Saturday, October 31, 2015

Oktoberfest! Weihenstephaner Festbier Märzen

October's a special time of the year for me, friends. Halloween and the cooling temperatures, and all the costumes you could ask for till the next convention. And Oktoberfest!

Yes, I realize that Oktoberfest proper was a few weeks ago. Sue me, you’ll still see these brews on the shelves for a little while. So for the occasion, I thought I'd give a try of some brews specifically for Oktoberfest. The first is a German import, Weihenstephaner’s Festbier Marzen.  Weihenstephaner has been brewing since the year of our Lord 1040, in the town of Freising, in Bavaria, Germany.  Almost ten centuries of Old World brewing expertise, let’s see how this goes.
an import, Weihenstephaner’s Festbier

On first pour, it's got a modest head that thins out quick but lingers as a thin layer on the top and clings a little to the edges of the glass. It's recommended to drink a marzen from a mug or stein. Full disclosure, my mug is big enough for three pints so instead I've used my jam jar pint glass.  What? There’s several drinking establishments out here that use those damn glasses at the bar! Ok, they’re hipster recycle-chic bars, and I only went that one time, but they’re still completely legitimate. Moving on, the bouquet is like a stronger pilsner, the faintest of sweet malt with a tang from the hops and yeast.  The body is a clear effervescent gold. It's a simple brew if one compares it to craft brews from the New World, but wow. You can clearly taste the ingredients. The barley, the subtle hops, and the yeast just sidling in, they’re well balanced. It’s a crisp brew that avoids real bitterness, with a clean finish. It's not fancy, but damn good quality. Most American lagers, or “macrobrews,” who dreamt up that sobriquet anyway, how they have that stronger tang that turns into a rough, skunky, bouquet? This is what those brews only wish they could be. You would need an actual skunk to make this brew curdle. This goes in crisp as a winter chill, finishes smooth as a frozen pond, with a respectable ABV of 5.8%. Do you want to build a snowman? Prost!


And if that’s too long for you, here’s the short version. I liked it, it’s good, try it yourself.

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