Karl Strauss Oktoberfest Beer | Karl Strauss Brewing Company

3.49/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Good beer, honestly more impressed with how it looked than the overall taste. but still a good beer

From bottle to glass
the head was decently moist and held up well,
smell was faintly fuity with toasty malts
taste was there but not attention grabing, malts really came out fairly creamy and soft due to not overcarbonating, which makes this very easy to drink, probably could have sat and consumed a whole grip of theses but taste didnt exactly put me on my knees begging for more,

if you havent tried this beer yet and are tempted to do so, i would have to recomend.

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3.87/5  rDev +9.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

12oz brown bottle.

Bubbly brassy brew, decent sized crown of head. Bready caramel aroma with some grassy hops. Crispness pops under the moderate sized body to bring on a refreshing smoothness. Grassy, biscuity, bready, animal feed, faint caramel ... Dry maltiness. Hopping is there with a slightly sharp edge and herbal flavor. Clean malty finish.

A good run at the style, very drinkable.

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2.82/5  rDev -19.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

On tap downtown. Pours clear amber with a smallish white head. Crisp malt and oat aroma is promising. Sweet maltiness in the front, but very thin. Metallic as well, but the bread and spice take over. Taste doesn't follow through. Watery and plain. I'm beginning to dislike Oktoberfest as they rarely come through

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4.25/5  rDev +20.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

12oz brown bottle,twist-off cap,served in a nonic glass. Sent to me by my brother-in-law,aka BA deekster

Clear,amber with a generous light tan head that's dense and creamy,with very good retention slowing falling into a pillowy layer. Decent carbinaton with some extra tiny bubbles staggering to the surface.

Very sweet malty aromas,complex,burnt/nutty/toasty with a honey touch, a slight buttery note with flowery/perfumy hop notes. very pleasing aroma.

Clean taste with honeyied carmell,complex maltiness,execellent balance,with a nice,pleasing, bitterness.leaves some fruity tartness lingering.

Medium to light mouthfeel,very smooth. Very good O-fest,has everything that I like and expect from an O-fest. A very sessionable O-fest. Wish this beer was avalible in my area. Would definatly seek this one out.

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3.53/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On Tap

Karl Strauss Brewing Company
Carlsbad, CA

Copper orange with a thin white head. Spots of lacing left down the glass.

As with most Karl Strauss beers, this one smells of toasted malts with a touch of sweetness. Simple and bready, though I'm beginning to sound like a broken record after reviewing all these Karl Strauss beers. So many of them smell and taste so similarly!

More simple graininess in the flavor with a bit of toffee sweetness. Low bitterness.

Relatively full bodied and chewy for an Oktoberfest.

A simple, bready, and drinkable Oktoberfest.

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2.8/5  rDev -20.5%

3.98/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Poured a clear golden amber with a massively craggy off white head that slowly melted to some very sticky lacing.

Aromas of toasted amber malts, buttery caramel, and brown sugar.

Taste is not as sweet as it smells. Toasted amber malt, light caramel, light hops to dry the finish. Lots of smooth malt comes through especially as it warms.

Aftertaste seems clean with just a bit of the caramel and hops lingering.

I have a feeling this one grows on you and will enjoy the rest of my sixer.

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4.24/5  rDev +20.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

3.75/5  rDev +6.5%

3.95/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75

3.5/5  rDev -0.6%

3.08/5  rDev -12.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Appearance - pours a deep amber, garnet hue with brilliant clarity albeit a quickly receding head that leaves faint lacing on the glass.

Smell - malty, bready, some caramel. Crystal malt showing its character in the aroma, very little to no hop presence.

Taste - sweet malt, some toastiness, less caramel than the aroma. Don't really detect any specialty malts in the flavor. Some mild hop bite at the end with a bready aftertaste.

Mouthful - well carbonated and lively, light bodied and goes down smooth.

Overall - very light and uninteresting for an oktoberfest beer. The use of crystal malt lends character with the aroma and appearance, but I found the taste to be somewhat lackluster. Abv is only 5% which seems low for a more fortified festive style?

