Yes yes yes, we know. It feels like it’s too early to talk about pumpkin ales, fall seasonals, and Oktoberfest beers. But here’s a sobering reminder: Seasons change. So deal with it. And as it pertains to your drinking life in town in the very near future, here’s a way to do just that.
Cast aside whatever fear and loathing you have for a repeat of last year’s cold season, which tends to intensify at the end of summer, and get ahead of it all by hitting up Oktoberfest Boston. Since we’re putting out the event, we figured now would be a good time to highlight a handful of the authentic Oktoberfest beers swooping in Sept 18 and 19 at the Park Plaza Castle for two days of beer-garden sudsy madness.
There will be unlimited sampling of over 40 different traditional German and American Oktoberfest beers (as well as half- and full-pint pours), the Boston Oktoberfest Girls adorned in traditional Bavarian dirndls, authentic Oompah music, a stein-holding contest held by Sam Adams, and, naturally, bratwurst. Ah, the bratwurst. So get in the Munich-y mood with this snapshot of a couple Oktoberfests from the motherland as well as the US. It’s either that or download a lot of polka music.
Hacker-Pschorr
Birthplace: Munich, Germany
Bringing: Oktoberfest
Taste snapshot: Clean, toasty, touch of malt with a slight hop bite on the finish.
Fun fact: They are one of the few breweries on tap at the actual Munich Oktoberfest.
Hofbrau
Birthplace: Bavaria
Bringing: Oktoberfest
Taste snapshot: Bottom fermented, dry finish, floral hop notes.
Fun fact: There’s a famous song penned in 1935 celebrating them that translates to “In Munich there’s a Hofbrauhaus—one, two, and down the hatch!” that you should learn in German and sing at the event.
Peak Organic
Birthplace: Portland, Maine
Bringing: Hop Harvest Oktoberfest
Taste snapshot: Somewhere between a German Oktoberfest and an IPA.
Fun fact: They use a Maine farm to procure locally grown hops for their brews.
Spoetzl Brewery/Shiner
Birthplace: Shiner, Texas
Bringing: Shiner Oktoberfest
Taste snapshot: Dry, moderate hops, almost a biscuit-y breadiness to it.
Fun fact: Shiner has only been available in the Hub for about a year.
Dig Staff means this article was a collaborative effort. Teamwork, as we like to call it.
