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If there's one
thing that you should know about Paulaner, it's the fact they brew one of
the world's very finest Oktoberfest beers. Paulaner Oktoberfest is a rich
and malty brew perfect for cool fall weather. This is how Paulaner describes
their Oktoberfest Bier:
This seasonal specialty lets you take the beer-tent atmosphere back home
with you. It's difficult to resist its golden yellow color and light, hoppy
malt flavor. The original Oktoberfest beer comes from Munich. And only from
Munich.
Hey, wait a minute. Golden yellow color? Light, hoppy malt flavor? That's
certainly not the beer I'm drinking. What happened here? Actually,
Oktoberfest beer has undergone a drastic change in Germany. Oktoberfest
dates back to 1810 when the Crown prince of Bavaria decided to tie the knot,
an event that coincided with the annual rolling out of the last kegs of Maerzen Bier.
The rich, malty Maerzen became the style of beer associated with the event
until recently, when the six official Munich brewers of Oktoberfest Bier
switched to a lighter brew similar to a Munich Helles. Paulaner is one of
those six, actually two of them since it bought out Hacker-Pschorr. The
others are Augustiner, Spaten, Lowenbrau, and Hofbrau.
A few years ago, as I was writing about Paulaner Oktoberfest beer I was also
deeply engrossed in a feature piece for New England's beer periodical (or beeriodical as we like to call it), the Yankee Brew News. As I was chatting
on the phone with brewers across New England about the wonderful fall
seasonal beers they had to offer, I was inevitably drawn to reflect upon the
classic German examples of Oktoberfest beer, most notably Paulaner's
version.
Some people claim that as time goes by many things they hold near and dear
just aren't as good as they used to be. That's as true of beer as it is of
anything else. Perhaps part of that has to do with changes in the way our
senses perceive things over time and does not necessarily indicate a change
in the things themselves. Of one thing we can be sure, and that is that Paulaner Oktoberfest has not suffered at all over the years, and if anything
seems to be even better than I can recall. I'm glad they're still shipping
us the classic Oktoberfest beer.
A few years ago, I wrote this about Paulaner Oktoberfest:
Paulaner Oktoberfest Maerzen pours to a deep mahogany color with a
thick, creamy head formation and an intensely nutty malt nose. The palate is
rich with a thick and full mouth feel, lightly toasty and very nutty,
slightly sweet and hinting at molasses. The finish leans to the sweet side
in this remarkable classic brew. This year's brew is a bigger, maltier
concoction than several of the other German Oktoberfests I've been drinking
this year, most notably Spaten and Ayinger.
And I'm happy to say that this is still my favorite Oktoberfest going. Sure,
I enjoy the others, but Paulaner seems to be the act to follow. That was
again the case this year as I drank a wonderfully fresh one-liter Maas
of Paulaner Oktoberfest at Helen, Georgia's annual Oktoberfest celebration.
The beer was simply delightful, rich and chewy, nutty-malty, toasty, with
just enough hops to balance and just the thing for a cool fall day.
Delicious with bratwurst and knockwurst, sauerkraut and red cabbage,
spaetzels and schnitzels, or homemade sauerbraten and potato dumplings with
a garden salad. This is a classic beer you're sure to enjoy. It's a shame
they're drinking lighter beers in Munich these days, but as for me,
I'll
stick with the original Maerzen style. Just like Paulaner Oktoberfest.
Update 10/3/2014:
Autumn. The time of harvest. And perhaps the last bastion of
malty beers in America. As more and more American beers continue to tip the
scales in favor of hops over malt, it's good to know the Germans still
appreciate that malt is the soul of beer.
Just the other night, I enjoyed a full one-liter mass of Paulaner
Oktoberfest. It was so packed with nutty malty goodness I wanted to
shout it from the rooftops. THAT is what fall means to me, and it would not
be fall or Oktoberfest season without this treat. It is, in my opinion, the
best Oktoberfest-Maerzen in the world.
Still reasonably priced at $8.99 a six-pack.
Update
10/16/2018: Back at Helen Oktoberfest this year, and the first beer
in the Festhalle is a draft Paulaner Oktoberfest. One sip of this
masterpiece of toasty nutty malty melanoidin goodness shows me that is
always the right choice.
From the 6-pack carrier:
An amber beer style
that was developed to celebrate the original Oktoberfest over 200 years
ago. This full bodied beer with its rich malt flavor, dark toffee note and
underlying fruitiness, has a masterful hop balance.
It will instantly
turn your own four walls into an Oktoberfest tent! Prost!
  
    
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For
reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled (D)=Draft
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