Beer: Shiner Oktoberfest

Brewery: Spoetzl Brewery Shiner, Texas

Overview: Shiner's Texan offering to the Oktoberfest bier selection (yes, I spelled it bier), this beer is a relatively new one for me to find in the lineup from Spoetzl. 

Aroma: Crisp hops, a little light on the malt aroma, but very clean.

Appearance: Pours a light coppery gold with a giant frothy white head that dissipates, condensing and leaving behind lace on the top of the glass.

Flavor: There's a roasted quality in there from some caramel malt, but it does have some bready notes.  A little hop bitterness in the finish and aftertaste.  Some astringency.

Overall Impression: I have to say, I love the folks down at Shiner for creating good, drinkable, and even mass-marketable beers.  However, very few of their delicious beers really hit the mark of a given style.  This beer is good, hits appropriate alcohol numbers, and has some of the maltiness I would expect from an Oktoberfest.  However, I'd still say stick to the German beers if you are looking for authenticity.  The Shiner offering is a good bit lower on the malt profile and higher on the bittering hops than I was really looking for.  Still it is a very good, very approachable Oktoberfest beer for your friends, and it's a good session beer for you.

Vitals:
Style Oktoberfest
Price $7.99/six-pack
Found In Chain Import Store
Alcohol Content 5.7% by volume
Availability Fall Seasonal


Rating: 88