Spaten Oktoberfestbier Review - Tradition and Celebration

As the summer ends, we beer hounds get ready to celebrate Oktoberfest, which usually means a range of now traditional German beers reappearing. Today we focus on my favourite of these, Spaten Brewery's Oktoberfestbier. 

But, before delving into the beer it's essential to understand the historical backdrop of the brewery and festival. Spaten-Franziskaner-Bräu, commonly known as Spaten Brewery, is more than just a brewery, it’s a huge part of Munich culture. Though the modern company was formed in 1922 from the merger of the Spaten-Brauerei and Franziskaner-Leist-Bräu, Spaten history goes back much further. 

Originally established by Hans Welser in 1397, Spatenbräu has centuries of history, both cementing and upholding the rich traditions of Bavarian brewing. Spaten's history intertwines with Munich's evolution and is a big contributor to the national image of Germany as a brewing country. The brewery changed ownership several times, books have been written about its various owners and eras. Brewing through political upheaval and economic shifts, Spaten has a rare enduring legacy. The brewery's unwavering commitment to quality and adherence to the Reinheitsgebot, the German Beer Purity Law introduced in 1516, is a testament to its values and have made it an integral part of Bavarian culture. This law dictates that beer can only be brewed using four ingredients: water, malted barley, hops, and yeast. Leaving it historically free of the awkward filtration ingredients and chemical agents sometimes present in modern beers. 

In 1841, while under the ownership of the Sedlmayr family, the first modern lager cooling techniques were trialled and later adopted universally throughout the industry. A few years after in 1854, the brewery moved to the site where it stands today. And in 1884 the prolific beer label illustrator Otto Hupp designed the well known Spade logo. As an innovator Spaten  takes credit for the Munich Helles and introduced the world to the Märzen stylel. Merging with Lowebrau in the late 1990s and now part of the giant AB Inbev, Spaten still stands aside from its modern corporate parentage as an oddity. Often as well known widely for its part in modern Oktoberfest as it is locally for its heritage. 

Oktoberfest, now the world's largest beer festival, began as a royal wedding celebration in 1810. To commemorate the occasion, Märzen-style beers were brewed in March (Märzen in German). These beers were carefully stored in cool cellars to mature, preserving their quality until the festival in September and October. Spaten Oktoberfestbier is still, in many ways, very similar to the original Märzen beers from that era.

Upon opening the aroma is a balance of malty sweetness and only a hint of the underlying hops, sometimes a rarity in modern hop forward beer. The pour has a golden light amber to it that somehow feels to embody centuries of brewing. The initial taste will be the malt, strong but not overpowering, it is the throughline the beer holds even when caramel and toffee flavours start to hit your tastebuds, ultimately leaving a sense of hoppy bitterness on the finish. This is a truly drinkable beer, never meant to stand alone, always intended to be one of many held high, even at a robust 5.9% ABV. It is simply a beer meant for celebration, both inside the tents at Munich’s annual Oktoberfest, and around the world, in bars and at home. Its yearly return is a reason to celebrate in itself, a reassuring tradition in itself and a living testament to the legacy of brewing. Past and present in a glass, the taste of centuries of brewing tradition and Bavarian culture for just a few weeks a year, so what are you waiting for? 

Unsurprisingly Spaten Oktoberfestbier is available from September into October on draught and at home in many formats from bottles to kegs across Europe and the US. Though the season is ending for 2023, it is still widely available at time of writing. Thanks to the purity laws it has always been and should remain vegan friendly.

If you enjoyed the Spaten Oktoberfestbier review, then please feel free to leave a comment below!

Written by Mark Charles Adams.

You can follow Mark on Untappd and occasionally on other social media @threeseventytwo 

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