Oktoberfest - Upland Brewing Company

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.13/5  rDev -13.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Gaining inspiration from southern Germany, but brewing with techniques and ingredients that are common to American microbrewers, Upland's Oktoberfest yields a richer oktoberfestbier that hinges on American amber caramel character.

Deep golden to light copper in color, the beer pours brightly clear and caps with a foamy white head that struggles with its retention but somehow manages to lace with intricate patterns before the foam falls. With a bit more retention, this could be a really nice looking lager.

Clean caramel and mild cashew nuttiness leads the aromatics with light touches of freshly kilned barley and slight whiffs of butter lying closely behind. Bread crust, mild sulfurs, and a subdued herbal hop presence rounds out the relatively clean scent.

Caramel sweetness is even more pronounced in taste that it was in aroma. With honey-like floral presence in taste, the sweetness of the beer is looming while the more finesse grain sweetness and supple malt elegance is somewhat lacking- er, covered up by sheer caramel sweetness, leaving the taste largely one-dimensional. Even the light earthy and spicy bitterness of hops pale in comparisons and do little to support the malt.

Medium bodied, yet seemingly full for Oktoberfest- the beer is moderately bodied compared to amber ales. It's malt sweetness coats the mouth and reluctantly lets up; leaving the sweet sugary textures to gravitate to the mouth and preventing the thirst quenching property that's best of authentic German oktoberfestbiers. Lingering sweetness only waivers as mild alcohol warmth and slight acidity come into play in its shy finish.

Upland basically gives the Oktoberfest type of taste that is constant for American made versions, which are becoming vastly inferior to the traditional versions of Bavaria. It's odd that as contemporary Munich versions are getting lighter and lighter, American micro versions are getting sweeter and sweeter.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2013 07:12:25 | More by BEERchitect

rlee1390

Indiana

3.73/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A-Clear amber orange, some carbonation.

S-Caramel, bread and spice. Like your everyday Oktoberfest.

T-Very sweet, caramel, bread on the heavy side. Lots of malt. No bitterness and some spice.

M-Light, some carbonation and crisp.

O-A decent Oktoberfest, the spice was a nice addition.

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2012 16:40:45 | More by rlee1390

JackStraw

3.68/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

2012 Oktoberfest, bottled around the third week of August.

A - Poured from the bottle into a pint glass, with a nice two finger creamy head that quickly dissipates. Something of a tiger orange color, maybe around 12 SRMs, clear body. Leaves some lacing.

S - Getting some malty and a bit of nut with a bready character. Clean without much hops.

T - Starts with malty and sweet, with some bread and spice. Very drinkable

M - Smooth medium body, if not a little watery.

0 - I don't drink a lot of this style, but this is a solid drinkable beer. I've had some that are better, but at a right price (7.49) and local (B-town) I'd drink this any day.

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 01:13:55 | More by JackStraw

AmitC

Indiana

3.73/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A decent fest beer. Pours like it should, with a amber color appearance. Very little head that soon dissipates. Neat bubbles and very clear transparent looks.

Smells very much like other good fest beers that i have had. Small tinge of roasted malt aroma mixed with the regular very typical lager bread crumby smell. Extremely distinct aroma of a fest beer very likable.

Taste is pretty much all smell. I do not wonder why bavarians call beer as liquid bread. Good amount of noble German hops, do not feel bitter yet can be experienced.

Very easy to drink. Decent amount of bubbles with light bodied feel.

Alcohol strength on the higher side for this style wins it the final four.

Drink it as much as you can.

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 00:02:59 | More by AmitC

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.58/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from notes.

Pours out a coppery amber with about two fingers of off-white creamy froth that sticks around for two minutes, leaving medium amounts of lacing on the glass. Medium body and carbonation levels, creamy smooth texture.

Smells of light toasted bready sweetness with an herbal hopping nuance, and tastes of toasted bready sweetness with a vague grassy and nutty aftertaste. I've had worse and I've had better than this.

Serving type: bottle

09-21-2012 20:55:02 | More by WastingFreetime

Lemke10

Wisconsin

3.45/5  rDev -5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I got a 16oz glass of this for $4.25 at Conway and O’Reilly’s in Janesville, WI in mid 2012. Pours slightly hazy in a light amber color with a classic foamy head. Mild scent of malts and spices. Taste is malty and toasty. Smooth taste that finishes slightly crisp. A little too watery though in my opinion.

