Golden Festbier
Sleeman Breweries Ltd.

Seen this several times for close to $10 and have always passed, but found a great sale on this at 4.95, so now its time to try it out!

A- Definitely a good looking bottle, showing off some masculinity, which is always a nice touch. As for the brew itself, this pours a lovely deep golden color, with orange & rust hues in the background.....it is showing about 90-95% clear, with just a touch of what I think is chill hazing. The head starts off about 2 fingers in thickness, before the ultra white foam disappears almost completely, and in rather fast fashion, settling into a wisp of a layer hovering over the liquid. The carbonation rises s-l-o-w-l-y to the top in only a couple of columns, and the lacing seems to be sticky, showing off various forms of artwork around the side of the glass.

S- There is a large whiff of caramel malt sweetness, blended with plenty of dry grassy grain, muted peppery spice, dried flower petals, as well as some dry biscuit/soda cracker bread like qualities. The finish is noble hop zest, slight alcohol and burnt toffee sweetness.

T- The initial flavorings are of the hop bitterness, which is quite dominant immediately, along with dry grassy spice, some muted spiced apple and/or pear, and burnt brown sugar/toffee/blackstrap molasses. The finish takes me back to the same bitter, yet refreshing hop character.....slightly oily and lingering on the palate. Other noted flavors are some booziness, and a muted yeasty funk.

M/O- Nice mouthfeel, with the body in that medium-light range, and the carbonation is highly aggressive, which is what this style needs I think. I think the drinkability is good, as there is nothing that impedes the quality, and there is enough flavor to keep wanting another sip. Could go well with a flavorful Bratwurst, or as an accompaniment to a strong cheese platter. Not quite as good as what can be done with this in Germany, however, I think it is a very good offering and I'd easily be happy enjoying this again. Probably one of Sleemans' better brews in sometime.....Cheers!

750ml embossed (dare I say classy) brown bottle - it is technically a 'Märzen' style, and it is the (not yet so merry) month of March, so I will just leave it at that.

This beer pours a clear, bright medium golden yellow colour, with three fingers of puffy, rocky, and mildly bubbly off-white head, which leaves some decent thickly splattered and webbed lace around the glass as it rather lazily sinks out of sight.

It smells of semi-sweet, bready and biscuity caramel malt, sugary white grape juice, a hint of indistinct spiciness, and some plain earthy, musty, and floral noble hop bitters. The taste is grainy and crackery cereal malt, some pear, apple, and grape salad fruitiness, fading earthy spice, and more well-understated leafy, musky, and dead floral hoppiness.

The carbonation is adequate in its palate-engaging frothiness, the body a solid middleweight, and actually quite smooth, with a nice airy creaminess pretty much there from the veritable get-go. It finishes off-dry, the malt and mixed frooty notes keeping their lederhosen tight and in the fight, ja?

Overall - this is a fair bit more flavourful than I was initially expecting, and truth be told, I wasn't expecting the worst (whuh)? Anyways, this one duly hits the spot, with its nearly balanced profile, and generally amenable drinkability. Worth a go come Oktoberzeit (yeah, I think I made that one up), should they make it again.

Saw it tucked away in a top corner shelf. Looked lonely so I decided to adopt a 750ml bottle, not expecting too much but still wondering if Sleeman could pull it off.

Nice bright golden colour as advertised.
Aroma tends towards grains, slight mustiness, with a hint of spice.

Hey! Not bad. It certainly tries to hit the correct notes with some decent malt Sweetness, festive spiciness, and some solid hop bitterness on the finish.

Maybe a touch watery on the feel end.

Drinkable and a decent effort by this brewery. As previously mentioned maybe a bit pricy at $8.95/per

November 16 2019

750 ml bomber picked up for $8.95 CDN from the local LCBO. Going on a brief run of not so exciting breweries trying more exciting craft options (Molson updates to come). Split this and served cold into a pint glass. Listed at 5.8% ABV.

Appearance - Rich dark gold color, good sized finger and a half of head. Good staying power, brilliantly clear, modest visible carbonation, no lacing.

Smell - Clean and grainy, very faint hints of caramel sweetness and a slight overlaid sense of autumn. Less aromatic than most in the style, but nothing offputting. Fairly bitter finish overall.

Taste - Some good initial bitterness interspersed with caramel notes and earthy hops.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, modest carbonation slightly dry finish.

Overall - About what I'd thought it'd be, a just below middling Oktoberfest, that doesn't taste bad, but the flavors and smells lest robust, a macro-ish effort at the style. Price is quite steep for what you get too.