Firstly I want to herald the arrival last month of Madison Beer Review. It appears to be a group effort and the folks are doing a great job with reviews, commentary, and news. In fact, they are much better than I could ever hope to be so I highly recommend heading over there with some frequency. In addition, Robin Shepherd over at Isthmus has begun writing with some frequency about beer. It began as a look at The Great Taste of the Midwest and has developed into a weekly beer review. The Daily Page is now a must-stop for beer aficionados.
As both Shepherd and the crew at MBR have noted, autumn nears and that means Oktoberfests!
I love autumn. I love the changing colors, the harvest bounty, and I love Capital's line-up. Beginning in September, I eagerly await each of their seasonals and limited editions through the spring. As I lamented last weekend, I was unable to attend Firefest at the Capital Brewery or, rather, I opted not to since I was on-call and couldn't drink. Had I been there, I would have witnessed the tapping of the season's inaugural keg of Autumnal Fire, brewmaster Kirby Nelson's fall limited release. It's a doppelbock that warms the palate and is the perfect beer to chase autumn's chill away. I look forward to this stuff just as I do to the leaves changing color. Capital's Oktoberfest is also available. This is another great beer and the pair yet again inspire me to thank Nelson for keeping lagers at the center of his brewery. There's no IPAs or race to the top of the IBU scale. I realize that Island Wheat is an ale and their most popular beer but, while refreshing on a hot day, I find it dull and uninspiring. It's more of a beer for hipsters to be seen drinking than anything else.
Over at my neighborhood brewery, the Ale Asylum, there's Diablo, a Beligan Dubbel as the fall seasonal. I turn from praising Capital for its lagers and praise AA for its line-up of Belgian style brews. Being able to head over there and grab a snifter of one of them is a real treat because they are tasty.
Over at J.T. Whitney's, look for their Marzen (i.e – Oktoberfest) soon. Their webpage doesn't list it as being on-tap yet. Yet. Also, kudos to them for having three different sodas on tap: Root Beer, Cream Soda, and Orange Cream. If you're the designated driver, you can still drink something that's made on premises. And, it's never too early to get kids to appreciate hand crafted foods, even if it's just soda.
I am going to go out on a limb here and say that we can expect Fallen Apple once again from Furthermore. However, I have heard a rumor that a different beer will be introduced this fall. Let's hope we get both.
Ever since changing ownership, the Huber website has been under construction. Still, look for Berghoff Oktoberfest.
I am eagerly awaiting the opening of New Glarus' expansion where I can guzzle top notch brews in an Old World setting just like some of my ancestors did. Until then, we can take comfort in Staghorn Octoberfest. I was just over the age requirement when New Glarus opened and I took to their brews like a junkie to the needle. Staghorn quickly became one of my favorites, not only of the NG arsenal, but of any beer. It was the first fall seasonal that made me look forward to the season. Also note that this month is the last for availability of their Totally Naked.
I've waxed poetically over Tyranena and its beers several times here. Robin Shepherd reviewed it at The Daily Page a couple days ago.
Also available on a return visit is Hop Whore, an Imperial IPA. It's part of brewmaster Rob Larson's Brewers Gone Wild! series.
Moving up north to Chippewa Falls, the venerable Leinenkugel's weighs in with their Oktoberfest. Also noteworthy is this:
A Russian Imperial Stout is the latest in their Big Eddy series of true craft beers. I thought that the first in the series, an IPA, was magnificent and will definitely be keeping my eyes peeled for this.
The Viking Brewing Company is quickly becoming a favorite of mine for many reasons. Their year-round brews are mostly lagers and they tend to eschew the hops arms race with their rotating brews which change every month. And they even make bracket, although I am still searching for it here in Madison. To top things off, their 4-packs are ultra-portable. As you can see, this month brings a ruach bier und a Swedish-style Imperial stout. Living as I do on the east side, I can say that the Jenifer Street Market carries a goodly selection of Viking's products.
Let's start our look at Brew City brews with Sprecher who has a wonderful Oktoberfest.
Lakefront has two seasonal brews – an Oktoberfest and a pumpkin lager. I'm not a big fan of pumpkin-spice beers and can handle only one per session. Unfortunately, I can't say that I've had Lakefront's Oktoberfest but I now dedicate myself to changing this sorry state of affairs.
Up in La Crosse, the City Brewery has their Festbier, a Marzen style brew. And they also appear to have a new variety:
At the moment, it appears to be available only on tap at locations in the west central part of the state and neighboring areas in Minnesota.
Moving over to Black River Falls and Sand Creek Brewing Company, we find Black River Red which is their Oktoberfest brew. Their other fall seasonal is the Cranberry Special Ale made with cranberries grown here in Wisconsin.
Something that the brewery introduced this summer was a hard lemonade. I have had it and I like it quite a bit, though it can get too sweet. I'll say more about it in a separate entry.
The MBR crew listed a number of Oktoberfest events at their "Oktoberfest" entry. I would add that the Essen Haus here in Madison will be having its festivities on the 29th of this month. Also on that day will be the 4th Annual Bay View Pub Crawl in Milwaukee.
The following weekend on 6 October will be Quivey's Grove's 14th Annual Beer Fest.
On 22 September in Mount Horeb will be The Thirsty Troll Brew Fest. Mt. Horeb is, of course, home to the Grumpy Troll Brew Pub.
More events around the state from Suds, Wine and Spirits:
September 7 – 9
29th Annual MainStrasse Village Oktoberfest
Old Heidelberg Park, Glendale, WI
September 7 - 9, 14 - 16 & 21 – 23
United German Societies Oktoberfest
The Bavarian Inn, 700 Lexington, Glendale, WI
September 8
Brown Ales & Merlot Wine Tasting - 1-6 PM – Free
Three Cellars, 6955 S. 27th St., Franklin, WI
September 8
Wisconsin Rapids Lions 5th Annual Fall Brew Review - 1-6 PM
Robinson Park, Wisconsin Rapids, WI
(715) 423-0669 - ottlarry17@yahoo.com
September 8
7th Annual Clearwater Beer Fest - $25 ($22.50 Advance)
Eau Claire County Expo Park, Eau Claire, WI
September 13
Delafield Brewhaus Oktoberfest - Keg Tapping @ 5 PM
Delafield Brewhaus, Delafield, WI
September 15
4th Annual Great Lakes Brewfest - 4-8 PM
Racine on the Lake Festival Park, 5 Fifth St., Racine, WI
September 22
5th Annual Big Lake Brew Fest
Wessman Arena, UW Superior, Big Lake, WI
September 28
12th Annual Septembeerfest - 8-11 PM - $30
Oak Creek Community Center, 8580 South Howell Ave., Oak Creek, WI - (414) 768-5840
September 28 – 29
Old World 3rd Street Oktoberfest
Milwaukee, WI
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