Due To Popular Demand

HAHA! I lied! Nobody has really demanded any of this, except #3, but it's still cool nonetheless:

.5) Summit Brewery will be at Dexter's Pub tonight (Monday, August 25). Why? Does it matter? Get over there and drink some good Minnesotan beer. Maybe they'll have their Oktoberfest with them. Speaking of which ...

1) Oktoberfest season is almost upon us. Last year, one of our first features was a month-long blind tasting of Oktoberfest beers. If you remember, Capital Brewery "won" that blind tasting. Capital has already jumped the gun and released their Oktoberfest at the beginning of August; Tyranena is in the process of bottling theirs. I can smell the caramel malts in the air. This year we'll have some more stuff for Oktoberfest - it's going to remain a secret for now, but it is related to item number 2, below:

2) Starting tomorrow, Madison Beer Review is going multi-media! I know, I know, you are all amazed. But, MBR has hooked up with the Kyle, Matt and Jon at Beer Talk Today to bring you 30 minute podcasts on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Never fear, we will still publish this printed stuff on Monday, Wednesday and Friday. You can hear their latest, on-the-spot interviews at the Great Taste of the Midwest, here. Tomorrow they'll bring you the Beer Games; it's sort of like the Olympics in Beijing, except without the underage girls.

3) I have to admit defeat. In my review of The Malt House and in subsequent posts, I have been lambasted (I have also been accosted on the street for this) for my stance that I thought The Malt House needed something to keep people there - TVs, dart boards, pool tables, food. After a second visit late last week, I am a convert. No distractions necessary - I was impressed with the way that the sound of conversation can just fill up a room. On a random Thursday evening the place was mostly full and people were engaged in conversation. Without the other noises and diversions, these conversations just filled the space in a glorious white noise. The place looks great, with colorful walls and posters and mahogany bars and brass taps - a bit of overkill with the Chimay breweriana, but that's a pretty fine nit to pick. And, they had Jolly Pumpkin's Weizen Bam on-tap for $4; my heart melted. Now, if I just lived on the East Side ... damn you lakes!! I curse your inconvenience!!

4) You still have a week to get in your entry for the Quivey's Grove Beerfest Tickets. Write me a post about anything you like, email it to lewis-at-madisonbeerreview.com, and you could win two tickets to the Quivey's Grove Beerfest on September 27.

5) Some smart-ass forwarded this comic (apologies to United Press Syndicate):

Oktoberfest - The End

And, as October begins, we leave with the momentum of our Oktoberfest posts to carry your beer buying decisions. Indeed, we've been talking to you guys on the streets and it seems our comments have helped quite a bit. So, thank you!

So, like Amazon and other online retailers, this is the part where we tell you: "if you like this, you may also like _______________." And the blanks here are all styles that are similar, but not exactly like, an Oktoberfest beer, aka marzen.

Like we said Wednesday, the marzen style is defined by a pronounced caramel maltiness, it is usually lightly to moderately hopped with noble (European) hops. Its color ranges from dark gold to dark amber and it generally has a foamy off-white head. It is best served cold (45 degrees or thereabouts), but warms up well. And, there is a definite preference towards drinkability; it has a medium-light to medium body and typically little aftertaste. These are not terribly complex beers, though there is some capability with the malt profile to show-off a bit. But, overall, there are not fruity, spicy, or overly earthy tones either in aroma or flavor.

Up first, is the brother of the marzen, the Vienna Lager. The Vienna is very similar to the marzen, with the only primary difference being a heavier body, and not quite as much emphasis on the caramel. Of course this similarity in style seems natural, the drive from Munich to Vienna is only 400 kilometers, about 270 miles or the distance from Madison to Minneapolis. Close indeed. The Vienna lager is typically a slightly heavier beer than the marzen. It is a bit smoother, with a thicker mouthfeel and lower carbonation. Sometimes it can have a syrupy feel to it. And, it is generally low-hopped with noble hops. For a perfect example of a Vienna lager, check out Capital's Winter Skal when it comes out. While they can be consumed in a pint glass, they can also hold up well in a snifter or red-wine style stemmed glass.

Another similar style, is more like a cousin of the Oktoberfest: the amber ale. You can think of the beer world divided into two main areas: ales and lagers. The only real distinction is a technical one (though it turns out to be a very large distinction), lager yeasts are bottom fermenting while ale yeasts are top fermenting. Lager yeasts are typically fermented at cold temperatures (as low as below 32 degrees farenheit) while ale yeasts ferment at room temperature (or thereabouts). For our purposes here, without going into too much detail, the biggest distinction that you will find is that ale yeasts will impart a subtle fruitiness. The amber, of course, has a number of derivatives: the american amber, the irish red, and the alt-bier (an amber ale that is fermented in a lagered style at cold temperatures). Amber ales have the typical caramel sweetness and are moderately hopped. Of course, the American Amber can be very highly hopped. The Irish Red is much smoother, and is often served from the tap on nitrogen (as opposed to CO2, nitrogen provides a firm, smooth, velvety carbonation). While the alt-bier is the schizophrenic cousin: it is typically a red recipe that uses ale yeasts but ferments at lager temperatures, this eliminates some of the fruitiness, but the ale yeast provides a smoother, less crisp finish.

Finally, last, but certainly not least: the rauch (smoked) bier. You either love 'em or hate 'em, there are really no two ways about it. Generally the rauch recipes are based on marzen styles, though some breweries have used helles, pilsner, or bock recipes. The malts, before being used, are put in a smoke house where they are smoked over beechwood, or sometimes oak, or other woods. They are very dry. The strongest of them can leave what feels like a vacuum in your mouth. The body is generally medium-light to light. Some of them can taste like you are drinking a sausage. Seriously. It turns out that this years Unplugged beer from New Glarus will be a Rauch beer. We love rauchbiers here at MBR, so rest assured that the day this one is out, there will be a review here.