Serving type: on-tap

08-02-2012 19:50:33 | More by Lemke10

mikesgroove

South Carolina

3.53/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

amber color with a great clarity fills the glass. Nice streams of bubbles that rippled up toward the surface gave it a good bit of depth and created a nice moderate to medium capping of white that clung to the sides for a little while before letting itself go. Muted bready malts. Hints of light grain and a touch of some light spice, but everything was too light and muted for me. Not enough in the way of herbal hoppiness or depth to keep me interested. Same could be said as I took the first sip, while not really being bad in any way, it was just rather uninteresting. Bready grains, hints of something musky, and a touch of light pine maybe, but very muted. Smooth and even taste with a clean and concise finish

Serving type: bottle

11-05-2011 14:31:07 | More by mikesgroove

JohnnyHopps

Indiana

2.8/5  rDev -22.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a bottle into a pint glass, the appearance was a golden orange color. Any aroma was faint, though what did exist was mildly sweet. The taste was far from bold for a beer that is traditionally flavorful. There was a mildly sweet bread flavor that quickly faded into a slightly sour finish. Something about the aftertaste left a mild metalic/coppery taste in my mouth. Of course, this was unpleasant. Mouthfeel showed little carbonation, going down easy. By definition of the score, it is a pretty average beer with nothing that stands out in the field of Oktoberfests.

Serving type: bottle

10-17-2011 23:27:39 | More by JohnnyHopps

jlindros

Massachusetts

4.22/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Wow my first Upland beer, thanks to erric for this one.

Pours a nice frothy 1 finger head that fades semi slowly, over clear amber orange colored beer, some lacing.

Nose has light malts, soft almost decoction sweet malts, light creamy malt and touch of cracked straw. Also plenty of lager aromas, some crisp malts, and some lager fruits, touch of noble floral almost spicy hops.

Taste starts with some sweet malts, light Bavarian pilsner malts, light cracked straw and almost wheat but not quite, smooth and slightly creamy. Nice lager flavors, a bit of fruit and crispness. Also some nice hops, light floral hops, a bit spicy, nice noble hop flavors. Nice layers of soft malts, almost like a decoction. Finish has some spicy hops, a bit of bitterness, and nice creamy malts.

Mouth is lighter bodied, decent carb.

Overall I think this was very well done, I've been drinking lots of German Oktoberfests lately and this might be the best American version of a real German Oktoberfest. They got it quite close with malts, hops, and lager flavors, maybe a touch more cracked straw would really staple it. i wouldn't be surprised if they even did a decoction for this. Great beer!

Serving type: bottle

10-13-2011 23:00:45 | More by jlindros

Pauly2X

Wisconsin

4.2/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- Deep gold, almost light amber in color. Good half finger head.

S- Caramel and toast with a noticable but not overpowering noble hop pressence.

T- Malty sweet, caramel and toast flavors abound yet stay mellow enough to enjoy without pretense. Virtually no hop bitterness but there's a good amount of hop flavor to go around. Finishes sweet without being cloying.

M- Smooth and rich while retaining quaffability. Medium bodied with good carbonation.

O- Easily one of the better Domestic Marzen's I've had and it can easily hold it's own against it's German counterparts. I think I'll have to go grab a sixer of this before it's gone.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2011 21:50:35 | More by Pauly2X

doughanson78

Washington

2.9/5  rDev -20.1%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle poured into a pint glass. Received in jmarsh123's Music LIF.

A: Super clear copper color. Almost no head or lacing.

S: Not a big aroma on this one. What little I do get is very malty with hints of bread. A little bit of spice.

T: Follows the aroma, as in not real big. Some light sweet malts, a bit of spice in the middle, and finishing with a light wet grass profile. Not a bad taste at all, just way to light.

M: Light bodied, but not watery. Lower carbonation. Light creaminess.

O: A very easy drinking beer. Had to really struggle to taste anything. Still not really a fan of the style.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2011 05:25:51 | More by doughanson78

tommiller819

Indiana

3.48/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a fresh growler into a 16 oz goblet.

A: About a finger of off-white head that dissipates pretty quickly with only a bit of lacing. The beer pours a clear dark amber.

S: Mostly malts, with a bit of spiciness. Has some cinnamon and apple notes to it. Very nice.

T: Up front it's a nice Oktoberfest with some slightly fruity flavors and just a bit of alcohol warmth, but like many Upland beers, there is a strange aftertaste to it that I'm not too keen on. It could be the hard water around Bloomington, I don't know.

M: Good carbonation, not too harsh, but a bit syrupy.

