A Microbrew Beer Review of Summit Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest Marzen
It’s only late September but Fall is officially here now. And with October’s chilly, crisp evenings only a few days away, I’m already thinking about all the great Oktoberfest beers I’ll have access to trying in the next several weeks. I snagged a mixed six pack of Oktoberfest-style beers this evening and Summit Brewing Co’s Oktoberfest Marzen was the first of the six to be poured tonight. Summit Brewing Company hails from St. Paul, Minnesota. I’m not all that familiar with the microbrews from Summit so trying this one gave me a little sense of curiosity and intrigue.
Pouring the chilled contents of the twelve ounce bottle into my glass, I immediately notice a respectable, creamy eggshell colored head which topped a nice mahogany, rust-hued liquid. Carbonation was somewhat lacking though, it was virtually non-existent. Did I get my hands on a bad beer?
Holding the glass up to my nose didn’t help. It smelled a bit like that all too familiar scent of when you’ve got yourself a skunked beer that just wasn’t handled or stored correctly somewhere along the way. I was worried I’d wasted $2.00 on this one.
However, I was somewhat pleasantly surprised once I started drinking this microbrew. There was nice comforting caramel malty sweetness. Not cloying or profound, but more common and expected. Being that I thought this one might be spoiled originally, this was a pleasant surprise already. I was a winner already just in the fact this wasn’t a drainpour beer. The mouthful was actually fairly thick and rich and only became more profound as the liquid warmed about halfway through the glass of beer. Nothing too off center here and there was a nice spiciness to this brew in the mouthful. No real hop presence at all however, not to worry though. This is an Oktoberfest. Alcohol presence did start to make itself known toward the latter part of the glass. As the beer warmed in my glass, the alcholic warming burn became more prevalent.
While Summit Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest was not the best Octoberfest beer I’ve ever tried, it was respectable. It was sweet, and very easy to drink. My bottle I’d originally thought was spoiled. So just finding out it was drinkable was a pleasant surprise that probably lent to a more favorable subconscious rating that would normally be the case. I’d felt like I got lucky I guess.
I’d recommend giving this Summit Oktoberfest beer a try if you see it in your neighborhood bottle shop or tavern, especially this time of year (just keeping in the spirit of the season). Summit Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest Marzen was very drinkable and smooth. There is nothing challenging or out of the ordinary with this beer however. It just kind of blends in with all the other Oktoberfest offerings you can find out there this time of year. Nothing too bad, but nothing all that special either. Not memorable. It is smooth though, and very easy to drink. Despite the 7.7 Alcohol by Volume rating, it’s one that doesn’t kick you too much in the butt but you’re by your second, you’re probably going to be ready to move on to something else anyway.
I’ll go ahead and give Summit Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest Marzen a 6.00 out of 10.00 possible points on my rating scale. I’ll also add, that I’d really love to try this microbrew fresh on draft sometime at a local watering hole. I’m guessing that it just might make a significant improving difference in this microbrew’s flavor and richness versus the long travelled bottled version.
Author: David James
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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