3 Oktoberfest to discuss

I made an error in judgment yesterday. I went in blind to a bar instead of drinking at one where I knew the menu. On a whim I went with the wild card instead of the tavern I had scouted. It totally derailed my Marzen Mission.

What are the odds of going into 3 separate bars and finding the only Oktoberfest beer they would have either on tap or bottle would be the same beer from Ohio? 3 bars that have at least 30 different beers to serve and each one would have Great Lakes Oktoberfest on tap? That just blew.

Great Lakes Oktoberfest is a good beer. I am not knocking the brew but the surprising lack of choice I had encountered. The Great Lakes was smooth, not sweet, and the right kind of maltiness. One that I would recommend you try if you come across it.

The other beer I had was the Hinterland Oktoberfest. I found this one to be a little disappointing. It seemed thin. Not really malty, a bit sweet but lacking in body. It smelled good but the head dissipated quickly. I had hoped for a bit more from them.

Let me toss in some comments on another Marzen I had last week, Flying Dog's Dogtoberfest. Very good. It has everything you want in your Oktoberfest. Very refreshing and a solid brew from one of my favorite breweries.

So here is a rough scorecard of how the beers rank so far.

1. New Glarus Staghorn
2. Flying Dog Dogtoberfest
3. Tyranena Gemutlichkeit
4. Great Lakes Oktoberfest
5. Hinterland Oktoberfest
6. Central Waters Octoberfest

Other beers I look forward to drinking in the near future are from Lakefront, Summit, Ayinger, Spaten, Capitol, and Bells.