Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest Märzen

Brewed by Paulaner Brauerei (Schörghuber)
Style: Oktoberfest/Märzen
Munich, Germany

On tap: A rich deep amber-orange with a large puffy off white cap. Aromas are on the mark: Rich toasty breadiness wet hay and some sweet mustiness. Medium bodied, rich whack of toasty-sweet malts in the front ( decoction mashed?), nice herbal hop balance sits back a bit profiling the malts. The highlight of the drink is the middle which features a grat malt complexity...then it goes lightly dry and slightly herbal-bitter in the finish. Great stuff. If you’re a lager drinker this is pretty much bottled sex.

500ml bottle (BeerAngel) - stolen off Jarkko at work - thanks!
Rich reddy brown, healthy head. At first a slightly plasticky aroma, but as it warms the malts fill out, and it becomes quite grainy eventually. Pleasant carbonation, refreshing palate. Taste initially a bit metallic. As it warms, again, the softer malts come through and it’s a pleasantly husky graininess that you’re left with. Half a litre disappeared very quickly.

12 oz. bottle. Pours a beautiful amber / mahogany with off white head. Smells of caramel malts, sweet yeast. Tastes of roasty caramel, clean finish. Great Marzen.

On tap. Pours a medium clear golden brown with a small off white head. Aroma is malty, toasty, nutty and pretty sweet caramel sugary. Flavor is much of the same, very sweet and caramel, toasty. Nice flavorful and refreshing roundness to the mouth feel, but refreshing as an oktoberfest marzen should be. Nice spicy hop character in the finish that gives a good balance. Nice creamy body and a soft carbonation makes for a mellow and refreshing beer.

12oz bottle drank 5 months after the born-on date, so the freshness is a tad suspect. Orange-brown color with a respectable head. CO2 bubbles solidly flowing inside. Sweet mellow malt aroma. Soft and creamy and displaying a lot of lager yeast notes, this is certainly on the mellow, maltier side of Oktoberfests. Very subdued hops, adding an initial crispness and mild spicy characteristic to the caramel sweet golden malt. A pretty aweome session beer, though not quite as complex as most Stateside microbrewery versions.

Dated 03/09: Weak malt aroma with some cherries. Clear amber, medium vanishing head. Tastes cheap and stale. Malt, then cherries. It improves with warming, but remains drab. Decently refreshing.

On tap at Ginger Man. Pours a dark, reddish amber with a thin, off-white head. Nose is weak and bread was about all that was noticeable. Taste was of yeast, nut, bread and spice. Mouthfeel was watery with a slight bitterness.

Bottle. Lovely light amber color, with a good, thick slightly amber-tinted head. Fabulous nose: very malty, slightly sweet, slightly strong and fruity aroma. Decent malt flavor, slightly strong, a touch of sweetness reminiscent of a pale bock, but much less sweet, much dryer. A bit nutty. Pretty good hops, well balanced. Medium carbonation and body. Slightly dry, hoppy finish that does not quite pack enough punch. A very good beer, the best of the Oktoberfests in Munich, I think.