Serving type: growler

10-02-2011 21:43:49 | More by tommiller819

jsh420

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

bottled sept 2011

pours clear dark golden copper with a 1 finger head that faded fast and left no lacing

smells of apples bready malts

tastes of earthy hops and sweet bready malts

mouthfeel - rather boring flat medium full body

overall - there are much better marzen brews on the market - hell SA oktoberfest is better

Serving type: bottle

09-25-2011 05:52:37 | More by jsh420

Stinkypuss

Pennsylvania

3.9/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Upland Oktoberfest

Pours a light clear copper color. Aroma of bready, munich malts and all due sweetness. In the taste, mild toasted malts, leafy, tea like hops and a superior balance. Mellow malt flavor of biscuit, sweet bread and toffee. Finishes crisp and clean. Light bodied feel. Overall, a really nice Oktoberfest, drinks easy enough to be considered a true festbier.

Serving type: bottle

09-07-2011 14:57:15 | More by Stinkypuss

uwmgdman

Wisconsin

4.13/5  rDev +13.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a snifter, this Oktoberfest pours brilliantly clear copper color with a thin white head that quickly diminishes to a thin rim. The aroma is very clean moderately-high warm toasty, biscuit malt. The flavor is medium-high toasty, cracker-like malt with hints of honey sweetness with just enough medium-low hop bitterness to balance nicely. Additionally a bit of spicy hop flavor is evident, subtle but there. The beer finishes slightly dry, with a bit of malt lingering on the palate, refreshing yet interesting. The carbonation is moderate and body medium. Overall this is nice Oktoberfest, I'd gladly drink this again, definitely worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2011 00:45:41 | More by uwmgdman

jkrich

Indiana

3.9/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz. bottle with bottled on date notched on label: poured a very appealing, clear and dark golden hue with a small, sustained and creamy white-head.

This one has a stronger aroma profile than the typical oktoberfest lager; rather pungent spicy and perfumy malt with a very odd but faint skunk-like aroma.

The flavor has a very refreshing, somewhat thick malt profile that is more than balanced by a nice noble hop presence. There is a bready, yeasty aftertaste.

This one has a rather thick, syrupy mouthfeel that somehow remains quite drinkable. The carbonation is restrained with a medium body.

My first oktoberfest of the season from a local brewery, this one is quite substantial for the style. While not a classic quaffer because of its heavier body and ABV, it is very enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

08-27-2011 22:54:23 | More by jkrich

mynie

Indiana

3/5  rDev -17.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

2011 on tap at the Tour de Upland pre-party.

Pours amber with a decent head, maybe a little light-colored for the style but nothing offputting.

Smells like cereal grains with a decent pinch of hops thrown in. Off for the style, I think; not very sweet, bocky, or nutty. Closer to an American All Malt than a marzen.

Tastes like it smells. There's a wee little bit of malt sweetness and then a floral hop profile that's pleasant enough but basically overrides everything else. It's not a bad flavor at all, but it's completely inappropriate for the style.

What is it that makes normally solid great lakes-region brewers incapable of brewing a marzen? Do they really think that their customers will demand excess hops in every single beer they brew?

Serving type: on-tap

08-23-2011 12:16:32 | More by mynie

crossovert

Wisconsin

3.73/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

2010 edition.

It pours a medium gold with a foamy eggshell colored head.

The smell is mellow, not a lot of nuttiness, just a solid maltiness with a pinch of hops.

The flavor is decent, it has a sort of tartness to it that is unique. The hops seem to be done pretty well and the malt balance is pretty dead on.

Easy drinking Oktoberfest.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2010 02:00:34 | More by crossovert

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.55/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from notes.

Pours a golden orange color with a bit of a white head and some mild lacing. Nose is a bit nutty and earthy with some bread and slight caramel in the background. The taste is slightly dry with some earth and a bit of light malt. Medium body with good carbonation. Nothing special, but a pretty decent brew.

Serving type: on-tap

10-24-2010 14:38:46 | More by Thorpe429

BuckeyeNation

Iowa

3.55/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Oktoberfest orange with several streams of fairly large bubbled carbonation blipping up to a whipped frothy crown that is somewhere between ivory and ecru. The foam looks decent during descent and is leaving an okay amount of lace.

The nose is fresh and clean. The malt is more golden than earthy-toasted and the beer has a surprisingly robust floral-herbal hoppiness. Gadzooks! This could be my first good Upland beer.

Oktoberfest Bavarian-Style Lager is a better than average marzen, but it's definitely no world-beater. Beer of this sort shouldn't be this tangy, something that might have been attributed to age if no notched date code was available (brewed August '10).

More malt is needed. There's a hint of the toasted, earthy nuttiness that the style is known for, but it tastes as if the grain bill is predominantly pale. German hops add a passing glance of flavor and enough bitterness to counter what few malt sugars are present. Time and warming don't improve things one iota.

The mouthfeel is borderline. It's slightly too thin and bubbles are slightly too noticeable. Smaller (better buried) carbonation would have been great.

