Heaving beer halls, steins of fresh lager with magnificent heads, and the steady beat of the oompah band — it all signals the coming of Oktoberfest season.
The full line-up of Neptune Brewery Oktoberfest cans
Stage originally in Munich in 1810, to celebrate the marriage of the future King Ludwig, Oktoberfest has gradually been exported around the world.
Ironically, Ludwig would later be known for sparking beer riots when protesters fumed against his introduction of beer tax. He was eventually forced to drop the rate of the tax. To this day Germany has a low duty of €0.03 per 330ml bottle of beer. In the UK that rate is €0.37. I’m saying nothing. Well, not in this post, anyway. Hmm.
On a more cheerful Oktoberfest note, I have been sent four lovely examples of festival-style beers from the chaps at Neptune Brewery, in Liverpool. They may be a decent distance from Munich (and my home in Cornwall’s not much closer), but the quartet — Märzen, Bock, Hefeweizen, and Schwarzbier — have all been done well and to style and can be heartily recommended if you can’t make it onto the European mainland this autumn.
I enjoyed them all, but edge the Märzen and Bock ahead of the other two. Purely personal taste. The Märzen has a roasty, inviting aroma, with a hint of plummy fruit, and on the palate it’s right up my straße. Rich, robust, bready — verging on toasty — malt, nutty, with smooth caramel notes and just a hint of fruit from light hopping.
The Bock is rich amber with bready malt and toffee on the nose. The palate is more hoppy than the Märzen, but the beer’s still malt led. Bready malt, caramel, gentle hopping, and some notes of red apple skin. And much too drinkable for its 6.5% ABV!
The Hefeweizen (5.5% ABV) offers that classic aroma of banana and cloves, and the style is nailed on the palate. It’s beautifully clean and slightly sweet, with a spicy edge and a hint of bubblegum, and very refreshing.
The Schwarzbier (5% ABV) pours black with a foaming head and offers a hint of cacao on its aroma. On the palate, chocolate and coffee with some slightly smokey notes, leading to a decent bitter bite.
The beers are in the Neptune Brewery webshop. Prost!
