Style Information

Märzen (or Oktoberfest) beers are made in a range of colors from gold to red-orange. The aroma should be dominated by a sweet malty smell. This should also have notes of lightly toasted grains. Also, there are usually bready yeast notes in the smell. The taste is equally dominated by the malts and malt sweetness and toasted notes. But there should also be a low but clean hop bitterness. The feel should be medium bodied. ABV ranges from 5.3% to 5.9%. IBUs should range from 18 to 25. History from Wikipedia: "Märzen has its origins in Bavaria, probably before the 16th century. A Bavarian Brauordnung (brewing ordinance) decreed in 1539 that beer only may be brewed between the days of Saint Michael (Michaelmas, 29 September) and Saint George (23 April). The reason for this requirement was the increased danger of fire during the warm and dry summer months. Over the summer months, beer had to be stored in a Lager (storage), in caves or stone cellars, sometimes built into the sides of mountains or hills. Frequently these locations were chosen because there was a pond nearby. During the winter, when the pond had frozen, blocks of ice would be cut and put into the cave or cellar. This was usually possible until the month of March, when the beer was brewed to be stored there for months to come. The entrance to the cellar or cave would also be shielded from sunlight by planting Horse-chestnut or Conker trees in front of it, which have large leaves. Some of these cellars and caves are still in use, primarily in Franconia, as part of beer gardens which are often still shaded by the traditional chestnut trees. The original Märzen was described as "dark brown, full-bodied and bitter". As intended, the beer was often kept in the cellar until late in the summer, and remaining bottles were served at the Oktoberfest. In order to last so long, either the original gravity and alcohol were increased or the hopping was strengthened."

Glassware	Description
Mug	Typically very heavy and sturdy. A mug (or stein) is most commonly made of glass or stoneware. Traditionally German, one advantage is clinking glasses together without worrying about breaking th... [more]
Pint Glass	Pint glasses are what most people recognize as a typical beer glass. There are actually three different types of pint glasses - shaker pints, nonic pints and tulip pints. The shaker ... [more]

	Beer	Consumed
1.	SurlyFest by Surly Brewing Company	177
2.	Oktoberfest Marzen by Summit Brewing Company	96
3.	Oktoberfest by Great Lakes Brewing Company	74
4.	Staghorn Octoberfest by New Glarus Brewing Company	59
5.	Octoberfest by Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams)	53
6.	Paulaner Oktoberfest-Märzen by Paulaner Salvator Thomasbraeu AG	31
7.	Spaten Oktoberfestbier Ur-Marzen by Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu	26
8.	Oktoberfest Revolution by Revolution Brewing	16
9.	Ayingerbrau Oktober Fest-Marzen by Samuel Smith Old Brewery (Tadcaster)	15
10.	Octoberfest by Real Ale Brewing Company	14

	Beer	Avg Score
1.	Fairbanks Lager by Silver Gulch Brewing and Bottling Co.	84
2.	Dank Tank Series - Danktoberfest by Sweetwater Brewing Company	82
3.	Woodcut No. 4 - Oak Aged Double Marzen by Odell Brewing Company	82
4.	Newport Storm Kim (Cyclone Series) by Coastal Extreme Brewing Co.	82
5.	Oktoberfest Revolution by Revolution Brewing	82
6.	SurlyFest by Surly Brewing Company	81
7.	Oktoberfest Lager by Carolina Brewing Company	80
8.	Oktoberfest by Left Hand Brewing Company	80
9.	Nils Oscar Kalasöl by Nils Oscar Bryggeri & Bränneri AB	80
10.	Octoberfest by Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams)	80