Harpoon Octoberfest

Brewery Website: http://www.harpoonbrewery.com/

Type of Beer: Märzen / Oktoberfest

Alcohol Content: 5.5%

Beer Review –

Appearance: Pours a copper-red with a two-finger, off-white head. Head recedes slowly leaving behind incredible lacing that looks like it’s been painted on. Very attractive looking beer.

Smell: The first thing I noticed was the hops, they are quite fragrant but in no way do they seem overwhelming. The sweetness from the 3 different styles of malt helps to add some balance to the nose. There is a subtle fruitiness in the finish.

Initial Taste: The malt sweetness comes through first creating a very smooth and creamy mouth-feel. Much like what you would expect from a Marzan. The malt gives way to the hops that give a welcome but gentle bitterness that gains a little momentum towards the finish. The flavorful mixture of bready malts, bittersweet chocolate and citrus hops create a balanced and very tasty Oktoberfest beer.  Finish is dry and clean making this high in drinkability.

Thoughts: Like many of the other American craft Oktoberfest beers this is an American style Oktoberfest. Which really isn’t a true German Oktoberfest beer but rather a Marzan boosted with hops (us Americans love our hops!).  That being said, this beer is one of the best available for the style. Harpoon has created a perfect balance with what is traditionally a malty beer. They have mixed three different kinds of malt (chocolate, Munich and pale) with tettnang hops that give a spicy flavor that balances out the sweetness. The end result is a beautifully smooth beer that delivers on both the sweet and hop front making this a great session brew. This easily has become my go-to beer for American Oktoberfests. I highly recommend to Oktoberfest and craft beer lovers alike.