2018 Oktoberfest Releases

Yup, but I wouldn't hold my breath. I e-mailed them last week and still haven't heard back.

I thought I held more clout in the beer world than this, guess I was wrong.

 

Did you try the US importer:

Merchant du Vin Corporation
119 1st Ave. So.
Suite 400
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (253) 656-0320
Fax: (206) 402-4792
[email protected]

(Unfortunately, not the among the best US importers as far as consumer contact or freshness is concerned - but they're free to prove me wrong ).

 

Thought about it, might try them next.

I had good luck contacting both Schlenkerla and Rothaus directly in the past, so I figured I'd start with the brewer.

I had an issue with a Schneider gift pack a few years ago, I may have contacted the distributor then...or Schneider was pissed and contacted the distributor for me. Can't remember.

 

This might be a naive thing to ask. But traditionally when I've seen Ayinger hit the shelf I assume it's relatively fresh, within the last two months at least. Should I stop operating under that assumption? Still interested to see what that date system means.

 

I may represent July because that is what Anchor does, but they don’t lead with the month.

https://www.anchorbrewing.com/mobile/brewery/faqs
Or it could mean something entirely different and it is “18” “May 15”. That seems too early though.

 

If the Wholesale Distributor has leftovers from last year(s) they could re-distribute those beers this year.

A bottling date is really important here.

Cheers!

 

Ok sent them an e-mail.

Fingers crossed everyone.

This looks similar to Sam Smith's bottling dates (they are also imported by Merchant du Vin)

From @Profchaos20 (not sure if this is still a BA user anymore) who got it from "FreshBeerOnly":

"So I look at the bottle which is stamped SF27H1. I google this to figure out what it means and I find - the S is meaningless, F = month which is June(A=Jan, B=Feb, etc.), 27 = day of the month it was bottled. H = Year with the letter corresponding to the alphabet(A = 1/2001, B = 2/2002), this means H would equal 2008????? The IPA that I just got in a case share was bottled June 27, 2008?"

A bottling date of May is entirely possible. I recall seeing imported Oktoberfest's being bottled in May in the past. It's why I was excited to see Hofbrau bottled in mid-June.

 

@jesskidden @JackHorzempa @steveh @WesMantooth @Crim122

Merchant du Vin has responded:

"Thanks for e-mailing us. The number is a batch code, not a production date. Your bottle of Ayinger Oktoberfest Märzen is this year’s release, brewed in March 2018. Brewery-recommended best-by date is April 15, 2019.


Thanks again & Prost"

 

Looks like they were prompt, but not particularly informative. "Brewed in March" - OK. Fermented, and lagered and then bottled on _____?

And no hint on how to read the batch code for the next time you buy an Ayinger product?

 

Sorry I didn't clear that up. It does say best by end of 04.19. I was just unsure if it's a year they give their beer. Seems odd to brew the octoberfest marzen in april... but I suppose they know their global distributors are going to be slow getting it out. Pretty bad when seasonal creep has you brewing 5-6 months ahead of time...

 

"Thanks for e-mailing us. The number is a batch code, not a production date. Your bottle of Ayinger Oktoberfest Märzen is this year’s release, brewed in March 2018. Brewery-recommended best-by date is April 15, 2019.”

I have commented in the past concerning Weihenstephaner brewing their Festbier in the spring (packaged April – May) and now it is the case that Ayinger is brewing their Oktoberfest Märzen with a March packaging date. Why the heck are German breweries producing beers in the early spring for a beer intended for the Oktoberfest season (i.e., September – October)? These beers will be 6+ months old by the time the season arrives. And a claim that these beers are still good at one year post the bottling date is B.S.

Non-cheers to these brewing practices!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Given that it is a common practice for these imported German brewed beers to have a 1 year best by duration I am willing to bet that March is the bottling date.

Cheers!

 

They brew that beer year round. Hacker Pschorr and Paulaner O-fest märzens are available year-round here in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The same goes for Spaten.

And yes, there are semi-regular batches sent over through the year.

 

Well, at least it's a step-up from the 'notch' system that they used to use. I once asked on MdV's Facebook page how to decode the notches on the bottom front label of the beers. I was told that their distributors had a decoder. I then commented that it was disappointing that they didn't have clearer freshness labeling and they deleted my comments and their response.

 

It is evident to me that Ayinger/MdV do not want to provide a bottling date on Ayinger beers. I personally find this to be a poor business practice. My personal practice here is no longer purchase Ayinger bottled beers. I would encourage you to do the same.

Non-cheers to no bottling dates on Ayinger bottles!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I think I'll follow up with them and see if there's a way to decode it.

I had the same problem with Schlenkerla though. They were able to decipher the code on the bottle to tell me if it was fresh, but there was no way for ME to decipher it.

If you can put a batch code on there, is it that hard to put a bottle on date or best by date? (Or God forbid, BOTH)

Oh, my apologies, I understood what you meant. I just meant that it was likely bottled in April of this year.

For what it's worth, the Weihenstephan Festbier I bought this year was bottled June 21st if I'm reading it right. My first two imports purchased this year were bottled in mid-June, not too shabby compared to year's past. The other being Hofbrau.

 

If my memory serves me correctly in the past you were able to obtain Weihenstephan Festbier with a later bottling than the beers that were on my local beer retailers shelves. I will keep an eye out for June 21 bottled Weihenstephan Festbier because that is better than being bottled in April but I am not holding my breath here.

I am not in the beer industry but it seems to me that when it comes to imports there is a tendency for importers to obtain periodic BIG drops of beer vs. a more frequent but smaller drops of beer. Once a Wholesale Distributor obtains beer from one of these large drops they tend to slowly send it out until they have depleted their inventory. In the past that meant that the only Weihenstephan Festbier beers available for sale at my local retailers were beers bottled in April.

Needless to say but if Weihenstephaner chose to not produce/bottle this beer in April and instead did this only later (e.g., June) there would be zero April bottled beers available for sale.

Cheers!

 

Ah, bummer, well I hope you find a June date.

The code on my bottles is 1258. Which I take to be the 25th week of this year. And the 21st would make the most sense to me as the day.

Yeah, April bottling dates suck. I believe you don't drink Oktoberfests this early if I recall correctly. But even for someone like me who consumes them in August, a bottling date of April isn't that great. Especially considering I'm just BEGINNING my Oktoberfest consumption in August.