More October Festbiers
I've missed a few #Beersaturdays but I'm back this week to review a few more Oktober German Style festbiers. Lets jump right in and see how they were shall we? Here we go!
Festbier Oktoberfest Lager
Brewery: Sons of kent Brewing Co
Origin: Chatham ON Canada
Style: German inspired Lager
Abv: 5.5%
IBU: Unknown
SRM: Unknown
Marketing: Its a pretty simple can with a baby blue and white diamond checker pattern wrap around. There is a shield or crest style image and not a lot of information about the beer listed. I like the design and think that it has a traditional look to it and that it stands out on a shelf, but I wish there was a bit more information on it. Good marketing overall.
Color: The beer poured a coppery color with a tinted orange/rose head of foam on top.
Nose: I smelled bread and mild fruity notes, maybe apricot or pear? It had a pleasant aroma.
Taste: The beer had a nice malty taste to it without a lot of hops flavors. It was mildly sweet, quite tangy, and had a quick and mild bitter finish. It was fairly well balanced overall in my opinion. It was a very flavorful beer, especially for a lager. It drank more like a malty ale to me. I got bread and bread dough flavors and some fruity pear as well. It was very fresh tasting, which is what I want in a beer.
Texture: Nicely carbonated. Silky mouthfeel underneath the bubbles. Medium bodied.
Impression: This was a great beer overall. I enjoyed it a lot. It didn't taste German to me, but was very tasty nonetheless. I'm glad I found it and would drink it again. I wish that my photos were better to do it more justice.
Midnight in Munich
Brewery: Wellington Brewing Co
Origin: Guelph ON Canada
Style: German Inspired Marzen Amber Ale
Abv: 5.4
IBU: Unknown
SRM: Unknown
Marketing: The can has a very traditional look to it with an orange and forest green color scheme and the city of Munich imagery.
I like the can and think that it suits the style that its aiming for. Good job overall.
Color: The beer poured a nice coppery orange color with a decent head that had a slight orange tint to it. The liquid was quite clear and likely filtered.
Nose: The aroma was sweet with fruity and floral notes. I got some pear in the bouquet as well.
Taste: The beer was fairly sweet but had a nice amount of bitterness to balance it out. It was flavorful and fresh tasting. I picked up some pear flavors also. Pear was a theme for these beers it seems.
Texture: Very carbonated with a nice mouthfeel.
Impression: I don't usually like Marzen beers here in North America but this one was enjoyable. To be honest I don't know what makes a beer a Marzen. I'm not really familiar with the style. If you know much about them feel free to enlighten me in the comments. I cooked with the beer to make a stew so I only had a small glass to drink but enjoyed it overall. I usually use a stout beer when making stews but this one worked well also, and was a good accompaniement for my dinner.
Liberty's Farm to Glass Pilsner
Brewery: Something in the Water Brewing Co
Origin: Toronto ON Canada
Style: Light Pilsner
Abv: 4.5%
IBU: Unknown
SRM: Unknown
Large Can 568ml
Marketing: The can is red and white with navy blue and bronze colored accents. there is an image of a farm in the forefront of the can with a Toronto cityscape in the background. The brewery's gentleman fish logo is also displayed.
A blub on the back talks about sourcing fresh local ingredients to brew the beer, which is a positive in my opinion. I like the can a lot and think that the logo mascot is fun.
Color: The beer poured a pale yellow color with a white head of foam, what you would expect from a pilsner. The liquid was also clear and filtered, which was also to be expected.
Nose: This beer had a great aroma with notes of grass, pine, and maybe a hint of lemon in the background.
Taste: It was hop forward in the taste department with grassy flavors, pine and very mild citrus - similar to the nose. It was also super fresh tasting, which was great.
Texture: Sharp angry bubbles over a light bodied mouthfeel.
Impression: This was an excellent beer, mainly because of its fresh clean taste. It had a lot of flavor without it being overpowering. This is the type of beer that you could drink a few of in one sitting, both without getting bored by it and without it becoming too much. I would buy this again no doubt. I might have tried this one before but I'm not certain. I'll be adding it to my short list of beers to look out for. The extra tall can is a win as well.
Those are some familiar beers right there!
We were actually at Wellington Brewery yesterday while scoping out the route for our brewery tour with 25 people in 2 weeks. Come to think of it, if a spot opens up in next year’s edition,(spots are limited to 24 so there is a solid case of beer to be exchanged) it would be great to have you join!
Anyhow, Marzen is kinda like amber to me with a little more traditional German history. While I am the IPA guy in our brewing group, our head brewer is the amber guy who just loves all of the marzens, fest beers and seasonal malty beers.
Great selection of beers again!
I like the Wellington Brewery a lot. I've been to that room myself. Looks like they got rid of the pool table in there?
That's good to know about Marzen beers. I've had a few here in North America and I haven't liked any so far. This one in my post was the first I've liked. I typically like Amber beers though.
I like the idea of being a part of that brewery tour but me leaving my house after work or on a weekend is a very rare occurrence Lol. I have to mentally prepare myself for a like a week just to see a close friend or family member 😅😂
Those look quite tasty! My favorite kind of beer too! I was recently at a Beer Garden in northern Michigan and I had a nice brown and then a marzen. They were fantastic!
I generally like amber beers but haven't had a lot of marzens I've liked. This ine was good though!
Sounds like a fun time at the beer garden
We don't usually get a lot of selection when it comes to Amber beers over here. Most of the craft places have leaned heavy into the IPA scene which I don't care for.
Ya same, not a fan but every brewery does them here as well, like they've just discovered this new thing called hops or something. I do know some people who love them though so there is a market for them. Just not us lol
Yeah, it's crazy how much they have blown up. My brother in law loves them. They mostly taste like pine needles to me!
Definitely have a strong pine Taste, for sure. I often get pineapple and grapefruit flavors as well depending on what hops variety are used