Festbier
Sons of Kent Brewing Company
- From:
- Sons of Kent Brewing Company
- Ontario, Canada
- Style:
- Festbier / Wiesnbier
Ranked #117 - ABV:
- 5.5%
- Score:
- 84
Ranked #30,740 - Avg:
- 3.63 | pDev: 4.96%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 7
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Mar 19, 2026
- Added:
- Aug 27, 2021
- Wants:
- 0
- Gots:
- 0
SCORE
84
Good
84
Good
An Oktoberfest inspired lager brewed entirely with premium Bavarian malts and hops. Deep amber in colour with a malty body, and light hop finish. Prost!
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by talisen-crw from Canada (ON)
4/5 rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4/5 rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
At my lady Pamela's house; canned and chilled, 473mL in a pint glass. From my favourite LCBO at Tecumseh Mall in nearby Windsor. Canned August 27/25. My 14th beer from the Chatham, Ontario brewery, and 7th for 2026. Incredulously recommended by Sundae the cat...
Mar 19, 2026
Reviewed by Tony787 from Canada (ON)
3.73/5 rDev +2.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.73/5 rDev +2.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
I bought 4 cans from the brewery 473ml at 5.5%.
Poured a 1fngerhead into glass.a little.hazy golden or amber color with good carbonation.
Medium bitterness but very easy drinking leaving a lace as you drink it.
Overall a good Oktoberfest lager beer
Cheers.
Nov 03, 2021Poured a 1fngerhead into glass.a little.hazy golden or amber color with good carbonation.
Medium bitterness but very easy drinking leaving a lace as you drink it.
Overall a good Oktoberfest lager beer
Cheers.
Reviewed by ludachris from Canada (ON)
3.6/5 rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
3.6/5 rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
An amber maple wood body comes with a soft haze. Its off-white head is light on its feet; quick to come to a quarter inch ring.
Barley dominates. The general impression is soft but it's got a gritty tone. Fresh wort, caramel, toast, dark honey. A herbal, grassy hop character sits in the background and edges off the sweetness.
It hits soft and fast. It leans into the bready descriptors of malt - dark bread crust, toast - which gives the body some chew. Light hued honey leaves some stick on the lips in the finish. The carbonation is below average, which plays into the poundability of the style but takes away from the platform the malt character is expressed on.
I like it. It's got enough character to contemplate and is plenty drinkable. Plus up the body a little bit and I'd be fully in love.
Oct 02, 2021Barley dominates. The general impression is soft but it's got a gritty tone. Fresh wort, caramel, toast, dark honey. A herbal, grassy hop character sits in the background and edges off the sweetness.
It hits soft and fast. It leans into the bready descriptors of malt - dark bread crust, toast - which gives the body some chew. Light hued honey leaves some stick on the lips in the finish. The carbonation is below average, which plays into the poundability of the style but takes away from the platform the malt character is expressed on.
I like it. It's got enough character to contemplate and is plenty drinkable. Plus up the body a little bit and I'd be fully in love.
Rated by Pmicdee from Canada (ON)
3.69/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.69/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Oct 2 2021
Oct 02, 2021
Reviewed by taxandbeerguy from Canada (ON)
3.53/5 rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
3.53/5 rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
473 ml can served cool into a pint glass. Best before May 8, 2022.
Appearance - Clear coppery bronze colored brew with a small half finger of head that fades quick.
Smell - Some bready notes, caramel and some spices, maybe clove and leafy hops.
Taste - Fairly sweet and grainy with robust grain background. Bready as expected. Noble hops too. Good flavor intensity if not setting the world on fire with uniqueness. A little more on the sweet side than normal for the style.
Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, modest carbonation and rich finish.
Overall - Solid Festbier, easy to drink and good flavor profile, but perhaps lacking the depth and some of the "magic" that the established German brewers seems to have with their beers in the same style. Still worth a purchase and a tipple or two.
Oct 02, 2021Appearance - Clear coppery bronze colored brew with a small half finger of head that fades quick.
Smell - Some bready notes, caramel and some spices, maybe clove and leafy hops.
Taste - Fairly sweet and grainy with robust grain background. Bready as expected. Noble hops too. Good flavor intensity if not setting the world on fire with uniqueness. A little more on the sweet side than normal for the style.
Mouthfeel - Medium bodied, modest carbonation and rich finish.
Overall - Solid Festbier, easy to drink and good flavor profile, but perhaps lacking the depth and some of the "magic" that the established German brewers seems to have with their beers in the same style. Still worth a purchase and a tipple or two.
Reviewed by InspectorHound from Canada (ON)
3.49/5 rDev -3.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
3.49/5 rDev -3.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
Look: Bright clear golden amber colour. Pours with a finger and 1/2 tightly bubbled white head. The head dissipates slowly and reduced to a thin skim across the top after 5 minutes.
