Fresh Fall Beer Sightings 2025

Same here in my corner of Chicagoland.

Wonder why it's so pricey at ground zero?

 

Darwin is a fan of this year's Sierra Nevada collab Festbier:



Prost!

 

It rained fall beers this week apparently, went to local spot driving by this morning and most have arrive.

I only grabbed the freshest Weihenstephan we’ve ever got, that I can remember at least: May 22nd bottling.

Now all I need is my Von Trapp which was still MIA here, gotta be soon though.

 

Drinks more pale Oktoberfest to me. Color indicates it’s a ‘tweener but not really dark enough to be an amber Oktoberfest.

 

I picked some up, but I'm waiting for the latest heatwave to subside.

When was your last Ayinger?

 

And bizzarely enough, here in northeast Kansas, we've gotten sooooooo many marzens, Ofests, Festbiers already except for this years' "Bob's 47" from Boulevard just a half hour away from town?

Odells, Paulaner, Averys' The Kaiser & more came in this week but no Bob's yet. Very puzzling.

 

I'm sure they're being more traditional about their release -- because they can.

There's a local around here that still had their Festbier in the lagering tanks as of last week. They self distribute too, so they don't have to follow any silly marketing trend reports.

 

I’m a huge fan of this years Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest…. Crisp and toasty. Love the collaborations and I’ve really loved these o-fests more often than not.

 

I saw it. I got it. It's really good. Gently fruity with brown bread notes. Yum.
Fair State Festbier 5.7%

 

According to my Chicago local; Vas. The nearly official part of Oktoberfest season has dropped.i.e. the seasonal shelf is populated, and the locals have caught up to Sierra and Revolution, who both arrived last week.
The Sierra Nevada version is particularly good this year. Might have to investigate it a few more times to verify.

 

It's odd, here in Atlanta it seems like we used to get Weihenstephaner Festbier around this time in August. Often it was one of the earlier ones to hit the shelves. The last couple of years it seems later. Have not seen it yet. It's obviously in the U.S. but distro and retail muat be waiting for some reason.

 

One concerning thing here. The Total Wine near me usually fills the center aisle and endcaps of the beer section with Märzen and Festbiers this time of year. Right now only about 1/3 now. The space is still occupied by RTD (Ready To Drink?) Spirits. I think that will change by Sept. 1, but seems to be a slow roll out this year, which is fine. I'd rather have more available Sept 1 anyway.

 

I'm still waiting on the King of the Hill Alamo beer.

 

In with my yearly post that the best thing about fall beer sightings is that it means winter beer sightings are just around the corner….:

 

I think this is the first time I have seen Shiner come out with a Festbier - it is a good one!

 

Hmm. They brewed a Dortmunder a few years ago that was damn good. Maybe they focused on this one as closely. Eyes open.

 

I picked up the Oktoberfest collaboration between Sierra Nevada and Störtebeker. It is an excellent beer and it is definitely going to be one of the staples I buy consistently this fall. The flavors are clean and there is a well-defined hop presence that also gives enough space on the palate for the malt to shine through without fighting for real estate.

It's always interesting to see how batches fare in CA vs NC, so if any of you are looking for references of good batches, my can info was: 53 PKGD 070925 12:36

 

Cant find any info online about the Shiner Festbier. They already have a Oktoberfest so I dont know if this Festbier is replacing it or not. It would seem a bit odd to have both out unless the Festbier is some sort of limited release.

 

Well, my local favorite has been making both a Fest and a Märzen the last couple years, so never say never.

But yeah, I kind of think this is a special release.

 

Paulaner Oktoberfest Bier I picked up at Total Wine today. 10.49/pk canned on date of 3.4.2025. Got the Märzen as well. 11.49/ 6pk of 11.2 oz bottles. Best By date 2/2026.