Sierra Nevada Releases Seasonal Oktoberfest Beer

Discussion in 'Beer Releases' started by Todd, Jul 26, 2021.

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  1. Todd

    Todd Founder (13,518) Aug 23, 1996 Finland
    STAFF Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah

    Special 2021 release celebrates tradition with Amber Marzen style lager

    CHICO, California (July 26, 2021) – Today Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. announced the release of its 2021 limited edition fall seasonal, Oktoberfest, the brewery’s ode to beer’s largest party. This year’s edition is an Amber Märzen, a traditional German beer with a 5.5% ABV.

    https://sierranevada.com/beer/oktoberfest/

    “The beer has a malty sweetness with a little bit of herbal, floral hop presence, and the bitterness levels are just right to balance the malt character for drinkability,” says Scott Jennings, Innovation Brewmaster at Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. He adds, “it’s a substantial beer but it’s really, really drinkable.”

    When developing this edition of Sierra Nevada’s Oktoberfest, the brewers were aiming to produce a darker malt-forward Oktoberfest beer, and the traditional Amber Märzen style fit the bill. Jennings notes that this year’s darker style is a departure from the brewery’s seasonal Oktoberfest offerings of the past few years which was in the style of modern fest biers, such as Helles bock, that began rising to popularity at Oktoberfest in Munich in the 1970s and 1980s. He adds that an Amber Märzen would have been a mainstay at Oktoberfest celebrations in Munich prior to that shift toward lighter styles.

    Sierra Nevada’s 2021 Oktoberfest pours a clear deep amber color with aromas of dark bread and graham cracker. The flavor is well balanced between sweet maltiness and delicate hop bitterness with a medium body, making this beer a solid example of the traditional Amber Märzen style.

    It begins shipping July 26 and can be found on retail shelves while supplies last into the fall season.

    ###
     
    #1 Todd, Jul 26, 2021
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  2. dcotom

    dcotom Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,637) Aug 4, 2014 Iowa
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I'm in. I'm always up for a little seasonal creep. :grin:
     
    #2 dcotom, Jul 26, 2021
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  3. Todd

    Todd Founder (13,518) Aug 23, 1996 Finland
    STAFF Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah

    I'm okay with seasonal beer creep, but only if it's a lager.
     
    #3 Todd, Jul 26, 2021
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  4. zid

    zid Grand Pooh-Bah (3,132) Feb 15, 2010 New York
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Yeah right. :wink: Last year's was certainly not like a typical modern German Oktoberfestbier... and it wasn't a Bock. And the 2019 beer was relatively dark. And it's Heller Bock not Helles... and a Märzen Festbier is certainly not a Bock. Jennings just doesn't get this stuff right (no disrespect intended).

    @steveh , you mentioned elsewhere that they stated that it was a different recipe this year. I must have missed that. Do you recall where? But, it certainly is different. IBUs dropped drastically from 2020's 28 to this year's 19.

    If I remember correctly, Sierra Nevada stopped the Oktoberfest collaborations due to Covid and I believe they have no current plans to bring that model back. I get the impression that's it's not in their way of thinking at the moment. Correct me if you remember differently @FBarber

    I'm definitely looking forward to trying this year's beer, but I honestly don't have super high hopes for it. What made some of Sierra Nevada's past Oktoberfest offerings so great were the idiosyncrasies that made them different from other brewer's versions.
     
    #4 zid, Jul 26, 2021
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  5. jasonmason

    jasonmason Zealot (742) Oct 6, 2004 California
    Society Trader

    So wait...lagers named for summer don't sell well in spring, but lagers named for fall sell well in summer? Weird. It's almost as though there's an issue with timing here.

    That said, I really do look forward to SN's Octoberfest beers and so I'm sure I'll buy some. Next month.
     
    #5 jasonmason, Jul 26, 2021
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  6. FBarber

    FBarber Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,325) Mar 5, 2016 Illinois
    Mod Team BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Its pretty clear its a new recipe based on this release, but also @SierraTerence mentioned it was a new recipe in the chat we had during the SNPA discord event.
    I dont think it was just COVID, but COVID didn't help. It sounds like at this point, the days of those collaborations are done.
     
    #6 FBarber, Jul 26, 2021
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  7. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,174) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Society Pooh-Bah

    :joy: Right, but Oktoberfest is a more recognized name than Summerfest -- big marketing tool -- has been for years.

    @zid I'll see if I can find the source of my background on the recipe, but a ping to @SierraTerence might be faster.
     
