Best 2017 Oktoberfest, So Far

Especially since we are supposed to be rating "with style in mind".

 

Just had Odell and Warsteiner. Odell was pretty nice for the Marzen style, just needed a boost in the carbonation dept. The 'brown' bottle, of Warsteiner, was unfortunately, skunky. Tasted better than I thought it was going to, anyway.

Bell's, for Marzen, and Weihenstephaner, for the lighter style, were the ones I gravitated towards. The Ayinger, and Santa Fe, were very good.

 

The problem is that you're being reductive and dismissive about US craft beer on the whole (as evidenced by your snarky-ass "USA crafties" nickname). Everyone is certainly entitled to their opinion, but it's clear that you think that breweries should cap their beers at 20 IBU and call it a day, as anything else is "too much hops." Also -- as has been discussed numerous times --"Octoberfest" isn't actually a style.

 

Oktoberfest happens to be my favorite style of beer. I've brewed award winning home-brews to style and know the characteristics quite well. Spaten Okto also happens to be my favorite of the style and the hop character doesn't set me off.

Yes, Oktoberfests are about malt and are sweet up front to dry in the finish with the right amount of noble hops to keep the malt from becoming cloying -- and I do agree that there are plenty of Oktos that miss the mark, but I can't agree with your assessment of Spaten -- maybe you ought to try it on a cleaner palate.

 

It's possible that @Beerwithoutallthehops is a supertaster or just has a sensitivity to bitterness.

I had a few Spatens just last night, and didn't find the hops out of place to me either.

 

This came to mind as well, that he might be a supertaster. Because a Munich brewed amber Oktoberfest is about as far from hoppy as you can get...especially Spaten, which is the darkest and typically the most malt forward out of all of the imports.

@Beerwithoutallthehops, what do you think of German Pilsners? Those that are actually from Germany, not US brewed ones.

 

Like some of you, I didn't enjoy this year's SN Oktoberfest as much as last year's. I thought Ayinger was great and Great Lakes was really good too, and back to its previous high quality. GL 2015 and 2016 were watery and lacking flavor imo. I also enjoyed Shorts' Noble Chaos. I haven't seen any discussion of it in this thread. Any opinions on that one?

 

Yet he thought the Paulaner and Hacker-Pshorr were "awesome."

His contrary reviews tell the story and I think @BigJim5021 uncovered the true scam here.

 

thanks. understood. sure, I can see your point, but again, I am sick to death of all the hops I am tasting in beer today. My gosh, is there no other ingredient available??? Then, you have the self-appointed "king" of beers using rice as their "grain"?? Another commenter on this site said "grain is grain". Yes, TECHNICALLY, but there is a HUGE disparity in taste created by said "grains". I will never, ever buy anything from AB again. Their inability to put taste over cost savings makes me sick. Sorry, I digress, the rankings I enter are my impression of the hops overload I taste in the beer. German beers, such as Weihenstephaner, have hops, but, it blends very nicely with the malt to create a superb beer taste. As opposed to the Jekyll Island Beer, made in Georgia, that states on its package "this is the way beer should taste". No, it isnt, IMHO. That beer, while not horrible, does NOT taste like beer. I will not buy any more of it. Thanks for your reasonable argument, I understand your point. I hope to have made my point a little more clear. have a great day.

 

Yet, the typical German import in the US is given a 1 year "shelf life" period based on their "Best Before" label dating, while most US craft brewers recommend only a 3-6 month period.

 

This is a question... isn't Bud's recommendation in the same 3-6 month time? (I realize I'm only asking because I'm too lazy to actually look it up... )

 

I wouldn't say 'scam', but there's surely some sort of vendetta involved. Imo, these aren't really useful reviews.

 

The so-called "Budweiser family" beers are still 110 days last I checked, but lots of other US-brewed AB brands, including the ex-craft ones, are now 6 months.

 

Thanks!

On the inference that brewers add hops to achieve long shelf life, my personal observation is pretty much the opposite... heavily hopped craft beers, especially dry-hopped beers, have a very short shelf life (relatively speaking).

Despite the fact/tall-tale/myth about 19th century IPAs being heavily hopped as a preservative for the long sea voyage, most modern craft brewers use hops for not just bittering, but also for flavor and aroma. Aroma from dry-hopping fades quickly, and hop flavor less quickly, but still fairly rapidly; so much so that seeking fresh IPAs has become almost a quest for the golden ring.

 

It turns out that hops can be said to "extend shelf life" in the sense that they have antibacterial effects so as a preservative they worked better than the herbs used in Gruit.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hops

But as you say they do have other virtues that have become more important in modern brewing.

 

Picked up some jacks abbey copper legend that's quite tasty. Also, reset my palate this summer and sam adams is pretty good too. Funny thing, when you steer clear of bitter beer, other styles move from sweet to balanced again.

 

Best ive had so far by far is zoiglhaus brewing- oktoberfresh ( fresh hop Oktoberfest)

 

@FBarber , I was going to tell you that he rates most beers between a 1 or 2, as evidenced by his site page, but when I went back to look he has put it on private since this morning, so I guess he was feeling some pressure. He only rates a few German beers with any real scale. Anyway, he doesn't like hops. My question to him would be, why bother? Find a hobby that is easier for him to enjoy

 

I had an Ayinger Oktober-fest Marzen yesterday. Great as ever. Deep rich malt, tingly and slightly herbal, with a huge billowing white cap breathing malt into the room. As rich and malty as this gem is, it has a dryness lurking, begging for another sip. I will buy some more today. Awesome beer!