It’s Oktoberfest! It’s that time of year when all beer enthusiasts connect with their inner Kraut, shoving miles of thick sausage into their mouths and washing it down with the finest German style beers. At least, that’s the dream. Unfortunately, despite having one of the largest Oktoberfest celebrations outside Germany, the situation at most of the Festhallen is downright shameful, completely void of Oktoberfest style lagers, or even anything German. It’s rather sad when a beer-focused Bavarian festival fails to include any decent Bavarian beers. Oh well, perhaps we can find solace in a sub-zero Molson Canadian and the authentic German musical stylings of Ill Scarlet and Default… yeah, f**k that. In hopes of tasting a little bit of the true Oktoberfest spirit, today we’ll be reviewing the Oktoberfestbier from brewery/beer-hall/Nazi hangout turned international restaurant chain, Staatliches Hofbräuhaus.
Dan: ‘Hof’, it seems, means ‘court’ in German, meaning Hofbräuhaus might be translated as the court’s brew-house. The brewery dates back to 1589 when the duke of Bavaria expressed his distaste for Munich beer (which seems kinda ridiculous by today’s standards), resulting in the establishment of a local brewpub. The tavern long remained a popular place for government representatives to gather. In fact, our (not-so) favourite 20th century German leader used Hofbräuhaus to declare the twenty-five theses of the National Socialist party… something the company’s website chooses to leave out of its public history for whatever reason.
While originally only producing brown ales, Hofbräuhaus quickly developed a wheat beer recipe by the early 17th century. Today their line-up is about a dozen strong, including a Munich-style lager and strong Maibock. Aside from serving at their own tavern and at Munich’s Oktoberfest celebration, they’ve apparently taken every opportunity to exploit the world’s thirst, setting up shops in cities like Melbourne, Seoul, Genoa, and half-a-dozen locations across the US. I’m sure it’s like going to Euro-Disneyland; it’s not the original but after an hour you’re too drunk to care how many childhoods you’ve ruined.
Neil: Märzen, darker, stronger beer (approximately 6%), bottom-fermented and lagered for at least 30 days. Before the days of refrigeration, they were brewed in March (thus the name) and allowed to mature in cold-storage (aka ice box) over the summer, thus avoiding nasty infections (Example: STI’s- Saccharomyces Transmitted Infections!). The resulting Märzenbier is full-bodied, rich, toasty, typically dark copper in colour generally owing to a healthy addition of dark Munich malt. Frig, send that to me express via funnel!
A little about Oktoberfest, only the following Munich breweries are allowed to serve beer: Augustiner, Hacker-Pschorr, Hofbräu, Lowenbräu, Paulaner and Spaten. Nonetheless, there is no shortage of beer for the patrons. The standard 1L mugs are filled something along the lines of seven million times (holy!) total, and furthermore, beer servers and/or bar maids are expected to carry up to 10 of these at a time; that’s pretty much a workout in itself!
Dan’s thoughts: My first sample of an Oktoberfest beer was last fall when I was served 1L of Beau’s Night-Märzen in a branded stein glass. With its beautiful orange-amber colour, complex sweet malt profile, and just a kiss of fresh hops, I instantly got a hard-on for the style. Here we are now a year later, and I’m naturally excited to try my first German representation. But after pouring it in anticipation… this just doesn’t look right. There’s a nice puffy white head, but it’s sitting on top of a clear, straw-yellow body. The aroma coming up from the glass gives further indication that this is not a Märzen (in classic form, anyway). Instead of toasty caramel malts, the nose on this beer is mostly light grain with some floral German hops. The taste follows similarly, adding on a touch of sweet green apple flavour, as stronger pale lagers tend to do. Like Neil’s date the morning after, I’m confused and disappointed. This beer is more akin to a strong German pilsner, and while it is definitely drinkable, it’s not what I hope to sip on when I one day don some lederhosen and a feathered hat in Munich. [2/5]
Neil’s thoughts: Pouring as a pale yellow, and smelling not so different from your standard BCK brew (Blue-Canadian-Keiths), this beer isn’t so befitting to the style I outlined earlier. My first thoughts on tasting… Blitz-trincken! For those saavy in our house drinking game, you’ll know that this means to down your alcohol, pansy. With that said, the quality is better than average, with some German hops evident in the aroma and palate. Indeed, I was able to quaff this beer in due time. And isn’t that the point, given these were brewed for sloppy times? Drink on my German brethren, drink on…. You certainly know how to brew a beer for mass-consumption. [2.5/5]
Not really recommended for consumption, so if you can find them, try: Paulaner Oktoberfest-Marzen, Beau’s Night-Marzen, Samuel Adam’s Octoberfest
Props to hops // Dan and Neil
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