So, get out and try some of these other styles. If you like Oktobers, these are all similar, and, as you can see, Wisconsin breweries, retailers, and bars have them.

Oktoberfest - The Penultimate Review

Oktoberfest started as a simple marriage celebration between two royal families, and is now a world-wide celebration of German heritage from Munich to La Crosse. This has been great experiment for us here at MBR, it was the first in-depth style study that we've done on the site; if we say so ourselves, it went swimmingly. We've learned quite a lot during the course of our month of reviewing a single style of beer. We've learned that even after weeks of the same style, one beer can jump out and grab you. We've learned that name doesn't really mean a whole lot. We've learned that the Germans make damn fine beer.

As a preview of what's to come here at MBR. Today we'll hit our last true Oktoberfest, from Hacker-Pschorr, one of the 6 Munich breweries. Coming up Friday we'll look at styles that are similar to the Oktoberfest, if not strictly in keeping with the style. Then next week we are going to spend all three posts on a single topic near and dear to a lot of our hearts. That's the near future; until then ...

You'll recall, the six Munich breweries are Spaten, Paulaner, Augustiner, Hofbrau, and Lowenbrau. You may also recall that of those, only 2 remain as independently owned breweries: Augustiner and Hofbrau. Spaten and Lowenbrau are owned by InBev, Paulaner and Hacker Pschorr are owned by Heineken. Surprisingly, Lowenbrau's Oktoberfestbier has remained elusive despite its global distributor. Not surprisingly, absent the global distribution chain, both Hofbrau and Augustiner remain nearly impossible to find stateside.

While we can't say for certain here, because we can't compare today's beers with beers from pre-corporate ownership, the general consensus is that there has been a notable decrease in quality since their purchase. Also interestingly, the Hofbrau and Augustiner Oktoberfestbiers get universally low ratings at RateBeer and BeerAdvocate. This is hard to believe because it's sort of like saying Windy City Hotdogs aren't very representative of Chicago-style Dogs, or that Bucky Badger cheese curds are bad examples of the curd style. It's a non-sequitur. It is saying that the only breweries officially allowed to make beer for the festival for which the style is named is a bad example of the style. It cannot be. Would you say that Wisconsin State Fair creme puffs are bad creme puffs because they are just too fluffy for the style? NO. It wouldn't make sense. As one reviewer said of the Hofbrau Oktoberfestbier "A fair Oktoberfest, not a bad beer but pretty standard." I suppose, in the most literal sense of the word "standard" it is - it is the standard. Or, as per the Augustiner "Not as good as I was expecting." Then, it seems, that your expectations were off.

And, this is something that we have learned through this whole Oktoberfest tasting: everyone has their interpretation of the style. It's still possible to make beer that isn't good, don't get me wrong. But, the style has some wiggle room. From the sounds of it, the style encompasses everything from Augustiner to Hacker-Pschorr (as you will see, HS was the "darkest" of the sampled Oktobers). But, there are some common characteristics: first and foremost, caramel; also, an emphasis on maltiness as the primary flavor component; they aren't terribly complex beers; they finish cleanly and utilize noble hops almost entirely as there is very little hop aroma; the colors range from golden/light copper to deep amber; while some deviation in the strength of the caramel is not unusual, there are very few "other" flavors (e.g., New Glarus' spices are definitely not in line with the style) with only HS's "chocolate" malts being any significant deviation. As style, the emphasis is definitely on drinkability; these are intended to be consumed in quantity, so the flavors are simple, the beer is light to medium bodied, the finish is clean, and the abv is moderate (generally from 5.5 to 5.8 abv).

Hope you've enjoyed our month-long sojourn into the world of Wisconsin Oktoberfestbiers. Auf Wiedersehen zu Oktoberfest, verantwortlich trinken.


Hacker-Pschorr Original Oktoberfest
Appearance: the darkest of them so far, a deep amber and somewhat hazy, with a thin white head

Aroma: you can smell this thing from across the room; caramel and maltiness; crazy sweet smelling, almost chocolatey some hop brightness, but very grounded and earthy and nutty

Flavor: tastes exactly like it smells, with a surprisingly smooth, not crisp, finish; the bottle says produced on 07.06 - it's hard to know if this refers to the European convention, in which case it would June of 2007, or if it's the American convention in which case it was produced in July of 2006; the pale malts add nice body and there seems to be even a bit of wheatiness to this to lighten things up a bit; the chocolate is subdued after the initial shock

Body: medium body; smooth, as opposed to clean finish - definitely some lingering sweet flavors lying about, sort of toffee-ish on the finish

Drinkability: the fuller body would make it difficult to consume too many of these, but the taste would definitely bring me back for more; I'd want to lighten the load after while, but I'd start at the Hacker-Pschorr tent.


Notes/Summary: I really enjoyed this beer. It reminds me quite a bit of the Calumet Oktoberfest; though Calumet's doesn't have the chocolate and has a little more assertiveness from the hops; which is my only real complaint with this beer, the hops are virtually non-existant and the flavor kind of drags on and makes the beer seem a lot heavier than it really is.

I think this may be a bottle from last year. If you check the Hacker-Pschorr website, it shows that this year's batch number for the .5 l is 22147; the label on our bottle reads 21263. This might explain the lack of hops and minimal head. Perhaps someone could confirm for us?

