Märzen
Fairweather Brewing

473 mL can from the Toronto Brewing 2021 advent calendar; no apparent packaging date. Served slightly chilled. Possibly also known as Fall Back Plan, which appears (less prominently) near the edge of the label.

Pours a clear, effervescent golden-orange colour, briefly topped with over an inch of smooth, foamy white head that recedes within two or three minutes' time. It leaves behind a messy ring of stringy lace as it drops down to a tight, creamy collar and some wisps on the surface - looks about right to me. Nothing too noteworthy on the nose - bready malts, hints of caramel (Werther's), maybe some toasted grains. Works for me.

A clean-tasting malty lager, only a little sweet, with lightly toasted bread, caramelized sugars and doughy sweetness at the forefront. These flavours remain dominant throughout the sip, joined by a hint of floral, mildly grassy hops towards the finish, with bready malt and honey biscuit sweetness persisting into the aftertaste. Light-medium in body, with moderate carbonation that gently agitates the tongue, contributing to a relatively smooth, crisp mouthfeel - very satisfying to sip; hard to stop doing so.

Final Grade: 3.92, a B+. Fairweather's Märzen is a worthy example of its style, which is one of the highest compliments I can bestow upon a Canadian-brewed German-style lager. The sweetness is spot on for my tastes - that's keeping in mind that I am not a big fan of malt-forward, amber-ish lagers in general, be they German or otherwise. This one managed to hold my interest for the entirety of the glass, and I found myself savouring the last couple of gulps to see if it gets any better as it warms (it kinda does). A fine first impression by Fairweather - I wouldn't hesitate to grab this again, and I'd love to try more of their stuff in the future.