Just the other day, I was opining that the Oktoberfest beers are in early this year and seem to arrive earlier and earlier every year. That's also true of fall seasonals in general, with pumpkin beers and other fall favorites also already hitting store shelves. I mentioned that Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest is one of the first I see every August. Not to be outdone, America's other craft beer powerhouse, Boston Beer, has their autumn 12-pack assortment already out as well.
This year, it's called the Fall Legends Variety Pack, and in it you will get 3 cans of the beer I am here to speak about today, Samuel Adams Apple Spice Ale, as well as 3 cans each of:
Samuel Adams Octoberfest
Samuel Adams Harvest Helles
Samuel Adams Jack-O Pumpkin Ale
Samuel Adams Apple Spice Ale is brand new and only available in the 2026 Fall Legends Sampler. I have never had the Harvest Helles before (somehow), so that one is new to me.
Ingredients from the website:
HOPS Sabro
MALTS Samuel Adams two-row pale malt blend, Flaked Oats, Caramel 60
YEAST Ale Yeast
SPECIAL INGREDIENTS Cinnamon & Marjoram
Samuel Adams Apple Spice Ale has an alcohol content of 5% by volume with 13 IBUs. My cans have a best by date of JAN 20 27 on the bottom.
About Boston Beer Company
Founded in 1984, Boston beer is a pioneer of the American Craft Beer movement, and one of the most ubiquitous and best selling carft beer brands today.
Samuel Adams Apple Spice Ale in a Boston Lager Glass
Tasting Notes
Samuel Adams Apple Spice Ale pours to a dark straw color with a thick and fluffy white head and a nose of freshly baked apples with cinnamon spice. Taking a sip the beer is medium in body with just a hint of caramel malt, then quickly yields to baked apple/apple pie notes. The malt perhaps suggests the latter more, serving as the crust, and the cinnamon spice emerges again in the dry, tart, cider-like finish. I don't get the marjoram as much as the cinnamon, in all honesty.
Value & Verdict
I paid $17.10 for the Fall Legends 12-pack at Target.
A slice of apple pie with a glass of cider, all wrapped up in one.