Smell: Carmel sweetness, with some light malts and fresh grass smell.
Taste: A syrupy carmel sweetness dominates on the front, with a distinct white bread doughy flavour coming into play by mid sip. There are grassy notes, and maybe some green apple mixed in as well. It finishes with a slight peppery touch.
Feel: Round and creamy like a Octoberfest beer should be. A little lighter bodied than expected though.
Meh.....nothing standout, it's OK, but nothing to get excited about. Overly sweet and sticky in the end. It earns a B-
Sep 30, 2021Smell: Carmel sweetness, with some light malts and fresh grass smell.
Taste: A syrupy carmel sweetness dominates on the front, with a distinct white bread doughy flavour coming into play by mid sip. There are grassy notes, and maybe some green apple mixed in as well. It finishes with a slight peppery touch.
Feel: Round and creamy like a Octoberfest beer should be. A little lighter bodied than expected though.
Meh.....nothing standout, it's OK, but nothing to get excited about. Overly sweet and sticky in the end. It earns a B-
Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)
3.53/5 rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
3.53/5 rDev -2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
473 mL can from the LCBO; best before "Ma 8 2022" (could be March or May, not that it matters much currently) and served barely chilled.
This beer is a bright, clear orange-amber colour; a rough pour caused more than an inch of foamy, off white-tinged head to erupt at the surface, but it fell apart completely within a couple of minutes. A tight collar and some filmy wisps on the surface are all that remain, save for a couple of splotches of stringy lace. Smells malty on the nose - toasted bread, caramel/brown sugar, with hints of noble hops and dough.
Sweet flavour, probably leaning more towards a märzen than a true festbier - I'm getting caramelized malts, toasted bread and biscuity sweetness, as well as subtly fruity hints of baked apples and nuts. Notes of leafy, earthy, herbal hop bitterness crop up towards the back end, with moderate caramel malt sweetness lasting through to the aftertaste. Light-ish in body, with middling carbonation that provides a little bit of crispness to this smooth-feeling lager. Poundable for sure, but maybe a little too saccharine for my tastes.
Final Grade: 3.53, a B grade. Now, I am no expert when it comes to differentiating between märzens and festbiers, but Sons of Kent Festbier looks and tastes more like the former IMO - and to add to the confusion, their website outright calls it a Vienna lager. So what we have here is a three-way identity crisis: I'm fine with just calling it an 'amber lager' and leaving it at that, as it's a middling festbier/märzen/Vienna/whatever. My guess is that oktoberfestbiers simply sell their best at this time of year, so by calling it one they should logically be boosting sales - hardly nefarious, if barely misleading. I'll close by saying that it's a good malt-forward lager that is worth a look this autumn.
Sep 18, 2021This beer is a bright, clear orange-amber colour; a rough pour caused more than an inch of foamy, off white-tinged head to erupt at the surface, but it fell apart completely within a couple of minutes. A tight collar and some filmy wisps on the surface are all that remain, save for a couple of splotches of stringy lace. Smells malty on the nose - toasted bread, caramel/brown sugar, with hints of noble hops and dough.
Sweet flavour, probably leaning more towards a märzen than a true festbier - I'm getting caramelized malts, toasted bread and biscuity sweetness, as well as subtly fruity hints of baked apples and nuts. Notes of leafy, earthy, herbal hop bitterness crop up towards the back end, with moderate caramel malt sweetness lasting through to the aftertaste. Light-ish in body, with middling carbonation that provides a little bit of crispness to this smooth-feeling lager. Poundable for sure, but maybe a little too saccharine for my tastes.
Final Grade: 3.53, a B grade. Now, I am no expert when it comes to differentiating between märzens and festbiers, but Sons of Kent Festbier looks and tastes more like the former IMO - and to add to the confusion, their website outright calls it a Vienna lager. So what we have here is a three-way identity crisis: I'm fine with just calling it an 'amber lager' and leaving it at that, as it's a middling festbier/märzen/Vienna/whatever. My guess is that oktoberfestbiers simply sell their best at this time of year, so by calling it one they should logically be boosting sales - hardly nefarious, if barely misleading. I'll close by saying that it's a good malt-forward lager that is worth a look this autumn.
Reviewed by pootz from Canada (ON)
3.44/5 rDev -5.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
3.44/5 rDev -5.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Can - pours a hazed amber-gold with a puffy 3 finger white meringue cap that lasts and laces the glass sides...aromas of bready-toasty malts and herbal hopping...rounded malty character , soft on the palate, medium bodied...flavor is malt forward with toasty-lightly sweet notes and herbal earthy hops in support....finishes wet with a malt carrier and a funky undertone...not a bad rendition of an Oktoberfest marzen but a tad sweet and not attenuated enough
Sep 17, 2021
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