Oktoberfest - I'll Let You In On A Secret

First, a word from our sponsors. Oh, right. We're the sponsors. Well, a word ... As we mentioned in the last post, we want to help promote beer and educate consumers. To that end, if you check under the "Home" section of the navigation menu in the upper-left-hand corner, you will notice that we now have MBR shelf talkers for retailers to use. We will provide these for each beer that we actually review here on the site. They are a little different from "traditional" talkers. First, in keeping with this site, we do not "rate" beers here - there are no numbers. Personally, we find numbers pretty useless; what does "90" mean? So, no numbers, just descriptions of the beer, and some suggestions for appropriate glassware. If you are a retail outlet, feel free to use these to help educate your consumers.

We now return you to our regularly scheduled post ...

We here at MBR often drink beer that comes from somewhere other than Wisconsin or Germany. I know, it can be hard to believe. The last non-Wisconsin, non-German beer we reviewed here was Dogfish Head's Midas Touch Golden Elixer on August 23rd, over a month ago. But, believe it or not, we've been known to drink other beers. While today we aren't going to leave the Oktoberfest style, we are going to leave the state of Wisconsin. In our travels, we've picked up a few non-Wisconsin, non-Oktoberfest beers that are close, interesting, widely available, or otherwise that can be part of this Oktoberfest series.

Today, we are leaving the state to visit some neighbors.

August Schell Brewery

Our first beer comes from two hours South-West of Minneapolis; from New Ulm, Minnesota and August Schell Brewery. Schell has been brewing since 1860 and claim to be America's second oldest family-owned brewery. Any brewery that comes from the "Polka Capital of the Nation" is A-OK in our book (although some of us at MBR have spent significant time in Wisconsin and Cleveland and would see them's as fightin' words). With a sturdy understanding of history, it's not hard to believe that a fine Oktoberfest beer comes from this town of 14,000 people. August Schell only brews four year-round beers (a vienna lager, a pilsner, a pale ale, and a caramel bock), and seven seasonal beers. The concentration at the brewery, it seems, is on quality over quantity. We really enjoyed this Oktoberfest and will try to make the trek down to New Ulm and visit the brewery next time we are near the Twin Cities.

August Schell Octoberfest (sic) Beer
Appearance: burnt-orange/copper color with thick, off-white head

Aroma: bright, almost lemony and sweet, citrusy behind the sweetness

Flavor: med-light body, slightly sweet, but moderately muted flavor; little hoppy bitterness; fast, but muddled finish - flavors just kind of fade away instead of a crisp, hard finish - an improved hop profile could clean up the finish considerably

Body: med-light body, moderate carbonation, fades quickly

Drinkability: good drinkability, I could drink these at a bar watching the Vikings lose another game to the Packers; flavors could be more assertive and a focus on the hops could really clean this beer up nicely.

Notes/Summary: A nice beer from a brewery that we haven't heard a lot about; perhaps some of the Minnesota readers could leave some comments about this brewery? Rants? Raves? Complaints? This is solid. Reminds of the Point Oktober a little, though a little more assertive than Point; sort of a cross between Point and Tyranena.

Bell's

The next brewery needs no introduction. Bell's is well-known here in Wisconsin. Between the Oberon, the Two-Hearted, and virtually the entire line of Bell's product, it would be pretty hard not to have some opinion (generally very favorable) of Bell's. They have a very good reputation here for brewing quality beer, for supporting The Great Taste of the Midwest (they took over Maduro this year for a pre-party there), and for pulling all of their product out of Illinois after a dispute with distributors there. (as an aside: if you haven't read that article from the Chicago Reader or aren't aware of the circumstances surrounding Bell's withdrawal from Illinois, please click on that link and read the story; it's an amazing piece about inept politics and the power of distributors' lobbies). So, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that Bell's makes a damn fine Oktoberfest beer. What did come as a surprise was just how good this beer is. In our own subjective opinions it is the best Oktoberfest we've reviewed this year. It's only real American competition would come from Rowland's Calumet Brewery in Chilton, WI - a beer we unfortunately couldn't include here because we have not been able to make it the two hours up to Chilton to pick up a growler.

Bell's Octoberfest (sic) Beer
Appearance: bright orange, the color of the label and fallen leaves; crystal clear, thin white-ish head that falls away quickly

Aroma: earthy and only mildly sweet; a light fruitiness from the hops and clear bread-like freshness; one of the few Oktobers where you can SMELL the depth of the malts

Flavor: wow! Great hit of caramel maltiness and hops then it's gone; demanding that you drink it again, and again, and again; if you can manage to hold it in your mouth, a subtle roastiness comes through and it reveals itself to be surprisingly full; this beer has a fruitiness (from the yeast maybe?) that adds a nice complexity and brightness to the flavor; the label says this is 5.7% abv, which might explain some of the brightness (it's a little high for the style)

Body: at first seems medium to light bodied, but is actually a pretty solidly medium bodied beer; this beer finishes fast and clean with only a slight residual malty aftertaste left

Drinkability: I could drink this everyday for the rest of my life.

Notes/Summary: This is one of the top Oktobers that I've consumed; there's really no two ways about it. While this was not a blind tasting, I'm not sure it matters much. There are few widely-available Oktobers that can compare; while I would put Calumet and it's slightly darker, more roasted and fuller Oktober against this one, that would be a battle I would never want to end. Awesome. My only improvement for this beer would be to extend the flavor a little more; the finish comes too quickly and hides some of the body and depth of the beer - I think a function of the bright hoppiness.

Along Came Paulaner

There's an inner struggle at work here. On the one hand, there's a desire to "damn the man," deny the corporate monstrosities, stick my middle finger in the air and tell InBev, SABMiller, Anheuser-Busch, and Heineken to die. On the other hand, there's beer like Paulaner, Hacker-Pschorr, Spaten, Lowenbrau, Pilsner Urquell, Franziskaner, Hoegaarden, Stella Artois, Grolsch, Guiness, Red Stripe, Murphy's, and countless other; all owned by either InBev, A-B, SABMiller, or Heineken. These are all good beers despite their corporate ownership.