    #7 steveh, Jul 26, 2021
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  8. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,174) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Society Pooh-Bah

    Funny, the SN website has a paragraph that mirrors this description, but mentions caramel flavor (my personal pet peeve with Ami Oktos) -- nothing here about caramel. Maybe someone's listening? :wink:
     
    #8 steveh, Jul 26, 2021
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  9. AccipiterofBeer

    AccipiterofBeer Pooh-Bah (1,773) Nov 28, 2016 New York
    Pooh-Bah

    eyes and ears open for when this shows up locally.
     
    #9 AccipiterofBeer, Jul 26, 2021
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  10. keithmurray

    keithmurray Pooh-Bah (2,967) Oct 7, 2009 Connecticut
    Pooh-Bah

    Even though last year's SN release was a bit of a letdown, I will give this year's a shot like I do every year.
     
    #10 keithmurray, Jul 26, 2021
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  11. Tilley4

    Tilley4 Pooh-Bah (2,811) Nov 13, 2007 Tennessee
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    By...the...case...

    I'm ready..
     
    #11 Tilley4, Jul 27, 2021
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  12. defunksta

    defunksta Grand Pooh-Bah (4,164) Jan 18, 2019 Wisconsin
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Excited for the beer! ...but the seasonal creep is real. I used to think it was bad in August, but now Oktoberfest in July? Summer ales are already on sale and on the way out in my locals stores acting like summer was last season. Maybe we should live in the season for a change.
     
    #12 defunksta, Jul 27, 2021
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  13. deanzaZZR

    deanzaZZR Maven (1,347) Jan 8, 2015 California

    8 miles away at a top of a hill. I'm not in a huge rush to get this though.
     
    #13 deanzaZZR, Jul 27, 2021
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  14. purephase

    purephase Zealot (731) Feb 23, 2008 Connecticut
    Trader

    Here are the specs for 2020 from the website:
    Malts: Two-row Pale, Munich, Vienna
    Hops: Spalter, Spalter Select
    6%, 28 IBUs, OG: 13.9 °P FG: 2.8°P

    This year's is:
    Malts: Special Roast, Pilsner, Munich, Black
    Hops:Hersbrucker, Tradition
    5.5% 19 IBUs, OG: 13.5 °P FG: 3.1 °P
     
    #14 purephase, Jul 27, 2021
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  15. BeerVikingSailor

    BeerVikingSailor Grand Pooh-Bah (3,667) Nov 19, 2009 Ohio
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I will be looking forward to this, as I do every year with Sierra Nevada

    Miss some of the German collabs they did though - some of them were quite good!

    Will be in on this for a few 12 pks as soon as I see it! Prost!
     
    #15 BeerVikingSailor, Jul 27, 2021
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  16. Mortal_Wombat

    Mortal_Wombat Pundit (990) Jul 7, 2020 Texas
    Trader

    Kind of a weird malt lineup for a märzen but I guess we'll see how it goes. I'm glad they're switching from a festbier, especially after last year.
     
    #16 Mortal_Wombat, Jul 27, 2021
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  17. AlcahueteJ

    AlcahueteJ Grand Pooh-Bah (3,242) Dec 4, 2004 Massachusetts
    Society Pooh-Bah

    What the heck is "special roast"?

    "Roast" isn't exactly the term I want to hear with my amber style Oktoberfests. Now "toast" and I'm all in.
     
    #17 AlcahueteJ, Jul 27, 2021
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  18. jesskidden

    jesskidden Grand Pooh-Bah (3,145) Aug 10, 2005 New Jersey
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    But Special Roast (Beiss' anyway) is "Toasty":
     
    #18 jesskidden, Jul 27, 2021
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  19. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,174) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Society Pooh-Bah

    I think I put that in my coffee blend every morning. :grin:
    Considering black malt is highly roasted, that sort of scares me too, but I wonder if it's a small amount for color -- but still, pretty out of the ordinary for an Okto.

    FWIW -- "kilned" seems to have been replaced by "roasted" these days, but I'm with you -- roasted just screams harshness.

    Gonna look for the SN today -- proof in the tasting.
     
    #19 steveh, Jul 27, 2021
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  20. steveh

    steveh Grand Pooh-Bah (4,174) Oct 8, 2003 Illinois
    Society Pooh-Bah

    Still, sourdough and tangy don't equate to Okto Marzen to me either. :thinking_face:
     
    #20 steveh, Jul 27, 2021
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