Beer of the Month: Bell’s Octoberfest

Feature photo by anotherprintplease

Welcome to the first Gozamos Beer of the Month article. I’m a beer lover and award-winning homebrewer. I have teamed up with Gozamos to bring you a new article every month about what I like to drink and what I think you should try. I hope you’ll count on my recommendations each month.

September is a great month. Kids are back in school (and off my front yard), the 90 degree days are breaking to be much more tolerable, and one of my favorite beers is about to hit store shelves. For anyone who keeps up with beer trends, they will know I mean Oktoberfest beers! More specifically, I mean Bell’s Octoberfest.

Bell’s produced the most tantalizing Oktoberfest style beer last year and I’m really looking forward to drinking copious amounts of it this year. It pours a delectable amber color and hits the nose with rich malty and nutty aromas; it even has a bit of spicy, noble hop character which persists through the flavor. The bitterness of this O-fest is very firm which I find produces a crisp lager and readies my mouth for the next sip.

Which is exactly what it’s meant to do. This is a fest beer; it is best drank under a tent and in good company-which also means large quantities. Unfortunately, most authentic German fests will only serve true German beers such as Ayinger, Hofbräu, or Spaten (which are also great); I encourage everyone reading to go to your local good beer store and pick up a case of Bell’s! Not only has it been shipped to you from Kalamazoo, Michigan (so it’s somewhat local) but it hasn’t taken an international trip under unknown conditions. After all, the bane of good beer is poor storage.

As if this beer wasn’t good enough to drink by itself, pair it with some German delicacies such as bratwurst, knackwurst, or thüringer and soon you’ll be ready to put on some lederhosen and hit the town.

Look for Bell’s Octoberfest to hit store shelves in early September and pick it up while you can. It’s available in 6 packs for about $10 and on tap at some Chicago bars. Bell’s is going to be dragging some of this to the Great Lakes Brew Fest too so come out and try it on firkin!