We were in Helen, Georgia for Oktoberfest, and I was ready for a beer. We had arrived right around noon, tooearly for me for drink, though not for a hearty lunch. We stopped into the Old Heidelberg restaurant and enjoyed a savory bratwurst with sharp German mustard, sauerkraut, and Kartoffelnsalat (German potato salad). I thought about having a beer but decided to wait.

We returned to Old Heidelberg a few hours later, and the first beer was worth the wait: Weltenburger Kloster Asam Bock. Beer two was to be another rare treat, different in style, but wonderful in its own right: Hofbrau Marzen from Hofbrau Munchen.  Hofbrau Munchen has an Oktoberfest beer in the Festbier-Helles style, and this is not that beer.

Hofbrau Munchen is one of the original Munich brewers, and they say this on their website:

The story of Hofbräu München began with a culinary challenge more than 400 years ago: Since he found the beer brewed in his court in Munich to be of poor taste and quality, William V, Duke of Bavaria, founded the Hofbräuhaus in 1589 – the birthplace of the brewery and gastronomy. Today, the Hofbräuhaus Bavarian State Brewery in Munich is one of two still Bavarian-run traditional Munich breweries.

Indeed, the brewery celebrated it’s 400^th anniversary in 2007. Hofbrau Marzen is not listed on their website, nor is it sold at Total Wine or anywhere else that I have seen. So, when I saw it on tap at Old Heidelberg, I was all over it. $6.60 for a pint did not seem too much.

My cup of Hofbrau Marzen arrived a deep amber color with a medium sized cap of white foam and a distinctly nutty and bready aroma in the nose. Taking a sip, the beer is full with the nutty, toasty bready melanoidin notes in the smooth malty palate. Just what I want in the style. The finish is balanced with a subtle bitterness.

I prefer Marzen to the modern Helles festbier (Marzen is the original Oktoberfestbier), and this is one example that reminds me why.

Update 10/22/2019: I'm back at Helen for Oktoberfest 2019, and boy do I have a story to tell. I was at the Festhalle with my sons, and got in line to get a beer (of course). Reviewing the draft list, I spied Hofbrau Delicator Doppelbock. Hofbrau Delicator??I had never tried this beer, but had always wanted to! I ordered one up, of course, only to watch in sheer horror as the keg kicked while the poured my beer. Not to worry, advised the barkeep, we are swapping out the keg. Moments when by, and he came back to tell me that, sadly, that was the last keg. What a world, what a world! All was not lost, however; I consoled myself with a 24-ounce mug of Hofbrau Marzen. It was as delcious as I had remebered from the year before, and a mere $7 for the mug fill. My son had one too, and it served well to wash down a giant pretzel.

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