Scratch Beer 48 - 2011 (Fest Bier)
Tröegs Brewing Company

 

 

Poured into an imperial pint glass. Glass of cold water on the side to sip from periodically.

Appearance: As poured the beer is a clear copper color with a 1/8” head that soon recedes to a small ring and a big patch of foam on the surface. Some lacing is left behind as the head recedes. Sipping creates a sheet of foam and lots of tiny speckles of lacing. Many recede back to the liquid while many others cling to the sides of the glass.

Smell: The aroma is all bready malt with some underlying caramel and a hint of earthiness.

Taste: The flavor includes the caramel of the malt sweetness and some breadiness, along with a background of earthy bitterness.

Mouthfeel: The mouth feel is medium bodied and has a nice crispness from the prickly carbonation. The finish begins with the caramel sweetness and then turns dry and earthy at the finish.

Drinkability and Overall Impression: This is a drinkable beer that I’ll not be seeking out to repeat even if it were available. Its not a bad beer, just one that isn’t quite my preference when it comes to fest biers. My overall impression is that it was a reasonable experiment but one that falls short. The sweetness is too prominent and then it swops places with the earthy bitterness that becomes too prominent.

12oz bottle to stein. $4.50 for the single. Sampled 10/7/11.

A: Foamy and full of air, 1 1/2 fingers of head, between off-white and light-brown in color, diminishes fairly quickly into a suds film and collar. The body is medium-dark orange-amber (like old copper) and rather clear. No lacing to be seen.

S: Aromas of cereal and grain dominate the nose and palate with light herbal and resiny hop notes very, very much in the background. The hop character is really only appreciated in the bitterness on the back end (25 IBUs).

T: Really not much going on at all. The alcohol seems way higher than the listed 5.4%. A little earth, some paper, grape skin (?) and solvent.

M: The body is medium-full and chewy, yet the texture is slick and alcoholic. Carbonation is just about right.

O: Drinks like a 7.5% doppelbock. Very disappointing.

Thanks to stormking47 for this 12 oz. bottle. Split with the wife, for some reason. She kind of got into Oktoberfest beers during this past season & I wanted to try it.

Pours a light, warm shade of yellow/tan. Nose is...like air. Few motes of cereal & grains, but wow, I nearly sprained a sinus trying to sniff anything off the surface of this brew.

Scratch Beer #48, Fest Lager, is a pretty tame example of the style. Clean lager yeasting, light sweet malts, touch of caramel, gentle floral hops at the end. All done with a feathery touch.

Too sweet, & not crisp enough for my taste. Disappointed that this doesn't live up to so many good Oktoberfest brews out here, not the Scratch Beer series. Not a good beer.

A: The beer pours into my Mad Elf Tulip clear amber. A small cream colored head rests atop and boasts decent retention and very nice lacing.

S: Bready, caramel malt aroma. Very clean and very light.

T: The taste is really clean and well crafted, I just don't really like what they're doing. Pretty much all caramel malts and some grain. A bit too sweet, something is providing a bitterness at the end that just isn't quite enough to balance it out.

MF: Medium body with a lower than average carbonation. Crisp on the palate the beer is really drinkable.

O: This was a nice offering, but I just wasn't a huge fan. Too sweet and unbalanced for my liking.

Got as an extra from Stormking47. Poured 12 oz into pint glass.

A- Pours slightly hazy copper color. Half a finger white head. Quickly recedes down to the edges of the glass.

S- Get a little of malt and hop all mixed throughout on the nose. Some sweeter caramel malts. Citrus hops, maybe a bit of pine aroma to it. Hops come through more at the end.

T- Malts come through most in the drink. Sweeter taste up front. Caramel malts with some bready characters. Hops start to come though in the middle with some lemon, citrus taste. A bit of spice with some bitterness lingering.

M- Medium body with moderate carbonation.

O- Good drink. I think I should have drank it a bit sooner as the hops may have come through more. Even though still a good drink. Love trying these scratch beers. Thanks Josh for the brew!

12oz bottle poured into a Troegs Mad Elf tulip. Thanks a lot to russwbeck for providing this!

A - Pours a very nice deep amber with a crystal clear body. Only the tiniest bubbles of carbonation break up the calm appearance and it's garnish with a 1.5-finger, cream head. Good retention on the head with generous lacing remaining on the glass.

S - The aroma is clean and malty. I'm not getting a whole lot of the yeast here, but rather some biscuity, bready malts and cereal grains. A touch of hop spiciness rounds out the nose.

