Berkshire Oktoberfest

Brewed by Berkshire Brewing Co.
Style: Oktoberfest/Märzen
South Deerfield, Massachusetts USA

(draft, 10/9/09) Minimal head atop hazy copper body. Aroma is moderately sweet, caramel, some floral/orange, light plum. Taste is moderately sweet, orange/floral, caramel, light spice, plum/raisin. Medium body, some stickiness, low carbonation. (6/3/8/3/14)

(draft, 11/15/05) Clear amber body with white head. Aroma is moderately sweet, caramel, light raisin. Taste is moderately sweet, caramel, light earthy. Light-medium body. Too sweet. (5/3/5/3/10)

on tap @Stoudts Invitational-pours an off white head and amber color. Aroma is caramel-medium malt, earthy. Taste is caramel-medium malt, earthy/spice hops, slight alcohol.

Re-rate: I think I ended up with a bad bottle last time as this stuff is well above the grain for the style. Pours copper with a nice tan head. Smells of bananas and malty. Taste is thick with a nice malt profile and a tarte finish. Great brew!

22oz bomber. Pours dark, semi-cloudy amber, small smooth head. Nose VERY sweet, malty, butterscotch, hints of vanilla and licorice, no floral/hoppiness. Like the last rater, I didn’t find it as sweet as others, but it certainly is on the malty side, and has some unpleasant stale flavors as well. Good body; but overall a disappointment.

Sweet butterscoth diacetyl aroma. Hazy amber-brown with off-white head that diminishes to ring. Diacetyl dominates the flavour also. Oily and slick on the tongue. Altogether not very pleasant. On tap at the Vermont Brewers Festival.

Sampled from a 22-oz bomber during MN Gathering II and shared by tytoanderso. Pours a semi-hazy orange/amber brew with a thin off-white head that slowly dissipates to a fine film. Aroma of roasted caramel malt, some floral hops, a touch of vanilla and maple syrup. Taste is medium bodied, with flavors of mostly caramel malt, very light floral hops with some vanilla and toffee in the background. Finish is semi-sweet with a caramel malt and toffee aftertaste. Pretty much a solid Oktoberfest overall.

2005 bomber. Hazy, sunny-orange-copper, and some caramelly-amber hues as well. Head is moderately-sized and very slowly fades to a small film. Off-white and no lacing, but unfiltered and hazier as it gets to the bottom of the bottle. Aroma of floral hops, sour yeast, ripe apricots and overripe peaches, bit of caramel and breadiness. Flavor begins very sweet, quite fruity and yeasty. Seemingly rather warm-fermented, medium body and quite sour-yeasty on the end. Grainy and unfiltered, it’s fairly substantial. I didnt find any obnoxious carbonation. I can see why this is disliked by most, but as an oktoberfestbier, it’s got the sour yeast apparency, meaty/fruity esters and seems spot on for body, being neither too light nor too heavy. Can’t say I loved it, but I think it’s a very fair representation.

Pours a nice light amber with a fluffly lasting white head. Aroma is a touch of DMS- some corn, toasted malts, caramel and lightly herbal. Flavor is toasted and nutty mlats, some light munihc character and a light herbal bitter finish. nice and smooth overall. Needs to get rid of the DMS to really be good though.