The only conclusion is that there isn't a solution. There are some great brands owned by world-wide beverage conglomerates. The bigger problem is access to the brands not owned by world-wide congolmerates. That's the real nefariousness of the world-wide distribution systems. They have the money and power to force these brands, but unfortunately the vast majority of their sub-par brands, on unknowledgeable retail outlets. Why are "high end" restuarants serving Amstel? Why are high end restaurants serving St. Pauli Girl, Leinies and Rolling Rock as "premium" beers? The answer is usually because they care more about their wine selections and they are generally uneducated about beer selections. It's a shameful situation. Take a look at L'Etoile's wine list. I invite you to locate their beer selection on that website; yet a Loterbol Blonde would compliment their chicken entree very well. Of course, maybe the problem is that they can't charge $150 for a bottle of Loterbol Blonde; but they can for Deus.

This is a problem with the retailers and restaurants. Retailers and restaurants especially need to stop being lazy about beer. Stop listening to what the distributors want you put on your shelf and your table and get out and know your product. Take some pride in your selections.

Educate your customers on styles. This is done regularly for wine, both formally via in-store tastings and informally by talking to the customer and making suggestions. Restaurants even more so. Customers frequently ask for wine recommendations. If good and interesting beers were offered, they would ask about those as well. As much as they can be useless, shelf talkers can't hurt; use them (by the way, one of the projects we are working on here at MBR is to create shelf talkers for use at retail). Educate your servers on beers like you educate them on wines. Make sure your wine stewards know your beer selection inside and out. Make sure your bartenders know your beer selection inside and out.

There's no reason that high-end beers like Cantillon, Abbaye Des Rocs, Girardin, Panil, and others can't be sold regularly or served in restaurants paired with fine food. It's not really the customers' place to demand these at restaurants and retail; for the most part these outlets are take-it-or-leave-it. But, if the restaurants and retail took the time to be educated on these beers, there is ample opportunity to differentiate the business in a crowded "wine-centric" marketplace. Retaurants like Brasserie V and The Great Dane at Hilldale have proven that customers are eager for these beers and eager to learn. Bars and Retail like Maduro and Star Liquor and Steve's and Riley's have shown that education and selection can sell these beers.

Here's the offer: If you are a restaurant or retail outlet and you are serious about improving your beer selection drop us an email, we will be more than happy to be an unbiased, independent guide and help you find quality beers that match your food and get you pointed in the right direction.

Paulaner

Appearance: copper/golden amber and crystal clear, 1/2 inch foamy head, strong bubbling action

Aroma: bold and malty, strong bread-like aroma, mildly sweet, with nice flowery and complex hoppiness

Flavor: upfront sweetness with a light caramel flavor, the malts are very subdued, but combine with each other nicely; the hops hit from the get-go, and hold up nicely through the finish adding a clean, solid end; very little aftertaste

Body: medium-light, with moderate carbonation; burpy

Drinkability: I've already finished about 1/2 of it and I've just been tasting it; irresistable

Notes/Summary: this is a fantastic oktober; like Spaten it's what Oktobers should be; I'm not sure I could pick a "favorite" between this and the Spaten; while I really like both, I have a nagging sensation that they could be better

Recommendation: very highly recommended. The only downside is the relatively high price to buy this in Wisconsin; in terms of value, Capital gets you close enough for better price

Oktoberfest #6 - Day 3 Sample B (Point)

We continue our quest to try all of the commercially available Oktoberfests from Wisconsin breweries. If we can, we will try to find Oktoberfests from some of the breweries that aren't readily available here in Madison (Viking, Central Waters, Calumet, Lakefront, etc.); but we are starting with the ones that are.

The methodology is simple: blind tasting of two different Oktoberfests. In the mbr refrigerator is all of the Oktobers. One of us sets up the glasses with two random unannounced Oktobers, and another tastes without knowing which beers have been poured. Tasting notes are taken, and guesses are made as to which Oktober is being consumed. The following is those tasting notes; unedited. We try not to "rate" the beers, just to review them. Enjoy. If you have had any of these beers, please feel free to post your review in the comments.

Unfortunately this is the last Wisconsin Oktoberfest that we have in our refrigerator. More Wisconsin Oktobers exist, unfortunately they have proven elusive in obtaining in singles form. If you have any of the following, please get in touch with us, and we will arrange somthing:

Viking Rauch
Central Waters Oktoberfest
Lakefront Oktoberfest
Berghoff Oktoberfest
Pearl Street Lederhosen Lager
City Festbier

In the meantime, the last beer is Point's Oktober. As a general rule, at MBR we aren't beer snobs; we are more than happy to drink well-made quantity beers. While we enjoy champagne-style beers, we also like the champagne of beers. In other words, we can appreciate beers brewed for the masses, so long as they are still quality beers. And, that's what you get with today's beer, the Point Oktoberfest. It's a quality non-craft beer. (RB. BA.)

Day 3 Sample B (Point)

Appearance: dense 1/2 inch head that takes it time slipping away, darker copper/amber in color; looks very nice

Aroma: big caramel, sweet and fruity aroma, smells almost artificial in the caramel

Taste: little hop character at all though there is some faint sharpness, all caramel and malt, given the aromas, the taste is surprisingly muted, not much complexity in the malt

Body: quite thin and finishes quickly with little residue or residual bitterness

Drinkability: not bad, I could drink this but would prefer Sample A or some of the others when looking for an Oktober

Summary/Notes: again, not bad; it seems a little thin for the style, and the hoppy-ness is way muted, and while the flavors are light for the style, the style is really all about drinkability and this, unlike some previous samples, has good drinkability

Guess: Point

Recommendation: not a bad choice for an Oktober; there are better examples of the styles to be had, but still would be a good choice

Oktoberfest #5 - Day 3 Sample A (Tyranena)

We continue our quest to try all of the commercially available Oktoberfests from Wisconsin breweries. If we can, we will try to find Oktoberfests from some of the breweries that aren't readily available here in Madison (Viking, Central Waters, Calumet, Lakefront, etc.); but we are starting with the ones that are.

