Lakefront Oktoberfest

Brewed by Lakefront Brewery
Style: Oktoberfest/Märzen
Milwaukee, Wisconsin USA

On tap at the Firkin, Libertyville, IL. Clear brown hued beer having small, off white head with good lacing. Sweet honey and malt aroma. No carbonation. Medium bodied that starts with light sweet malty favor with tiny hops and finshes with dry with miniscule hop of average duration. Tastes similar to Paulaner’s Oktoberfest. Though not my favorite Oktoberfest beer, it is a good beer nonetheless.

Aroma starts out malty and fresh but takes on an interesting unripe banana tone. Color is a deep orange-amber and there is little carbonation or head that appears (ok lacing though). Flavor is quite unique -- very fruity and acidic (in the positive sense as with coffee ratings). Some malty elements show through and more hops are present than in most other beers of this style. Body is slightly thin but quite acceptable. Lakefront differs greatly from its style but is a neat beer nonetheless.

Light Brown color with small head. This beer is a bit too sweet for me. I prefer the maltier style. COuld drink one, but not many more.

Light reddish brown with a small head. Malty, fruity aroma. Flavor is very sweet malt with an alcohol tingle. Finish is another hit of malt. Not terrible just an odd flavor for an oktoberfest. Definitely not my favorite

In the bottle. Pours a rich amber with a pale yellow head. The head does not lace and disappears rapidly. Low carbonation. Strong discernable aroma of malt and maybe wheat. Flavor is very thick and rich for a marzen. Almost like it had not reached full attenuation, it’s just that malty sweet. However, it seems to have a decent alcohol content, so I’m not sure what kind of OG it must have had.

12 oz bottle, brewed in August 2004. Translucent dark reddish gold, virtually no head...malty/sugary nose with some hints of cherry liqueur, gets more interesting as it warms...smooth, sweet lightly fruity body, not enough malt with a thin finish, odd sour winey notes amidst the overabundance of sugar. Below average.

(12 oz bottle: The Cellars in Roseville, MN) Yep, here’s another American Oktoberfest that is sugary sweet rather than malty sweet. I just don’t care for that flavor. Along with the surgary flavor, it’s also fairly caramely, but it’s not really even malty, which is just sinfully wrong when you’re making an Oktoberfest. Just sugar and caramel to me. There’s hardly any hops to break up the caramely, sugary flavor, and accordingly, it’s minimally bitter. The nose is a bit malty, certainly moreso than the flavor, so it at least smells somewhat like a German Oktoberfest. The palate seems a bit thin and watery. Dark amber color. Average size off-white head fades to a wide rim around the edge of the glass, but leaves hardly any lacing. Not a fan of this below average Oktoberfest.

Clear bronze, not much lasting head. Malty, musty, with a bit of fruity alcohol in the aroma. Moderate palante, some tingle lasting long after the head is gone. But also a bit light. Oily thin. Dry finish. Not bad, just an average Oktoberfest.