T - As in the nose, this has an extremely clean and polished flavor, which is quite nice. Unfortunately, the flavors aren't exactly bursting forth and the malts, once again, make up the majority of the taste. Sprigs of caramel, biscuit, and a semi-toasted grain malt profile builds that lasts the entire glass. Nutty, earthy, spicy hops pop up in the finish, which adds a bitterness that lingers throughout the aftertaste.

M - Mouthfeel is medium-bodied with good carbonation. This feels active and lively in the mouth, but my favorite part is that it finishes neat and dry, which I suppose is the yeast contribution to this beer.

D/O - Drinkability is moderate. This isn't my favorite Oktoberfest, but it's very easy-drinking and would pair wonderfully with a meal. On its own, however, it seems to pull up a little short.

amber, darker then most Marzen I have seen. Great reddish hue to the color was fantastic looking. Amble carbonation

Aroma was very pleasing. Lots of malty smells came off of it quickly. Good hint of sugar, caramel in the back and a nice spicey, almost a hop twang to it in the finish.such a full flavored punch right out of the gate. This left no room for wanting of something extra in it. Had a ton of flavors, nicely hopped in the back

 

I haven't seen a single scratch beer on-tap in the Ithaca area, so when I came upon Scratch4 48 at one of my favorite local watering holes, I was pretty pumped. Clear, orangish-brown body with a thin off-white head with OK retention. A few scraps of lacing are left behind.

The aroma is very fruity and sweet, with only a dash of hops.

This is a really strange fest beer. It doesn't remind of Scratch 13, which was the first Scratch fest. I actually reviewed 13 2 years after it was bottled because it was still pretty damn good, which is something I would normally never do to a beer not meant to be aged. Right up front the beer is riotously fruity. Tons of yeast coming through to provide generic fruit flavor that are sharp and sweet. The hop profile is at best moderate in strength (did I just say that about a Troegs beer?!) and is also pretty fruity, adding lemon and other flavors. Earthy flavors from the hops make an appearance also, but they lack staying power. The malt base is very sweet, but it doesn't bring a lot of caramel flavors. I would describe it more as bread mixed with molasses. Something tells me that I will not be opening any bottles of 48 in two years.

The mouthfeel is right where it should be, although the fruit and sweetness make it a little unpalatable to let this hang out in your mouth for too long.

Scratch 48 is certainly not my favorite of the Scratch series. The flavor profile is a little bit strange for a fest-bier, and I doubt I will have it again.

12oz bottle into SA perfect pint. Bottle courtesy of StormKing47. Thanks yo.

A: Pours a light copper with golden highlights beneath a very thin and unimpressive light tan head that faded into a minimal film that left a few spots of soapy lacing down the glass.
S: Grainy mash smelling malts, dry grains, a touch of caramel and lemon zest along with some earthy hops. A tad sour smelling.
T: Very bready tasting with flavors of doughy yeast, bread crust malt, dry grains, a touch of sweet caramel, and just a hint of lemon zest in the finish. The aftertaste finishes sweet and dry. This is much sweeter than the nose suggested, and thankfully not sour at all.
M: Medium-light body, slick yet dry mouthfeel with tingly, bubbly, carbonation.
O: Nice sweet and bready lager taste that goes down light and smooth. I enjoyed this but it was nothing to write home about. Thanks again, Josh.

Pours a clear light amber color with just a wisp of white head.

Very bready with a slightly sweet malt aroma and subtle hints of hop spice.

Starts off with a slight spice then rounds into that good melanoidin malt character that so many Oktoberfests get wrong. This one contains little hops and lots of rich malt.

Mouthfeel is a touch light with good carbonation.

One of the better Oktoberfest I've had this year. Not one of my favorite styles usually, but this one is done very well in the flavor profile. The mouthfeel is a little lacking which is the only thing holding this beer back.

12 oz bottle into an oversized mug.

Pours a crystal clear copper, with several foamy fingers of thick froth. This retains with roughly a ¾ finger of head, leaving back big sudsy swathes of lacing that cling to the sides of the mug. The aroma smells grassy and spicy in the nose, which is layered on top of a twang of earthy fruit and sweet malty notes of caramel and buttered toast. This is pretty straight-forward but I’m digging the overall flavorful pop of this here in the nose.

The taste has a moderate feeling bitter bite of leafy and spicy character, which gives way to underlying earthy green citrus and then a malty blend of sticky caramel and a more tighter feeling toasted sweetness. The finish is dry and spicy, with some light gritty pith that sticks to the tongue and then a smidge of earthy must that hangs in there as well. The mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a soft crispness to the carbonation that lies a bit of a light prickle on the tongue. The edges of the feel are definitely creamier and I can’t help but think that this is maybe a bit too soft feeling overall even though this is generally pretty easy feeling and drinkable.