The methodology is simple: blind tasting of two different Oktoberfests. In the mbr refrigerator is all of the Oktobers. One of us sets up the glasses with two random unannounced Oktobers, and another tastes without knowing which beers have been poured. Tasting notes are taken, and guesses are made as to which Oktober is being consumed. The following is those tasting notes; unedited. We try not to "rate" the beers, just to review them. Enjoy. If you have had any of these beers, please feel free to post your review in the comments.

Not too surprised at this one today. I tend to like Tyranena's beers. Though, I'll admit, this one kind of baffled me at first, because I would have expected more hoppy-ness from Tyranena. But, this shows that they can make solid beers without getting heavy-handed with the hops. Ultimately, the subtle hop characters showed themselves, but this isn't a show-off beer. At the end of the day, it is a very drinkable Oktoberfest.

Day 3 Sample A (Tyranena)

Appearance: thin head, light copper in color, crystal clear, little carbonation

Aroma: not much aroma; faint malt and some caramel sweetness, very little hoppy-ness,though some grassy notes seep through

Taste: front of caramel malts and some slightly roasted notes, light and sweet, nice hoppy bitterness actually just before a fast finish that leaves very little aftertaste

Body: medium-light body, with a soft feel, but not syrupy, not very highly carbonated, but the tastes fade quickly so the carbonation isn't missed

Drinkability: very drinkable, could probably have quite a few of these in a large mug wandering around a tailgating party at the Big 10 pub getting ready for a badger game

Summary/Notes: doesn't taste quite "finished" but it's quite drinkable and very good, I could drink this anywhere; very solid for the style, though could use a little more hoppy-ness and perhaps some fullness and depth in the body to round it out

Guess: Tyranena

Recommendation: would search this out to serve as a good Wisconsin oktoberfest; like others, there are better out there, but few represent the state better

Essen Haus and Spaten Oktoberfest

When last we left you, we were suffering from the inability to find a consistent single bottle selection here in Madison. Though recent discussion have pointed to Steve's on University as having the best selection, while Riley's is slightly different, and Woodman's can be more numerous. In any event, we had decided that we might be better off finding some of these beers on tap. So, we got ourselves to the bastion of German-ness in Madison, WI: Essen Haus.

This Friday, in fact any Friday, well, really, any day, get to the Essen Haus. If it's the last thing you do in your life, you will thank me for it. But here's the secret (and I risk my own happiness in telling you this) get there after 8:30pm. We showed up at Essen Haus at 7:45pm - the parking lot was packed. In fact, there were no available spots in the regular lot; we would have had to park across the street. The line was out the door and people were milling about in the parking lot waiting for tables. We had some beer to pick up at Riley's, so we went there for 45 minutes (they had sixes, but no singles, of the New Glarus Staghorn, which is first spotting of this fabled beast in the wild). Back to Essen Haus and we found parking without a problem. We were seated shortly (not more than a five minute wait, which was more from the hostess seating the people in front of us than because a table wasn't ready).

If you have never been to the Essen Haus, you are in for a treat. It is like walking back in time, or at least across the ocean and few sizeable countries, to a rustic Germanic pub. The bar has wooden steins hanging from the ceiling. The tap list is a peg board above the bar, and a few chalkboards with the current taps. The restaurant proper is a Bavarian märchenland. Animals hang from the walls. Signs advertising authentic Munich bier. The chandaliers are huge, the seats are big and sturdy. The tables foster rowdy discussion. Glass boots filled to the brim with beer are visible on a majority of tables. The waitresses (do they have waiters?!?) wear authentic bavarian stylings. The atmosphere is fun and boisterous, but not obnoxiously loud; the din lends a festive atmosphere.

First, I'll let you know that they had Spaten Oktoberfest on tap. (BA.RB.) From the sound of things, they may be getting others on tap or in bottle, but right now only the Spaten. This would not be a problem. The tasting notes for the Spaten Oktoberfest follow this post.

We had the fish fry. Forget what you've read in the Isthmus or Madison Magazine. The best fish fry in Madison is at the Essen Haus. The Avenue Bar's (the winner this year in both polls, I believe) fish fry can be somewhat greasy. The generous portion of fish at the Essen Haus is fried perfectly with no greasiness, and served with potato pancake (applesauce or sour cream) or beer-battered fries.

But, this is the secret. If you get there at 8:30pm not only will you avoid the crowds, but you are treated to the musical stylings of an authentic Bavarian Polka Band. They often rotate the bands that play there, so check their website (if they can get it updated) to see who's playing - or just head on over. The band we saw was fantastic. Patrons were singing and clapping along and, literally, dancing in the aisles. Don't feel bad if you don't know how to polka, someone will teach you (and if you're having trouble, just hop back and forth from foot to foot and you'll be close enough).

The Essen Haus is truly one of the not-so-hidden gems here in Madison. In one evening you can celebrate the Germanic history of much of Southern Wisconsin. Their food is authentic and unparalleled. And, most importantly, the beers are authentic and unparalleled. They offer five of the six Munich breweries, with only Augustiner not represented on the tap list.

Here are my tasting notes for the Spaten Oktoberfest.

