Surly SurlyFest

Brewed by Surly Brewing Company
Style: Oktoberfest/Märzen
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota USA

Golden color, aroma is slightly earthy with a bit of rye coming through. Flavor is primarily hoppy but not in an overpowering way.

Bottle… Clear amber/orange lager with a small, creamy, white head. Great retention. The aroma is a bit hop heavy for a Märzen, but it’s still pretty nice. Sure, there’s a bundle of caramel, toffee and toasty notes, but also a decent bit of lactic acidity and a heaping helping of piney, grapefruity hops. Full-bodied with a lightly creamy mouthfeel and mild carbonation. Flavor-wise, this is much more an American pale ale than a Märzen. I don’t rate to style, but I do tend to like my malts much more than my hops and this beer is lacking the moderately sweet, caramely roastiness that I love so much in traditional Octoberfests. Crisp, moderately bitter finish. This would taste good straight outa “Das Boot!” Thanks go out to Skyview for sending this interesting brew my way!

A lovely needed lager, with a rye edge. Pours yellow body with white bubbly head, and leaving a lace trail down the glass. Neutral to pleasant aroma with some graininess. Easy drinking, easy above average mouthfeel. Not complex, just good here on another hot day.

Tried a can of this recently. Colour... golden straw. Nose... faint malt and hops. Palate... again, faint malt and hops, some bready characteristics and a wisp of caramel and a clean finish, but not much there.

I received this one from Scott in the 666 BIF Can pour into my Sam Adams glass produced a finger worth of white head that turned to a wisp of lace. The body of the brew was a clear apricot orange in color. The aroma was a spicy sweetness with some bready qualities coming out as it warms. The flavor is a combination of a sweet and bready with a light bitterness. Good light mouthfeel with ample carbonation for the tongue. The rye flavor defiantly comes out in the finish A good lager easy to drink and I could easily put away a few of these in a sitting. I drink it again, if it was available local.

Can sampled on 12/27/07: Pours a transparent copper orange with a nicely-lacing spotty white head. Aroma of fresh resiny piny hops with a touch of caramely German malts. Body starts fairly full with a nice earthy caramely sweetness and good fresh hop balance. Very enjoyable and drinkable even if its a little hoppier for the style.

A hazed dark amber lager with a thick off white head. In aroma, loads of malt with good fresh hops, and light sulfur notes, even a bit of cheese. In mouth, a good malt base with Saaz hops, herbaceous. Rich and smooth. Shared with Probstk, April 2 2009. Thanks to Piscator for this one.

16oz can from adamB84. Pours a cloudy deep amber tinted golden color with a nice thick white head. Color seems a little on the lighter side for the style. Nose is bready wheatness with some hops and some faint spice notes. I bit heavier on the hops and a little light on the maltiness in comparison to other Octoberfests I have had, but much to my liking. Another quality and very drinkable beer from Surly.