My own private Octoberfest


     Octoberfest  2010 has come and gone and after many bottles and many burps here are the 9 Best Octoberfest Beers you should be drinking from August to November:
     

9. Leinenkugel's Octoberfest



     For over five generations the Leinenkugel family based out of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin has been carefully brewing some of the best beers in the country. Their Octoberfest is what I would definitely called a very "traditional german-style marzen bier". The taste is kind of pale but you also feel the punch of hops and caramel that puts this beer on the list.


8. Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale



     OK, I know what your thinking "This isn't an Octoberfest beer?" And you're right! But this pumpkin ale is worth checking out and could change your view on beer while the leaves outside your windown change as well.


7. Dogfish Head Punkin Ale


     
     Here we go with another pumpkin ale that just bursts with brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. And once again it is not an official "Octoberfest" beer but drinking one of these will certainly make you feel the autumn thunder.


6. Victory Festbier



     Now I'm as big as a Victory fanboy as anyone and I knew from the beginning that Victory's Festbier was going to make this list, and eventhough it is seductively smooth in drinkability and it does capture the german-style of brewing that is undeniably right for Octoberfest, I did find five beers I liked better, which isn't a bad thing IMO.


5. Hofbrau Munchen Oktoberfest



     Of course we need an authentic german beer on our list if we're doing a "Best of Octoberfest" list and this brew imported straight from Munich is simply outstanding. Some say that the Hofbrau Oktoberfest is the only real beer of Oktoberfest. I just say give me another.


4. Brooklyn Brewery Oktoberfest



     While some breweries try to get all fancy and go over the top with their seasonal attempts at an Octoberfest beer, the geniuses at Brooklyn Brewery realize that at the end of the day a good Octoberfest beer is nothing more than a nice lager that you just want to drink. Brooklyn Oktoberfest is rich, it's malty, and it's one of the best examples of what is right about a worldwide alcoholic autumn ritual.


3. Harpoon Octoberfest Beer



     The brewmakers at Harpoon love beer and love life and I love, love, love what they've made with their Octoberfest beer. They don't go overboard with the hops and they deliver a full-bodied lager that can turn any day long booze festival off the hook. Yes, off the hook!


2. Great Lakes Brewing Company Oktoberfest



     Pour a glass of GLBC's Oktoberfest into your favorite beer mug and you'll be entranced by it's pure amber glow. I've trashed the city of Cleveland plenty of times in the past and I find this brewery's "green friendly" message extremely gay, but there is no denying that they make one of the best Octoberfest beers in the world.
 

1. Samuel Adams Octoberfest



     When I started out on this journey to find the Best Octoberfest Beer I was pretty certain that I would find a contender to knock King Sam from his throne. However, there is a reason that the beer that started the Octoberfest beer boom is also it's most famous, Samuel Adams Octoberfest is everthing that a beer drinker dreams of as he/she looks forward to Fall. All the beers on this list are awesome and will please anyone's tastebuds as they finish raking leaves or watch football on the couch, but as far as the Best Octoberfest Beer goes Samuel Adams will most likely always be the Alpha and the Omega.