Oktoberfest by August Schell Brewing – a rich auburn color and creamy head. smells of grain and the taste is toffee like with a light body. I really like how the beer finishes with a sweet crispness. 3.5/5

Dogtoberfest Märzen by Flying Dog Brewery - a dark amber color with a thick foamy head that dissipates quickly. smells of caramel and spice. a medium body with the flavor falling to the back of the tongue. the thickness comes from a mix of roasted malts and spice. 3/5

Pumpkin Ale by Buffalo Bill’s Brewery – surprisingly more true pumpkin flavor than I had believed it would be. I had built this beer up in mind as being the liquid pumpkin pie of beers, but this was not the case. It’s a true pumpkin flavor that comes through on this beer and it’s low on the spice. 3.5/5

Bob’s ’47 Oktoberfest by Boulevard Brewing – smells floral and has a bitter bite in the taste. 3.5/5

Horseman’s Revenge by Olde Main Brewing – a very tasty, local choice. 4/5

Harvest Ale by Goose Island Brewing - this beer certainly focuses on the hop flavoring and it comes through quite a bit more strong than one might expect. This isn’t quite reaching the levels of an IPA, but for that, I commend it. 3.5/5

The true winner for me this season was the Pumpkin Ale from Schlafly – a true 5/5 for me. You will all hear more about this in an upcoming Happy Hour episode.

In the last episode, we presented a few Oktoberfest style beers as a traditional example of fall seasonal beers. This week we continue our foray into fall seasonals with three ales, two of which are of the pumpkin variety. Of course we detail a few upcoming local events, present some blog posts from our friends, and there is also some news surrounding Anheuser-Busch InBev. As always, let us know what you’ve found to drink in these fall months and again, thanks for listening. Cheers!

Redhook Ale Brewery – Late Harvest Autumn Ale Style: American Amber Ale ABV (Alcohol by Volume): 5.9% IBU: n/a

O’Fallon Brewery – Pumpkin Beer Style: Herb and Spice Beer ABV (Alcohol by Volume): 5.6% IBU: 11

New Holland Brewing – Ichabod Style: Herb and Spice Beer ABV (Alcohol by Volume): 5.5% IBU: n/a

Story Links

“Brewpub Etiquette” from BeerDorks.com

“Ind. lawmakers hear Sunday alcohol sales ban views” from Forbes.com

The Beer Genome Project #23 Show Notes

0:00-0:49 – Introduction 0:49-10:24 – Late Harvest Autumn Ale by Redhook Brewery 10:24-18:46 - Pumpkin Ale by O’Fallon Brewery 18:46 -25:30 – Ichabod by New Holland Brewing 25:30-45:54 – News and Discussion 45:54-49:37 - Conclusion

Everyday Drinkers

I was also a guest on this past week’s Oktoberfest episode of the Everyday Drinkers podcast. The cast went through quite the assortment of fall beers. Check it out at EverydayDrinkers.com.

Look out your window; summer is almost gone. Or, perhaps, I’m just really excited for the fall. With all the new seasonal beers rolling out, there is good reason to be excited for this season. Shawn and I wanted to start the season right with two of the better known American versions of the Oktoberfest/Märzen style of beer. This means that almost all of you listeners should be able to find one if not both of these examples of the beer style. We were definitely excited to jump into the reviews, and I guarantee a full exploration of the Octoberfest style throughout the coming weeks. Thanks for listening everyone, cheers!

Boston Beer Company – Samuel Adams Octoberfest Style: Märzen/Oktoberfest ABV (Alcohol by Volume): 5.7% IBU: n/a

Left Hand Brewing Company – Oktoberfest Style: Märzen/Oktoberfest ABV (Alcohol by Volume): 6.0% IBU: n/a

The Beer Genome Project #22 Show Notes

0:00-5:44 – Introduction 5:44-22:36 – Samuel Adams Octoberfest 22:36-41:33 - Left Hand Brewing Oktoberfest 41:33-48:12 – Discussion of Local Events 48:12-50:43 – Conclusion