Appearance: crystal clear, definition amber
Aroma: mild sweet, grassy and floral
Flavor: caramel and bitter; not alcoholic or sharp; muted bitterness; can taste depth of malt; a little "muddied"; not as "clean" of a taste as optimal
Body: firm medium body with good depth and lasting effects
Drinkability: I could drink too many of these and really enjoy it

Summary: An associate said "It tastes like the smell of falling leaves" and, I am quoting from a scribbled on corner of a placemat, "Somehow [this] beer just tastes right with a background of oompa music and a chorus of good, spontaneous polka whoops." This beer, to me, is what Oktoberfests should shoot for. It's not the best Oktober I've had (there are better out there) but if you were to look up "Oktoberfest" in the dictionary you'd find a picture of this beer (well, not really, you'd probably be treated to a 5 sentence description of the festival held in Munich, but you get my point).

My understanding from others is that since Spaten was purchased by InBev in 1999 the quality of this beer has diminished somewhat. I don't find that hard to believe. The yeast is a little one-note, and the hops could be more expressive; but the basic foundation is still there and it is very definitely a solid beer.

Oktoberfest #4 - Day 1 Sample B (Capital)

We continue our quest to try all of the commercially available Oktoberfests from Wisconsin breweries. If we can, we will try to find Oktoberfests from some of the breweries that aren't readily available here in Madison (Viking, Central Waters, Calumet, Lakefront, etc.); but we are starting with the ones that are.

The methodology is simple: blind tasting of two different Oktoberfests. In the mbr refrigerator is all of the Oktobers. One of us sets up the glasses with two random unannounced Oktobers, and another tastes without knowing which beers have been poured. Tasting notes are taken, and guesses are made as to which Oktober is being consumed. The following is those tasting notes; unedited. We try not to "rate" the beers, just to review them. Enjoy. If you have had any of these beers, please feel free to post your review in the comments.

Again, this day was baffling. I can't really point to a reason why, but I've never really been a huge fan of Capital. Part of it is, I suppose, that their beers are mostly low to un-hopped lagers. Not really right up my alley. But, for the most part I find their beers to be unremarkable. Also, maybe it's because they try to market themselves as a small "we're just good ol' folks from Madison" when, in fact, they are one of the largest breweries in Wisconsin outside of Milwaukee and Chippewa Falls (and, to be technical, not in Madison, but Middleton; and, not to start a war or anything, it's a distinction that many Middleton-ians are quick to make). Maybe it's because they insist on doing silly things like trying to trademark "America's #1 Rated Brewery." (I promise a post in the relatively near future about why this absurd.)

In any event, I was surprised when I found out that Sample B was Capital. I was surprised for 2 reasons: 1) see above paragraph; 2) I just had the Capital Oktoberfest the night before and I didn't recognize it in the blind tasting. Though, to be fair, as you'll see, I recognized it - just not as Capital.

What I found is that Capital has made the best regional Oktoberfest tasted thus far; it is appropriately sweet, with a complex but not overwhelming bitterness. The body was spot-on, and the head was near-perfect. So, without further ado, the tasting notes:

Day 2 - Sample B (Capital)

Appearance: amber, good foamy head, little lacing, somewhat hazy, though hard to tell if this is from the mug frosting over or the carbonation, or if it's just a hazy beer

Aroma: malty and caramel; earthy and a faint fruitiness hidden behind the grassy scents

Flavor: strong, but not overpowering caramel; not terribly complex in the malt flavors, but could just be that the malts are working well together and there isn't much layering to discover; the caramel specialty malts are present, but not overwhelming, while the base malts really shine; after the caramel taste, the hoppy bitterness takes over and provides a nice finish;

Body: a solid medium to medium-light body, moderately carbonated with no long-lasting flavors; crisp

Drinkability: this is a very good Oktober; I could drink quite a few more of these;

Summary/Notes: while it could be better, the malts could use some depth and the yeast shows no character at all, and the hops could be a little more forward, it's really quite a solid Oktober; the subtle complexity of the hops is really nice

Guess: New Glarus

Recommendation: buy 6 of these; hell, buy 12 of them.

Oktoberfest #3 - Day 2 Sample A (New Glarus)

We continue our quest to try all of the commercially available Oktoberfests from Wisconsin breweries. If we can, we will try to find Oktoberfests from some of the breweries that aren't readily available here in Madison (Viking, Central Waters, Calumet, Lakefront, etc.); but we are starting with the ones that are.

The methodology is simple: blind tasting of two different Oktoberfests. In the mbr refrigerator is all of the Oktobers. One of us sets up the glasses with two random unannounced Oktobers, and another tastes without knowing which beers have been poured. Tasting notes are taken, and guesses are made as to which Oktober is being consumed. The following is those tasting notes; unedited. We try not to "rate" the beers, just to review them. Enjoy. If you have had any of these beers, please feel free to post your review in the comments.

I'll admit, today's samples baffled me. Here's some reviews from Beer Advocate and Rate Beer of New Glarus' Oktoberfest, called Staghorn. It gets, almost exclusively, really really good reviews.

There are some theories floating around though to explain many of these glowing reviews. In talking with a lot of beer folks, most seem to agree that New Glarus has an "aura" about them that raises the reviews almost uniformly. Virtually every review is over 3.5, and many top 4 (on a scale of 5). Some of the reason for this is the general unavailability of New Glarus beers. Outside of Wisconsin New Glarus is practically impossible to get a hold of. And, New Glarus is world reknown for some of their beer (e.g., the Belgian Red and Raspberry Tart). So, people think that all of their beers must be great. Something of a "since this isn't widely available, it must be good" theory of reviewing.

So, I dare some of you reading this blog who gave the Staghorn such high reviews to subject it to a blind taste test. You might be surprised. I was. Here are the notes.

