Oak-Aged Oktoberfests....Is that okay?

Weren't the early Fest beers of 200 years ago stored in wood (oak?) casks for about six months between brewing and tapping?

 

In my opinion it would be a waste of a good Oktoberfest (assuming the base beer is good in the first place).

It wouldn't add complexity, it would in fact muddle the complexity of this style.

I'm not against oak-aging, but I'd save it for brown ales in this case. Or maybe even the overly sweet/caramely American Oktoberfest examples. Also, if you really desired something "lagery", a Baltic Porter works well. Jack's Abby makes numerous fine examples of barrel-aged Baltic Porters.

 

Could you drink 2 liters at a time? No? Not suitable, then .

 

I'm ok with it. I'd be curious to see how the flavor profiles would mesh.

 

I wouldn't know yet.

I have a Neshaminy Creek Creekfestbeir, it's Lager that's BA in bourbon barrels, and conditioned on blueberries. 2014 I think, I've been aging it two years coming up. I've never done a New Beer Sunday, but I'm opening it then. It won a medal at Philly Beer Week, so it was good, I hope it still is. I forgot I had it.

 

People get offended over anything. Honestly, i wouldnt worry about offended anyone i personally do not care about others in that way

But im sure it would taste good.

 

I guess it depends on your taste, if you are talking about virgin oak you will get vanilla and it will mute down whatever little hop there is in the beer. If you are talking about spirit based then it will pick up whatever attributes the spirit had it in before. Mainly a matter of personal preference. Seems Ranger Creek did one and aged it in one of their bourbon barrels that pretty much had all the bourbon character extracted out. Google it and you will find the description on the RB site. Also Glacier Bay does one, but it would be hard to find

 

I'm strongly for keeping things to style, but I think if done tastefully and respectfully it could be good. Two Brothers Atom Smasher is okay. I definitely think just virgin oak or third or more use bourbon, otherwise there will just be too much spirit flavor. It should be a very short rest in the barrel as well.

 

I'll have to see if I can find a couple of these to add to my O-fest stash. The concept sounds interesting, though.

 

Is it okay? At the end of the day the only way to ultimately answer that question is whether or not the beer sells.

I do have an uneasiness from a consumer marketing perspective. If you call something an Oktoberfest, I have certain expectations (lager, pilsner base, Munich accents to varying degrees, noble hop balance, moderate abv, drinkable). If you want to deviate from those expectations, please market clearly and accordingly.

Personally, an oak aged Oktoberfest sounds horrible. An Oktoberfest is about balance, and I would imagine oak aging covering up that balance.

 

I believe the casks were lined with pitch to prevent oak flavor from seeping through

 

I'm sensitive to oak, I don't like it in my wine at all. There's a few bourbons as well that I don't care for, same with beer. Too heavy on the oak it just over powers, and not in a good way.

 

I don't know if that was common with Munich brewers of the time. Oak makes a watertight barrel but those made from other woods need a pitch lining or else they leak. It may be a regional thing as well because some modern brewers (Pilsner Urquell) have used pitch lined barrels while others (Cantillon) use unlined barrels. Of course even a new raw oak barrel will become leached out to the point of neutrality if it's reused over a period of years.

I wasn't really making a point so much as an observation that the fest beers made in the early 1800s were stored over the warm months in wood barrels (technology of the time) and even if they didn't pick up any wood notes they would undergo oxidation while in storage which would certainly change them somewhat.

 

The pitch forms a barrier to keep oak flavors out of the beer, and more importantly, it keeps spoilage organisms from the beer. You want a clean lager, so pitch is what was used in Bavaria.

 

I think the thing that smells lagery is the yeast. I don't know how to describe it but it's woody already in a way or it's a combination of that and hops. On the darker okotberfest you do not see it but on a helles lager you see it. On a light colored oktoberfest you see it. It's like the scent of the dough as it rises. it's not baked yet then. I think oak would be ok.

 

I expect the pitch serves as a barrier to keep oxygen out as well. I understand the ancient Greeks used pitch lined vessels to store wine. They didn't understand the science but figured out airtight helped preserve the contents.

The OP is addressing unlined barrels though and asking if anybody has an opinion on oak influenced Oktoberfest beers. I haven't tried any so I can't say, but I do have some knowledge of oak aging whisky (different, I know) and depending on the size, age (new or reuse), level of toasting/charring, type of warehouse and placement within that warehouse, the oak can make a whale of a big difference.

 

Great bourbon is a product of the barrel, and time, and obviously the Head Distillers skill. They don't set out to make rot but, but some of the younger whiskey can be very rough. The same barrel house might also pump out Pappy as well. You can't compare a 2-4 year old whiskey to one than been barreled for 8-9 years and meticulously done. I'd think exposure to oak in any beer would be significant, it's makes a very strong statement, but with beer I'm sure there's time constraints, where with Whiskey it can sit for 20 plus years, I can't think of any beer barreled for more than two.

 

My opinion is why mess with a great style.

I am not a bourbon fan, so there is that perspective.