Samuel Adams Octoberfest

Product:   Samuel Adams Octoberfest
Style:       Märzen (March Beer)
Producer: The Boston Beer Company
Made In:   MA, United States
Alcohol:   5.3% alc./vol.
Price:      $14.99 per 6pk

     This was the first Samuel Adams that I had ever tried. It was October at the time that I purchased it so I thought that it was appropriate. The name Octoberfest I found was almost misleading. When I think of Oktoberfest I think of all of the German style Pilsners. Instead what the Boston Beer Company offers is a traditional Märzen, which would be brewed in March, lagered all summer and  enjoyed in the October festivals. And so expecting a Pilsner, I poured the bottle into to my mug and found this delightful surprise.

Appearance:

    Leagues away in appearances from the Pilsner I was expecting. Samuel Adams Octoberfest is  a reddish amber beer in colour. I was disappointed with head retention, there wasn't very much head after I poured and what head was there dissipated completely. I think that has more to do with my mug coming from the freezer though. I think the cold killed the head. Oops.

Aroma:

     The Octoberfest had some very rich and complex aromas. The first aromas are of a very rich malty and caramel-like notes. Very roasty smell. It smells slightly like maple syrup. More mild aromas include alcohol, nuts, and hops. The hops smell a little bit floral and a little spicy.

Flavour: 

     This was definitely a sweeter beer. The maple syrup and caramel aromas come back as flavours and fuse into a really malty, caramel flavour profile. The hops come in later at the end of the taste providing the mild bitterness and spice flavour needed to balance off the sweetness. I normally don't like a sweeter beer, however Samuel Adams Octoberfest found a rich and complex balance between sweet and bitter.

Mouthfeel:

     This beer has a really smooth texture. It has a nice mouthfeel, medium body. I thought that the carbonation of the beer was spot on, I didn't feel bloated after drinking it. It had a very warming characteristic to the mouthfeel.

Drinkability:

      Bring this beer to your next sitting with friends and impress them.  What an easy drinking beer. It's not over-carbonated. The flavour profile is smooth, the finish isn't perfectly clean which leaves you with an aftertaste of malt that leaves you wanting more. I purchased this beer and drank 5/6 of the bottles within the first two days, I had to hide this bottle in the back and practice my feeble willpower in order to get it to review. If you can find this on tap, I think it could only be enhanced.

     After I took the cap off of the beer and noticed that this beer had won a gold medal in internation competition. After trying this beer, I am not surprised.  I might have had my beer a little colder than I should have, I think it would have been even better slightly warmer, but I couldn't help myself from finishing it. What a well rounded beer. My hat comes off to Jim Koch and the rest of the Boston Beer Company to recreating a traditional Märzen beer.

Samuel Adams Octoberfest

4.5 / 5

     I am getting ready to leave Newfoundland and return to Nova Scotia so I have decided squeeze in as many Newfoundland Craft Beers as possible. I have shipped 3 bottles of Yellowbelly beer to N.S. already so I plan to review those probably around Christmas. Reviews to keep an eye out for:

1. Quidi Vidi Eric's Cream Ale
2. Quidi Vidi 1892
3. Quidi Vidi Premium
4. Quidi Vidi Honey Brown
5. Quidi Vidi Light