Sample A (New Glarus Staghorn)

Appearance: light amber/copper; no head; crystal clear

Aroma: very light aroma; very faint yeasty/breadlike aroma; only very slight grassy hoppiness

Flavor: very faint caramel flavor, somewhat roasted and earthy, almost nutmeg; an off metallic flavor that may be the hops trying to assert themselves; flavors are very muted, almost like they were afraid of making it too sweet; the anti-sprecher

Body: thin to medium bodied and moderately carbonated, a strange metallic flavor lingers, I think it's a faint hint of hops, but it's really hard to grasp a hold of the bitterness

Drinkability: At a crowded outdoor festival, I probably wouldn't notice the metallic flavors, and it's light enough bodied that I could definitely drink a few, I'm just not sure, if I were looking for an Oktober, that this would not my standard; it's too dialed down

Summary/Notes: it's really not that bad of a beer, but it's not a bold example of the style (ed note: after I found out this was New Glarus and was surprised: the bottle, and the marketing materials suggest that this Oktober has some spices in it, and that may be what is muting the caramel flavors so much, but it still doesn't excuse the almost complete absence of hops; the flavors asserted themselves a little more as it warmed up, but still muted; this review was poured at normal refrigerator temperatures)

Guess: Point

Recommendation: If you're stuck in a bar with nothing else except macros to drink, it wouldn't be a bad choice, but there are better examples of the style out there

A Frustrating Quest

A short diversion in our quest to report on all of the commercially available Oktoberfests being produced here in Wisconsin. As mentioned in the first post on this topic, I wanted to compare the Oktobers of Wisconsin against the classics; the six major Munich breweries that have tents at the Oktoberfest (a quick reminder: Paulaner, Spaten, Augustiner, Hacker-Pschorr, Lowenbrau, and Hofbrau). But, there's a catch (actually 2 catches) to finding these around town.

First, not all of the Munich breweries are available and of the ones that are available, not all of them have Oktoberfest styles available. Second, it is impossible to find single bottles of them at retail.

It turns out Augustiner isn't available anywhere. Which, in itself is not entirely true. I was cruising the aisles of the West Side Woodman's and found a set of sixes from Augustiner (though not the Oktober). The beer was in blank-labelled American-style beer bottles in "Augustiner" boxes, but the shelf-tag was handwritten. Now, go look here and here, look at the bottles and tell me what you think of that situation. Yeah. Seems a little shady to me, too. If I get a chance, I'll head over there and snap a photo so y'all can see for yourselves. Hofbrau (aka "Hoff Brau") has been spotted, but no Oktobers, ditto with Lowenbrau. I'm not really that surprised, these are definitely not huge international breweries. Lowenbrau's lager is fairly popular, but there isn't much diversity in availability. Ditto with Hofbrau, except that it's "popular" beers aren't nearly as popular as Lowenbrau's.

So, Augustiner, Hofbrau, and Lowenbrau Oktobers have not been spotted here in Madison. Hacker-Pschorr Oktober has been seen occasionally in the wild, including places like the Copp's in Fitchburg (sorry for the West Coast bias all you East-Siders). Spaten and Paulaner are all over the place; probably because they are both now owned by super-mega-worldwide conglomerate InBev.

Suffice to say, while this blog is popular, it's not popular enough that we're flush with beer around here. We buy our beer in the stores just like everyone else; and buying a six pack of every style of Oktoberfest is prohibitively expensive. I've been able to find (sometimes by subterfuge) some of the Wisconsin Oktobers as singles. But, the German Oktobers remain elusive as singles and we just can't shell out $7.99 a six for each of the beers. This is extraordinarily frustrating.

Why is retail afraid of singles? They can charge more for 6 singles than they can for a six pack. And one isn't really substitute for the other. For example, I'd love to buy a single of Capital's Autumnal Fire (an award winning dopplebock). But it's not really a beer I need six of (unless I want to cellar them). So, I won't buy any. But, if I could buy a single of that, a single of some others of a similar style, I might find one I like and actually want to buy six (or four). And, while, yes, I know that somewhere in town there is a single of Autumnal Fire floating around, the effort required to find it is fairly high - no store in town has a consistent singles policy.

More importantly for retailers there's no downside to selling singles. Retail can charge $2 for a single, but only $8 for a six (generally). If they sell six singles they can make $12, an increase of $4 per six ($16 per case). Ultimately, they would sell more beer. People, like me, might be curious enough to pay $2 for a single of a beer that they've never had even if they might be hesitant to purchase a whole six. It would promote high-margin craft and foreign beers and allow the less initiated to explore these beers for a more reasonable introductory price. Instead, the retailers just sell singles of beers no one wants or local year-long beers (e.g., spotted cow - who the hell buys a single spotted cow!?!?).

My best guess for the reason is a fear on the part of the retailers that if they allow singles of the seasonals or limited releases people would never buy sixes. There are two responses to this: 1) so what? and 2) that's not really true. In the first case, as it is, they are missing sales, the question is whether they are missing five sales; and really, in terms of raw dollars, the question is whether they are missing three sales (remember, you can sell four singles for the same price as one six). I would argue that they are missing sales from those who would be willing to try one, but don't want to risk (without knowledge) the price of six. As to the second point, while I don't have any actual, empirical knowledge, I suspect that people who want to buy sixes aren't going to forego the six to just buy one (or two or three - because remember anything four and above is, at minimum, a wash in terms of dollars). Moreover, those who would be disposed to buy a six and only purchase one are more likely to actually purchase seven - one, plus a six when they realize they like it and want to share with their friends, or cellar it, or just drink six themselves. And, if they don't like it, people are likely to be far less irritated and unsolicitous having shelled out only $2 than being out $8 and have five beers they don't like.

The one reason I have heard for the non-singles policy is that singles sections are difficult to maintain. But, I find this hard to believe. It can't take more than 30 minutes a day, if that. Moreover, this would be a viable argument if a store didn't have any singles. But, most of the beer retailers in Madison do have some singles; just not nearly as comprehensive a selection as one would hope.

