Fall Beer Sightings (2023)

Yes!! Bring on the fall beers (even though we have at least another three months before we get any relief from the heat in south Texas)! I haven’t seen anything yet, but I’ve been keeping an eye on some of the Untappd check-ins to see what might have been released. So far, the only two I’ve noticed with any consistency to suggest it’s been released is Warsteiner Oktoberfest and Paulaner Oktoberfestbier (used to be weisn). Not sure if Warsteiner is truly seasonal, but around here it only shows up in the fall.

 

Haven't seen it on the shelves yet, but Millstream Brewing Company's Oktoberfest is coming soon, according to their Instagram. One week ago they showed stacks of it in their warehouse and a reel of the labels going on the cans, so it's getting close. Not a huge Oktoberfest fan, but I do like Millstream Oktoberfest.

 

It's July... wonder when the 1st pumpkin beer is gonna show

 

I would be willing to guess that Sierra Nevada will be packaging their Oktoberfest later this week (or next). They might sit at the Wholesale Distributors warehouses a little bit longer before being sent to retailers, waiting for the Summerfest beers to be depleted.

Cheers!

 

I just hope that Erdinger can get their act together this year and get their "Oktoberfest" here by late July as they used to always do. Last year, it showed up in September when I no longer cared. I had plenty of proper Oktoberfests by then.

 

I'm always pumped for this thread showing up at or just after the 4th of July. A bottle shop near me put out old 2022 Altstadt Oktoberfest last week but I haven't seen anything else. Rahr, Altstadt and Hacker-Pschorr are what I expect here in the next 2 weeks.

Hoping Manhattan Project is early out of the gates again so I can get my hands on 2-3 6-packs. Seems to only last 2 weeks before it's gone for the year.

 

It's been a weird and mild summer for myself in NE CT - We're finally going to have some temps in the upper 80's for the next 3 days after having a couple rainy days. Still enjoying some lighter summer beers and lagers, Just brewed a pilsner that'll be ready for this weekend. Stoked for this thread however I'm sure i'll be more excited in August...that's usually when I start craving fall beers.

 

I saw some Tucher Festbier today. I have no idea if it's fresh or not. I think it might have been dated for September 2021 but with the weird codes they use I can't really tell.

 

Southern Tier's Pumking is on the shelves where I live, but it's from last year so I don't know if that counts. I guess now would be a good time for the yearly warning about checking dates on seasonal beers. I can't count the number of times I've caught people trying to pass off old beer as new.

 

Bottled on or best by?

There's a great thread with date codes for German beers here on BA, but I'd lay good odds the Tucher you saw wasn't this year's import.

 

Now that The 4th is over, I was also thinking about the next wave of upcoming fall beers today. I'll enjoy seeing a summery pilsner or lager release as early as late Winter or early Spring, but never have found the appetite for a Pumpkin beer or rich Marzen in July and August. I think that seasonal creep for seasonal beers certainly goes one direction better than the other. Just my opinion. Still lots of 2022 seasonals on the shelves here.

 

It's official, Millstream Brewing Company in Amana, Iowa is having their Oktoberfest release party on July 9th, according to their Instagram site.

 

Gonna kill all you guys right now -- stopped in at my local and the beer guy tells me, "Well, I got the Spaten Oktoberfest in."

Albeit, I'm in an area that didn't see Spaten Okto in bottles last year, so the distro is stepping up. That said, it's also a batch bottled in October of last year, so it's not the freshest (I'm in an area that doesn't keep Oktoberfest available year-round).

So, do I buy a seasonal 2 months ahead of season?

Hell yeah.

I win!

 

I've been drinking down my cellar and last week popped a Pumpking that was from at least last Autumn. Have to admit, it held up surprisingly well. Enjoyed it immensely. Hell, now I'm longing for this year's batch. Based on the last few years, it prolly won't be long...

 

Picked up some Flipside and Ruthless Rye last week.

 

I spotted Dogfish Punkin in VA today.

 

A good double bock on a cool summer eve (not here yet) puts me in the mood for Oktoberfest/fest biers.

 

I dont know if they show up around here this early. I seem to remember them showing up mid to late July.