Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest

Brewed by Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Style: Oktoberfest/Märzen
Chico, California USA

Tap @ Sorbon. One of my favorite oktoberfest beer. A bit more hoppy compared to the german ones. Nice chocolate.

Draft @ Sierra Tap House. Pours a dark, copper-brown color; off-white head with fine-bubbled lacing. Basic aroma of earthy bitterness and a touch of light fruitiness underneath; dry. Medium-to-full mouthfeel: remarkably hoppy and resiny for an Oktoberfest; lots of earthy and citrus bitterness, nicely hoppy; more like a generous pale ale than anything resembling an Oktoberfest; traditions shmaditions, this is good. Lengthy finish: citrus hop bitterness; nicely resiny and dry throughout.

Draught sample. Pours copper with a nice white head. Smells of sweet malt, spice, pepper, some citrus. Tastes metallic and citrussy with some spicy elements on the finish. More of an ESB than an Oktoberfest.

Tap at Blind Tiger Alehouse. Deep amber pour with a thin tan head. The nose is fairly herbal with a sweet maltiness and a touch of hoppiness as well. This lends it a fairly odd impression, with an odd roasty/charry component that I’m not sure I care for. Fairly hoppy with a bit of toastiness toward the back. More bitter than malty. Strange brew, really.

This draft brew from a beer bar poured a very small sized head of foamy finely sized white colored bubbles that were mostly diminishing and left behind a transparent uncarbonated brown colored body. The aroma was mild vienna. The crisp mouth feel was tingly at the start and at the finish. The flavor contained notes of hops caramel and mild vienna. A decent one that I would consider buying again.

Tap at Blind Tiger: This was probably mixed up with the brown ale line. There’s no way this was a lager. Pours a deep crimson brown with a tan film of head. Toasted aroma with a nutty crystal malt character and fruity esters- some toasted coconut sweetness. Rounded carbonation. The flavor is very nutty and toasted. There’s a light plummy sweetness. Evident crystal malt character and a toasted lingering back. Lots of fruity yeast character- this is a decent brown ale, and far from a German style lager.

Tap at the Blind Tiger. I couldn’t even believe this was supposed to be their oktoberfest, but it was confirmed to be such. Darkish, sightly murky brown pour, decent head. Very nutty aroma, lightly lagered, kilned malts, husky grain. Full-bodied, sweetish with a nutty kick. Mostly tastes like a nut brown to me, with little German or lager character at all. Not bad but far from the Oktoberfest I’m used to.

Bottle 355ml.
Clear medium to dark amber color with a average, frothy, good lacing, mostly diminishing, off-white head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, bread, roasted, caramel, dusty, prune notes. Flavor is moderate sweet and bitter with a average to long duration. Body is medium, texture is watery to oily, carbonation is soft. [270908]