So, the policy of limited single bottles is baffling to me. Both the retailers and the breweries (by failing to encourage distributors and retailers to promote singles) are missing a great opportunity to sell more beer. Hopefully they rectify this. Beer retailers in other cities have figured this out. If you go to Chicago, Cleveland, St. Louis, etc. you will see stores (and beer caves) that specialize in single bottles. The reason is because it makes money.

Nonetheless, that leaves us wanting to find Hacker-Pschorr, Paulaner, and/or Spaten Oktobers in single servings somewhere around town. The first thought: a bar somehwere in this town will have these on tap. If you were looking for German beer on tap in Madison where is the first place you'd think of? Probably the first place I thought of: Essen Haus. Our review of the Essen Haus and the Spaten consumed therein is coming next week, so stay tuned!

Oktoberfest #2 - Day 1 Sample B (Leinenkugel's)

We continue our quest to try all of the commercially available Oktoberfests from Wisconsin breweries. If we can, we will try to find Oktoberfests from some of the breweries that aren't readily available here in Madison (Viking, Central Waters, Calumet, Lakefront, etc.); but we are starting with the ones that are.

The methodology is simple: blind tasting of two different Oktoberfests. In the mbr refrigerator is all of the Oktobers. One of us sets up the glasses with two random unannounced Oktobers, and another tastes without knowing which beers have been poured. Tasting notes are taken, and guesses are made as to which Oktober is being consumed. The following is those tasting notes; unedited. We try not to "rate" the beers, just to review them. Enjoy. If you have had any of these beers, please feel free to post your review in the comments.


Sample B (Leinie's)
Appearance: light amber/dark cider, head holds well
Aroma: heavy malt but not sweet, light caramel and grassy, slightly yeasty
Taste: light and fruity with a light caramel flavor; but doesn't really taste like an Oktober; hops are all aroma, no bittering;
Body: light and highly carbonated; taste dissipates quickly
Drinkability: I could drink a lot of these, which I suppose is the point, but taking my time doesn't really seem like it's even an Oktober

Notes/Summary: Seems too light to be an Oktober, though aroma was nice; seems created to please American-style beer consumers (those that like Bud/etc.)

Guess: Leinie's
Recommended: No; at least not if you're looking for an Oktoberfest beer

Oktoberfest #1 - Day 1 Sample A (Sprecher)

We have officially begun our quest to try all of the commercially available Oktoberfests from Wisconsin breweries. If we can, we will try to find some of the smaller breweries that aren't readily available here in Madison (Viking, Central Waters, Calumet, Lakefront, etc.); but we are starting with the ones that are.

The methodology is simple: blind tasting of two different Oktoberfests. In the mbr refrigerator is all of the Oktobers. One of us sets up the glasses with two random unannounced Oktobers, and another tastes without knowing which beers have been poured. Tasting notes are taken, and guesses are made as to which Oktober is being consumed. The following is those tasting notes; unedited. We try not to "rate" the beers, just to review them. Enjoy. If you have had any of these beers, please feel free to post your review in the comments.


Sample A (Sprecher)
Appearance: amber in color, thin foamy head dissipates quickly
Aroma: sweet and alcohol-y, no hops
Taste: cloyingly sweet, slight hoppy bitterness on back, seems more like an ale than a lager;
Body: thin and syrupy, well carbonated, bitterness sticks around
Drinkability: hard to tell, but doubt I would want a lot of this; if one drank quickly the syrupy-ness and alcohol might go unnoticed (ed note: it doesn't)

Notes/Summary: Not terrible, but seems a little syrupy and sweet; depth eventually shows itself, but caramel gets in the way; perhaps straight from the tap drank quickly this would be better

Guess: Capital
Recommended: With reservations; it has a unique "strong ale" taste that some will not like

Oktoberfest!

I'll admit, fall is my favorite time of the year. Here in Wisconsin it's particularly great. The weather is cooler. The air is crisper. The rain is more cleansing. The leaves change color. The corn is sweet and tender. Brats and burgers are the order of the day. Baseball is exciting. Football is starting. And, Oktoberfest!

While the classic festival begins on September 22nd, a number of Oktoberfests occur here in Wisconsin.

September 7 - September 23 (weekends only) - Milwaukee Oktoberfest
September 14 - September 16 - Chippewa Falls Oktoberfest
September 28 - October 6 - LaCrosse Oktoberfest
October 5 - October 7 - New Glarus Oktoberfest
October 6 - Dallas Oktoberfest

If you know of others, please email me where, the date, and a link to a website so that I can verify it.

While it is called Oktoberfest, the festivals usually occur in September, but can last as long as November. The very first Oktoberfest was a marriage celebration and occured in Bavaria on October 12 and October 17, 1810. In 1819 the town of Munich took over the festival and determined that it would be held every year.

Today there are 6 traditional German breweries that participate in Oktoberfest: Spaten, Lowenbrau, Hofbrau, Hacker-Pschorr, Augustiner, and Paulaner. Over the next few weeks, I will be trying the Oktoberfest (marzen) style from each of these breweries (assuming I can find them!), and from the Wisconsin breweries that I can get a hold of. First up will Oktoberfests from Tyranena, Point, Sprecher, and Viking. So, stay tuned because I love Oktoberfest beers.

The Oktoberfest style is often referred to as "marzen" (BA.RB.) and it is similar in style to the American Red; they are a medium-bodied, amber colored beer that generally have a mild hoppiness (not citrusy) and a caramel/sweet maltiness to them. They are usually low-alcohol, moderately carbonated with a fairly thick, foamy head served crisply chilled in a stein or faceted mug. Perfect for Saturday afternoon football games.