In the end, it didn't take much for Oktoberfest to be the most impressive Upland Brewing beer to have ever entered my pint glass. Impressive being relative, of course. Finding a better marzen shouldn't be that difficult, no matter where you live.

Serving type: bottle

10-22-2010 12:02:29 | More by BuckeyeNation

alleykatking

Indiana

3.68/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Had on tap...

A- Poured a golden orange color. One finger white head shows medium retention. Light lacing on the glass.

S- Toasted malts in the front of the beer. There was a light off aroma that I couldn't quite put my figner on. Grassy hops in the backing of this balances out the aroma quite nicely.

T- Grassy hops with some bitterness in the front of the beer. The toasted malts kick in the middle of the beer with a light sweetness as wel. There is a light hop bite in the backing of this beer that balances out the beer from the malts.

M- Medium mouthfeel to the beer. Carbonation is good for the style. Grassy hops left on the palate with a toasted malt and light alcohol in the aftertaste. Flavors were well balanced and crisp. Alcohol not very drying on the palate.

D- This was a good beer. The ABV wasn't the highest but...even this made it a couple and done. I really like this beer even though I'm not the biggest Oktoberfest style fan.

Serving type: on-tap

10-03-2010 08:38:38 | More by alleykatking

RunForYourBeer

Indiana

3.68/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours golden amber with a light head that goes away quickly.

S: Very malty with a bit of alcohol.

T: Lots of caramel malt in this one with a bit of piney hops and slight alcohol warming. Slight toastiness in the malt as well.

M: Medium with slightly less carbonation that I'd expect.

D: Moderate.

This is different than any other Oktoberfest I've had. I haven't had a whole lot of them but this is certainly different than what I expected.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2010 21:43:13 | More by RunForYourBeer

brewmudgeon

Wisconsin

2.05/5  rDev -43.5%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 1.5

upland o'fest

a 3-3.5 light amber, clear as it should be, short head vanishes to a wispy cap. lace does not look likely.

s 2 strong alcohol smell. some toasted malts are in there somewhere, but this is not very close to any ideal oktoberfest aroma that i'm familiar with. nor is it good regardless of style, unless you like the smell of isoprophyl in the morning. am i going to go blind if i drink this?

t 2-2.5 tastes like an amped up lawnmower beer, which makes no sense imo, with a little toasted malt thrown in for good measure. the thin flavor profile allows the alcohol to take too much of the spotlight, though there is what seems to be significant leafy hop bitterness in the finish.

m 3 mouthfeel is the least of this beer's concerns.

d 1.5 had never heard of upland before. wishing i still hadn't.

Serving type: bottle

09-21-2010 00:50:38 | More by brewmudgeon

aasher

Indiana

4/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This one poured a light pumkin orange in color and has a light white head. The smell wasn't overpowering but was pleasant, with light spicy aromas. The taste was better than some other Oktoberfests that I've had so far this year. It had good harvest flavor and wasn't too heavy on the spices. The mouthfeel was very light and smooth. I'd say this one is more drinkable than most, American, Oktoberfests. It's worth a shot.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2010 01:21:49 | More by aasher

lbaker

Indiana

3.85/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

First off, let me start by saying I tried this beer for the first time at Upland's Oktoberfest in 2009. I had it on draft, and if anyone is looking for an awesome Saturday in the Fall get your ass to Upland. Secondly, I'm reviewing this beer because I stumbled on a hidden 6pack of it a local beer store. Its got a bottled on date of August 2009, so not the freshest...but we can always re-review this great brew next Fall!

(a) poured the bottle into a tall pilsner glass. Pours a medium-dark carmel color with a little carbonation. Not a lot of head, good lacing left behind. A little more see through than most Marzens. (4/5)

(s) I really feel like this is the only area the beer stands to improve. A great Oktoberbest embodies all that we love about Fall...I just wish this smell brought to mind those same memories. The beer even smells crisp like Fall, but those German hops should be a little easier to pick up on. Could be a little too cold, not like I remember it on draft. (3.5/5)

(t) Excellent taste. Perfect amount of hop and a crisp bite to each sip. Taste is almost sweet and you can definetly pick up those Bavarian malts. (4/5)

(m) Hits the palete pretty good...just wish it had more follow-through. The hops and bite hit you up front, just wish there was more to finish it off. (3.5/5)

(d) Marzens/Oktoberfests are my favorite beers because Fall is the best time to grab a great beer and hang outside with friends. With that being said, I expect a lot for the drinkability. I want something I can drink plenty of and plenty with. This Oktoberfest is a great beer and a great replacement if Sam Adams keeps diluting its on Fall brew year after year. (4/5)

Serving type: bottle

03-04-2010 00:03:54 | More by lbaker