Stoudt's Oktoberfest

Stoudt's Brewing Co. is based in Adamstown, PA, and I've sampled a number of their different creations. I've always been very impressed with their beers, but the Oktoberfest I tried today is not up to their usual standards. I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt, because I know they make excellent beer. Something must have happened to this bottle during its lifetime. It smelled and tasted a bit metallic and skunky. Maybe it sat on the store shelf too long before I bought it. Whatever the reason, I know it's not exemplary of Stoudt's usual high quality.

Left Hand Brewing's Oktoberfest

Here's another brew I picked up from Whole Foods - Left Hand Brewing's Oktoberfest Marzen Lager. I've enjoyed everything I have tasted from Left Hand, and this was no exception. It poured a deep amber with a small off-white head. It was rich and malty, with a touch of dark fruit and a bitter finish. This ranked up there with the other Oktoberfests I've been sampling lately.

Sprecher Oktoberfest

Sprecher Brewing Co. is located in Glendale, WI. They're unique in that they bottle all of their beers in 16 oz bottles. They also advertise on the label that their beers are "Fire Brewed". I'm not sure what that means exactly. This Oktoberfest is the first beer I have ever tried from Sprecher, and it was a good place to start. It poured a deep copper color with a pillowy head that lasted longer than most. The aroma is sweet malt, with floral hops. The flavor is also sweet and malty, with a nice touch of caramel and some hop bitterness in the finish. This one was a bit subdued when compared to the Freaktoberfest from a few days ago, but it's an excellent Marzen that's more true to the style.

Coney Island Freaktoberfest from Shmaltz Brewing

I picked this bottle up at Whole Foods a few weeks ago and haven't tried it til now since it was a 22 oz bottle. When I poured this, I was shocked to see it pour PINK! The head looked like cotton candy. I don't know what they used to give it the shocking pink color, but it didn't detract from the beer. This is some GOOD beer! The pink head lasted a good while, and the beer was very flavorful. There's a ton of malt in here, expertly offset by a generous batch of piney hops. There's plenty of toffee flavor and a nice bitter finish. I am really impressed with Shmaltz Brewing. They are also the makers of the "He'Brew" line of beers.

Saranac Pumpkin Ale and Octoberfest Lager

I'm on vacation this week, but I have a short lull, so I decided to post. I visited family earlier in the week, stopping at my sister's house for a day. She came through with some seasonal varieties of Saranac that I had not tasted before. First up was their Pumpkin Ale, with the clever jack-o-lantern label. This pumpkin ale reminded me of the Blue Moon version I tried a little while ago. It was kinda subdued as far as spices were concerned. I could taste some pumpkin, but I like my pumpkin ales to taste more like pumpkin pie in a bottle. The second bottle I tried was their Octoberfest Lager. This was a sweet malty Octoberfest - very tasty. It had some caramel flavor, and low hop levels. The glass in the picture contains Octoberfest. The two beers were very similar in color, a medium amber. The pumpkin had a slightly larger head than the Octoberfest, but neither one lasted very long. My sis also supplied me with some Saranac to take home with me including their Black Diamond Bock, which I'm looking forward to. More to follow on that one!

Samuel Adams Octoberfest

Today is the beginning of Autumn, so what better beer than an Octoberfest? I had a bottle of Samuel Adams ready and waiting. The beer poured a deep copper color, with an off-white head. The head didn't last as long as I would have liked. The beer didn't disappoint though. It had a strong malt base, with some caramel sweetness. Hop level was low, as I would expect for this type of beer. This went perfectly with our roasted chicken, butternut squash and corn bread - an excellent way to celebrate the Autumnal Equinox.