Beltway Beer

Full disclosure: Weihenstephaner, which bills itself as “the world’s oldest brewery,” makes one of my very favorite hefeweisses that exist on this planet, so I’m going to try to be objective with this one. Their version of an Oktoberfest pours a light gold-straw color that produces a fair amount of bone white head, which dissipates extremely quickly. This beer looks clean and clear, but not the traditional orange-amber that you associate with Oktoberfest beers. The lacing is thin, light to medium carbonation. I immediately smell aromas typically associated with hefes — slight whiff of bananas, cloves, spice. This is an extremely drinkable beer, with a slightly toasty astringent hop aggressiveness up front that fades smoothly. This beer does not taste like a 5.8% ABV, which could spell trouble on pretty much any night for me. The malt taste here is very subdued, hops up front; almost more like a pilsner or even Helles-style beer than an Oktoberfest. Still a very good, refreshing beer, just doesn’t fall easily for me into the Oktoberfest category.

The New York Times reviews a German restaurant in Bethel, N.Y. which, incidentally, serves Schlenkerla rauchbier, mentioned in my first entry.

This seems like a decent time to run down the Oktoberfests currently crowding my refrigerator:

• Ayinger Oktober Fest-Marzen
  Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest-Marzen
  Hofbrau Munchen
  Paulaner Oktoberfest-Marzen
  Penn Oktoberfest
  Spaten Oktoberfestbier Ur-Marzen
  Weihenstephaner Festbier

I haven’t sampled all of them yet, and I’ll likely be adding more (probably at least Victory and maybe Stoudt’s and Bell’s if I can find them). But so far my unofficial (and possibly temporary) favorite is Hofbrau, which does not at all look like an Oktoberfest should; it’s almost a light straw color, rather than the traditional orange-amber color usually associated with Oktoberfests. The folks at BeerAdvocate seem to think it tastes more like a Helles lager, which I usually like a lot. That might explain my initial high grade for the beer.

For a long time, I’ve thought about starting a beer blog.  After much procrastination, it’s finally here — spurred in part by the new Oktoberfest releases, and an embarrassingly expensive trip to Chevy Chase Wine and Spirits here in Washington, D.C., which has a tremendous selection.

One of the beers I returned with was an interesting-looking bottle of “Schlenkerla Helles Lagerbier” by a brewery in Bamburg called Schlenkerla.  I knew nothing about the beer or its brewery, but was attracted by the very German-looking Gothic script on the label, and because I generally enjoy Helles-style beers.  It poured a brilliantly clear straw-amber color with lively carbonation and a soft, bone white head that quickly receded.  But I got a surprise when I took my first sip:  my tasting notes say “bacon?”  It was a subtle, back-of-the-tongue flavor, but it was there just the same.  Not at all detectable in the aroma.

I got curious and went to look up the beer and the brewery, and it turns out that Schlenkerla is a historic brewpub famous for its rauchbiers (“smoke” beers).  The Helles Lagerbier isn’t a rauchbier, but some of them have a lingering smoke profile because it’s fermented in the same kettles (and with the same yeast) as the brewery uses for its rauchbiers.

Overall a nice, crisp, drinkable Helles, although I found the slight smoke taste a little offputting.