Episode 27: Mendocino Oktoberfest Lager– Bicostal not bipolar

We finish up our Oktoberfest series with Mendocino Octoberfest. This is a West Coast beer, so all of those who may complain that we are too East Coast focus can shut yo mouth.

News

Huge news in the beer industry this past week, so huge that it actually made all of the big news websites not just the beer related ones. SAB Miller and Molson Coors are going to combine US operations to compete with Anheuser Busch. Miller will hold the majority share of the new business with 58% share and Coors will have 42% share. All in all, this follows the trend in the industry of consolidation, and I would not be shocked to hear of another major deal between AB and InBev in the future.

Oktoberfest Lager

• So last week I said that we are going to be doing a beer from a West Coast brewery, Mendocino Brewing Company.
• Starting as the first brewpub in California since prohibition under the name Hopland Brewery in 1984, growing every year and starting to distribute 12 ounce bottles in 1989.
• In 1997 capacity at the brewpub (yeah, they were still bottling there) was more than at it’s peak and they invested in a state of the art brewery in nearby Ukiah.
• Now comes the two coast thing. In 1997, to give the beer national recognition, they started to brew in a brewery in New York, Olde Saratoga Brewing Company.
• There products are available in 35 states, so this is a rather widely distributed product, and you should be able to get it just about anywhere.
• The official name is Oktoberfest Lager, and it weighs in at around 6.1% ABV.
• The taste has a bit more hop bite than the one we looked at last week, Spaten, did. That being said, there are still lots of the sweet bready flavors from the caramel malts used to make it.
• As we wrap up this series, I want to ask for other suggestions for next year. I know that this is one of the types of beer that I know a little bit less about, and with such the short time that they are out on the market, I don’t always get a chance to try them all. Let us know what we may have missed.

Next Week

Well, next week we move on to pumpkin style beers in honor of Halloween. We will be doing two beers, one next week which you can find everywhere, Blue Moons Harvest Ale, and one that may be a bit more difficult to locate, Dogfish Heads Punk.

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