. Head is a finger of frothy ivory foam with decent staying power. A good example of the style.

Smell: quite malty with just the right amount of breadiness and not too much biscuity character. It really works for me.

Taste: malty, biscuity, bready; it's definitely got more biscuit character than the aroma. This is in line with the style, if not totally to my taste. That said, it's a very well-made beer.

Mouthfeel: medium body with a well-integrated carbonation and a surprisingly creamy mouthfeel for a beer of this style.

Overall: as I said, this is a carefully crafted beer -- it's just that the flavor profile isn't necessarily my favorite.

Pours a light copper color into my preferred Delirium Tremens tulip. Nice head, but dissipated quickly. Very lazy lacing throughout the session, with a small ring of foam on top of the beer.

Sweet malt notes on the nose. Honey. Light floral hops.

Flavor mimicks the nose. More sweet malts, moderate hop bitterness. Moderate low floral hops. I feel like I get the slightest hint of buttered popcorn too. Pleasant and approachable.

Round, smooth mouth feel. Medium-light bodied. Moderate low carbonation. I believe this style is supposed to be more carbonated.

Overall this is a great lager from an American brewery. It wouldn't compare to the lagers in Munich, but this is very approachable and quite delicious. I think the carbonation needs to be bumped a little bit. I live about 5 blocks from Ruben's brewery in Ballard, so I know I'm drinking fresh--and it's fun to support a local independent brewer.

16 oz. can purchased from Lifesource in Salem OR
$3.29
Pours a lighter copper color than expected with a nice frothy/rocky off white head.
Aromas of malty caramel malts..slight grassy hop in the end.
Taste mainlly malty with a slight hoppiness in thevend.
Nice mouth feel quite drinkable. Not a traditional marzen but probably closer to what the Germans drink during Oktoberfest.

L: Clear golden hue, a finger plus of frothy white foam with average retention and little lacing. Very light coloration for style.

S: Oddly a touch over-roasted, biscuits and malt, wet stone scotchiness, and floral hop notes.

T: Similar to the nose but sweeter malt, biscuity, and some hop spice comes through. Not bad.

F: Light bodied and mostly dry with moderately high carbonation and a bit too bitter for me.

O: An interesting blonde take on the style, it is good, but not what I would go to when I'm looking for an Oktoberfest.

16oz canned 8-16-19, opened 9-15-19.
1" off white head with good retention, beginnings of fresh lace. Deep golden color with great clarity.
Sweet bready malt, nutty with a hint of honey. Spicy, grassy hops integrate very well in a great aroma.
Bready, doughy malt. Similar nutty character as in the aroma. Subtle hop spice and a touch of herbal hop late.
Medium body, medium persistent carbonation. Sweet malt entry with a clean off-dry finish.
Fine example of Festbier. Very good.

16oz can poured into 14oz teku. Poured a bright, clean, clear medium gold color with an inch of white head that dissipated quickly and left minimal lacing.

The aroma was the expected lightly sweet malts, and floral hops that also had a touch of spice.

Same on the tongue, with the spiciness being a bit brighter, and the sweetness a bit stronger at the back.

The body was medium-light, smooth, and had a sweet finish.

Drinkability was very good, an easy brew to crush.

Overall, a very nice example of the style. maybe not top-tier, but very good indeed. certainly worth trying if you see it.