Festbier
Five Boroughs Brewing Co.

 

 

 

Pours a cloudy light amber, frothy 1" head that leaves some solid lacing. Nose is honey, light malt, some spicy hop, and a bit of resin snuck in; on the nose alone, it doesn't strike too many Märzen notes. Underlying hoppy bitterness dominates the palate here, though there is a bit of honeyed sweetness riding along. Not getting much at all from these malts in the way of sweetness. There's almost a mentholated quality as well, which is a bit...odd. Mouthfeel is on the full side, but carbonation is there. Overall, it's hop presence and assertiveness is far more reminiscent of an APA (a Mid-Western one, if you will) than a Märzen or certainly a Fest, which this is categorized as. Judging from reviews, this may have changed formulas from 2020 to 2021.

Canned on 9/7/20; consumed on 11/9/20

Pours a clear, deep honey gold body topped with a finger of fluffy, slightly off-white foam; mediocre head retention yields a sliver of creamy cap and collar along with a haphazard spatter of webby/spotty lacing holding to the walls of the glass.

Aroma offers white bread dough backed with a balancing touch of grass to open before embracing waves of wildflower honey permeating the bouquet; musty cereal grains, deft yeast and slight minerality come together over the middle as snappy, toasty bread crust accented with fresh honeysuckle closes.

Taste brings soft white bread contrasted by tones of burnt toffee and the slight zest of apple/apricot peel upfront; a spiced minerality and doughy yeast proceed over the mid-palate to a finish marked with a bittersweet herbal note of dried honeysuckle, with accents of wildflower honey lingering.

Mouthfeel has a medium-light body and a carbonation on the lower end of moderate, though consistently active along the palate; a prickly dryness offers a delicate tingling through the mid-palate to a peaking, crisp 'snap' on the finish, highlighting steady, easygoing malts and a sparse, grassy hop bitterness fleeting in the background.

Defined largely by vivid honey notes expressed from a malt sweetness whose weight seems to bely its intensity; the resulting dryness takes this Festbier to new heights, a simultaneously robust and effortless take on the style that drinks simply but not without thought.

 

Happened upon this beer by chance at a local all day eatery in Greenpoint. A much lighter and less malty oktoberfeet beer than typically seen from American imitators. Golden color. Aroma has hints of cereal with nice Caramel notes when first tasting.

Low ibu and medium carbonation. Not the best oktoberfeet but real solid reminds me of Weihenstephaners festbier. American brewers take note, this is what an oktoberfeet beer should be like. Next time I see it on tap I'll be sure to order it.