From early fall to mid January my beer refrigerator is usually a pretty crowded place. That’s because during this season there are just so many wonderful beers being released, more in fact than I can drink in the short time before the next wave is released. Then too, many brewers release holiday twelve packs of assorted brews, meaning even more beers accumulating.

This is, of course, a happy dilemma, and by no means am I complaining. Just the other day, in fact, I added to my beer surplus with 12 beers from the Abita Variety Pack. This was the first time I had seen such an assortment from Abita, so I decided to pick one up. The package features:

2 Abita Amber
2 Abita Purple Haze
2 Abita Turbodogs
2 Abita Golden
4 Seasonal Brews

That’s what it said on the box, and since the seasonal pictured was Abita Christmas Ale I thought I was getting four of those bad boys to enjoy. Much to my surprise, when I got home and opened the box it contained as the seasonal contingent two bottles of Abita Wheat and two bottles of Abita Fall Fest in lieu of the hoped for Christmas brew.

Not to worry, though, because I had never tried either of these. Now, I must admit that I don’t place Abita among my very favorite breweries. To be sure, they brew decent enough beer and I am rather partial to the Turbodog, but overall I find their beers to be on the average side.

Abita Fall Fest is a notable exception to the rule. This is a wonderful brew and an excellent example of Marzen beer. As I sipped I got the wonderfully toasty nutty notes that usually denote Munich malt, although Abita lists only Crystal, pale and chocolate malts in their grain bill. Fall Fest is hopped with German Hersbruckers and is available beginning in September until it runs out.

Abita Fall Fest pours to a deep reddish color with a light fizzy head and a nutty malt nose. The palate is rich with toasted malt, nutty notes, light chocolate, and finishes dry with a balanced to slightly bitter finish. This is a very impressive beer that I would certainly purchase by the six-pack. Try it with roasted chicken or pork.



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