Oktoberfest

This weekend I'm visiting my friend in Dallas, who conveniently lives in an apartment complex located just a couple minutes walk away from the Oktoberfest in Addison Park, which ended today. In a historical context, Oktoberfest is a festival meant to celebrate the marriage of the Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig's marriage in 1810. In a more contemporary context, Oktoberfest is basically an excuse to do the chicken dance, wear stupid hats and drink beer. Good beer. Oktoberfest style beers are generally seasonal lagers, brewed especially for the occasion. Many of the Oktoberfest beers are moderately darker and stronger in taste and alcohol than other lagers, featuring a malty and complex flavor.

Upon entry into the festival, I headed straight for the beer tent. Paulaner, a brewery in Munich, Germany, was the official sponsor of the event. They offered two beers: Paulaner Oktoberfest and Paulaner Munchen, which is their original lager. The 16 oz. beers were priced at $4.00, and 20 oz. souvenir stein glasses featuring the Paulaner logo were available for $11.00 (beer included). Not a bad price for such a tasty beer. I opted for the Oktoberfest beer (naturally). The beer went down very smoothly; perhaps it was the hot and humid Texas weather that made it especially desirable, but it really hit the spot. It is a beer that's reddish-amber in color, with a faint hoppy taste. As previously mentioned, Oktoberfest beers are a bit stronger in alcohol content, this one being 6%. After my second one I was feeling slightly tipsy, and the German food became equally appealing as the beer. The skillet potatoes had been highly recommended, so we waited in line for 15 minutes to try them out. I did still have a beer in my hand, which made the line more tolerable. Well worth the wait.

On another note, what they say isn't true: not EVERYTHING is bigger in Texas. Tulsa's Oktoberfest blows Addison's out of the water. I'm very much looking forward to attending the festival in my home town, which takes place October 18-21. The Tulsa festival features more beer, more food, more people, and more fun than Addison. Beers from German breweries Spaten and Warsteiner will be available, as well as domestic beer (not recommended): Budweiser, Coors, and Miller. I'll be hanging out by Die Bierstube (German for "the beer tube") wearing a stupid hat doing the chicken dance.

In the meantime, if you're in the mood for some good Oktoberfest beers, McNellies has them in stock. From now until the end of October, a different Oktoberfest beer will be featured as the weekly special. We also have an Oktoberfest flight (for those that are unfamiliar, it's a platter of beer samples) which is a good way to go if you don't want to just choose one.