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3.67/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured a finger and half of head on a hazy, medium straw colored body.
The aroma is caramel candy and wet grain. On the bold side.
The taste is caramel sweetness with mild pine bitterness. Nicely balanced.
The texture is chewy with crisp edges and moderate carbonation.
Enjoyable.

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3/5  rDev -14.8%

3.38/5  rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On tap at T. Phillips in La Verne, CA. Not a whole lot to say about this beer. Looked good on the pour, a nice orangish brown clear color... looks inviting.... standard lager head that dwindles pretty fast. The taste has a bit of a watery character to it, but also some sweet malt flavor to it. There is no real hoppiness in this, or bitterness, it comes across as sweet and watery. Mouthfeel is light and spritzy but not too abrasive... overall not one of the better oktoberfests out there but there isn't anything offensive about it.

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4.04/5  rDev +14.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Cheers to my buddy Eric for hauling this from Cali to here!

Pours an effervescent amber with 2 fingers of cream colored head. Average head retention & lacing

S: Caramel, leafy hops & breadyness

T: Breadyness, some crackery notes, & a bit of toffee up front. More of the same, plus dryness as this warms. Finishes dry with some caramel & crackery notes, almost pulled a 4.5

MF: Medium bodied with low carbonation & good balance

Drinks very easy, pretty nice take on the style

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3.62/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz. bottle served into a pint glass. Karl's Oktoberfest pours clear and somewhat light in color, a deep straw with a bit of an orange/caramel hue. A thin head dissipates quickly and not much is offered as for carbonation.

Smell is bready and slightly toasted with a bit of over roasted malts. Malt notes are light and biscuity. Hop notes are thin as well. Notably dry for the style.

Taste follows the nose with a light bready texture and a moderate sweetness. Light caramel in nature along with a return of the roasted biscuit flavor. Not bad but a bit too one dimensional in nature.

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2.1/5  rDev -40.3%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Not my style of Oktoberfest.

I really do not like Karl Strauss beers that much

Stargazer IPA is ok, but most of their beers are average at best.

This is a blonde Oktoberfest Lager

Very light in color and too sweet, I bought two cases to sell at my local restaurant (here in San Diego) I wouldnt buy it again.

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3.15/5  rDev -10.5%

2.75/5  rDev -21.9%

3.74/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

3.58/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I tried this at the brewpub in downtown San Diego.

Pours a translucent amber with a 1-finger light yellow head. Minimal lacing.

The smell is very subtle--just toasty malts and caramel. The taste is bready with caramel, roasted malts, yeast, and a slight sourness. Mouthfeel is smooth, medium-bodied.

This is a drinkable Oktoberfest--malty and bread-like.

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4/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

SERVING TYPE: Bottel

A: Clear, light amber color. Nice white head
S: A little sweet, caramel

T: Very mild, earthy, and crisp. Served too cold, but no flavor came out in the end. Very traditional common beer.

M: Medium bodied.

D: Had this years ago during Oktober fest. Went down okay.

O: Good summer brew.

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3.2/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

In a 12oz. brown bottle with a label picture depicting the celebration of Oktoberfest along with the blue and white vertical checkerboard accents.

It pours a deep gold with a half-inch of off-white head which dissipates in less than a minute. A few streamers of carbonation bubbles, a couple dots of lacing.

The smell is faint and vague, All I can detect is a light, slightly roasted malt with some wheat or blunt straw notes and that's about it. It's not a very sweet smell, kind of chalk like and slightly bitter.

The taste...much like it smells is weak, yet balanced. It starts on a malt note, slight roast, slight nuttiness then a mild hop slowly shuts the door. It actually has a nice taste but seems watered-down to the max. A little more malt sweetening and at least double the existing flavor and the brew would suit it's style just fine. Unfortunetly it doesn't and is way too weak to be enjoyed as an Oktoberfest.

Fine mouthfeel, smooth and creamy and a bit bubbly with a light body and clean finish. Where's the alcohol? Easy to drink as it tastes good, just need to double the ingredients, less the water.

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3/5  rDev -14.8%