GENERATOR

Our next subject was #1, Paulaner
Oktoberfest Marzen. This beer was highly
recommended by my abroad studying
housemate, Andy Campion. I was forced
to agree with Mr. Campion, as my taste
buds were in for a treat with this baby.
Everything from the bronze color to the
sweet smell and slight root beer taste had my
head spinning.
O v e r a l l
Paulaner was
very easy to
drink and had
that telling great
German taste.
Moving on,
I next tasted a
familiar friend
of mine. With
#3 I knew right
away I had a
Sam Adams in
my hand, the
tell-tale dark
brown color and
untouchably smooth finish gave away this
incognito beverage. Sam’s Octoberfest,
note the spelling, is one of the only
American beers that strictly follows the
German rules of brewing. That may be why
Octoberfest is so popular,
especially in the northeast.
Its beautiful clear orangey
color is rivaled only by its
smooth taste and exciting
finish.
Helping me cross the
halfway point of my
testing and beginning of
my slurred speech and
messy handwriting was
#8, which turned out to be
Blue Point’s Oktoberfest.
This local boy is brewed
fresh on Long Island and
boasts a fancy label with
neat designs of L.I. houses.
It poured to a thick head
and a bright color, brighter
than you’d expect from
an Oktoberfest brew. However the beer
was just heavy enough to fill you up while
remaining light enough that I could have
handled more than a few more. I’d place
this beer up there with the Sam Adams
version as the best Oktoberfest this side of
the Atlantic.
Next stop on the train to an American
Oktoberfest belonged to #4, Spaten Munich
Oktoberfest. Spaten is a German staple and
Walsh’s Final
Rankings
1.Paulaner
2.Blue Point
3.Magic Hat Hex
4.Sam Adams
5.Spaten
6.Hacker-Pschorr
7.Brooklyn
8.Left Hand
9.Beck’s
they actually claim to have invented the
Oktoberfest recipe in 1872. German beer
buffs love the flavor of Spaten. I could tell
immediately it was part of my four German
bottles due to the crisp taste and slight mint
flavor. If you’re a stickler for tradition, this
is the beer for you.
The Spaten boasted a 5.9% alcohol
content which
needless to
say did not
help with my
increasing
BAC and thus
ADD towards
this research
project. But
nevertheless,
I trekked on
with my trusty
bag of pretzels.
#7 was Left
H a n d ’ s
Oktoberfest.
Left Hand is a
small brewery out of Longmont, Colorado.
They’ve been in the craft beer game since
1990 and brew a variety of award winning
beers. Their Oktoberfest from what I
remember was very dark and had a severe
malty taste. Its dark color
was the result of a sort of
syrupy feel that wasn’t all
that pleasing for me, but
it did one up the Spaten
by checking in at an
impressive 6.0% A/V.
Finally I took on #7
which was later found out
to be Hacker-Pschorr’s
Original Oktoberfest.
This beer caught my eye at
Halftime solely because of
its label: a chesty woman
riding a wild horse, beer
mug in hand, a true dream
girl. Hacker poured with
a large head and was
very dark much like the
German’s like it. I picked
up on the taste of a sweet caramel during
my test.
In my fully inebriated state, I made
various loud exclamations and claims;
however, the only one that can be repeated
in print is that of my results. In the study
of American Oktoberfests and their
German counterparts, I awarded my first
prize to that of Paulaner’s Oktoberfest
Marzen. Its sweet smell and smooth taste
was unmatched in my tests. However,
America should not consider this a failure,
the hometown boys snatched up the rest
of the top spots with the small time Blue
Point Brewery from Long Island grabbing
the silver medal. Magic Hat’s creative take
on the German tradition claimed the third
spot narrowly edging out my hometown’s
Sam Adams.
October is sputtering to a close soon, so
the chance to drink some good Oktoberfest
brews is narrowing by the minute. Paulaner
took our first prize so I’d recommend them
as your first foray into the world of German
beers here or abroad. As a senior I’ve come
to know what the German brewers have
known for decades; there is no substitute
for experience!
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