This was nice. It had a bit more of a earthy vibe going on with the profiles and even though the body seemed a little soft in spots, there was still enough of firm hop presence to keep this fairly crisp in the mouth. I would have no problem putting a few of these down.

on tap at khyber in philly

Pours a brilliant cherry amber color with some golden hues. A beige head slowly dissolves leaving a cloud of film and a few spots of lacing.

Hints of leafy hops in the nose with citrus. Plenty of toffee and caramel with bready malts. A bit sweet and rich.

Light touch of hop bitterness up front, quickly swept away by the layers of malt. A little rich and roasty with caramel. Hints of cherry and sweetness with toffee. Touches of roasted nuts. Finishes a bit sweet and crisp.

Medium body, slightly higher carbonation, a little chewy and crisp on the palate. This was a surprisingly tasty to me, and probably one of the better American marzens I've had this season.

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass

A- pours a transparent shade of orange with a one finger offwhite head that fades relatively quickly, and leaves some solid lacing. Looks like a good o-fest

S- light caramel, a touch of cinnamon

T- very sweet, very malty. Getting some cinnamon and maybe a little ntumeg in here....standard o-fest flavors

M- medium bodied, on the thick side

O- a solid o-fest, but it's not my favorite style....not a ton you can do with it

I poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a SA perfect pint glass, reddish/orange pour with a slight white head, good lacing. The aroma is sweet and bready. The first sip is sweet, biscuity, lingering sweet finish. The body is full, good carbonation, smooth drinking. A nice example of the syle.

12oz standard brown scratch series bottle poured into a pint glass. This brew appears a perfectly clear color of copper. Stunning polished clarity, this is probably the most clear looking brew I have ever seen Troegs produce. A finger of yellowish stained head sits atop the brew with decent retention. Some patches and fingers of lace stick to the glass.

The aroma of this brew is sweet with caramel and toffee maltiness expected of the style. The sweetness of the malt hits the nose with a light toasty appeal and brings forth minor notes of buttery diacetyl. Very faint herbal hops are noted across the back. I tip my hat to the restraint of hop usage here which lets the toffee and toasted quality shine. As it warms, there is a mild fruited quality that comes forward taking the nose off in another pleasing direction.

The taste is toasty with a biscuit malt flavoring. Lots of caramel and toffee sweetness with a touch of butter to keep it in check. Some herbal and grassy hops are present but they play only a minor contrasting role to the residual sweetness of the malt. The finish of this brew is very crisp and clean with a minor fruity alcohol quality. Well balanced with a mixture of malt sweetness to herbal hops and fruity alcohol. Everything plays well to keep this brew in check. The hops come forward a bit in the finish providing more herbal hop character than what I initially picked up on. Once warm, a light mineral note comes forward.

This is a medium bodied brew with a modest level of carbonation. This is a very crisp and enjoyable take on the style. Quite an easy drinking brew, there were no problems finishing my glass. Visually stunning, smelled nice and had a nearly perfect feel to it. My gripe is with the amount of buttery quality that contrasts the herbal hoppiness of this brew. Overall not a bad brew though.

A - Exactly what you would expect from the style. A beautiful mix of amber/copper/orange depending on how the light hits it. Looks like a beer should!

S - Lots going on. Doesn't smell too much like a usual Oktoberfest brew but I do get the malt and hop scents. There's just a different aroma that makes me very curious about the taste.

T - Heavy on the malts but not overpowering. The hops really add a nice contrast and keeps the tongue from getting bored. The "thick" taste of the beer is noticeable and a pleasant surprise.

M - Hangs on the tongue for a long time but you don't want it to leave! Got even better as the beer warmed up a bit.

O - My favorite Oktoberfest to date. I finally understand what the style is trying to do!

A 12 oz bottle from the brewery. The Nittany Lions win, beating our recent nemesis, and this is my celebration.

A: The oktoberfestbier is textbook copper, a full amber orange hue that seems to be wearing lederhosen. A thin, wispy head, no lace, is all there is to see.

S: Roasted malts and plenty of earthy hops, the nose has a unique mustiness sweetness. That sweetness of the malts is strong, plenty of white/green grapes to go around. Plenty of depth here.

T: The maltiness is profound, sweet and grainy with the dry sweetness of grapes. Biscuit is here too, plenty of malts to toughen up the body. The noble hopping is subdued, a fine accompaniment to the malts. Breadiness is a lasting aspect, interspersed amongst the earthy hop bitterness.

M: A rustic oktoberfest, the sweetness belies plenty of malts, a sturdy bier. Perfect for a cool fall evening.