This year, Oktoberfest officially starts on Saturday 17^th September and ends on Monday 3^rd October. This is always slightly confusing as you would expect it to last the month of October! Germans have been celebrating Oktoberfest for over a couple of hundred years and it’s one of the biggest folk festivals in the world and continues to grow and expand year on year. It is an important part of Bavarian culture. When we think about Oktoberfest, we have images in our heads of Steins of German beer, Lederhosen and sausages. If you ever go to Oktoberfest just outside of Munich, then you will see that it’s a family event with fairgrounds, tents and of course plenty of Oktoberfest beers.

This year, we have six different Oktoberfest beers in stock. These are:

Erdinger Oktoberfest
Hofbrau Oktoberfestbier
Paulaner Oktoberfest
Lowenbrau Oktoberfest
Spaten Oktoberfest
Hacker Pschorr Oktoberfest

As is the case with all the beers above, these speciality beers are brewed specifically for Oktoberfest. Oktoberfest beers are known as Marzen beers as they are brewed in March, which is the last time to brew a beer before summer. They are slightly stronger so they last longer.

Erdinger Oktoberfest is brewed in accordance with the Bavarian Purity Law. It is a well-balanced wheat beer that combines smooth malt with hoppy bitterness. Erdinger Oktoberfest has an ABV of 5.7% and comes in 50cl bottles.

Hofbrau Oktoberfestbier is a full-bodied, bottom-fermented speciality German beer. It has an alcohol content of 6.3% ABV and is best served at 7 degrees Celsius. It obviously pairs well with roast chicken and a Bratworst.

Paulaner Oktoberfest has a perfect balance of hops and malt and is also bottom-fermented. It is brewed with water, malted barley and hops. It is 6% ABV.

Lowenbrau Oktoberfest was served at the very first Oktoberfest event. It has an ABV of 6.1% which is slightly stronger than their Original. Lowenbrau translates as “Lion’s Brew” and if you visit the Lowenbrau beer tent at Oktoberfest, you’ll see a big lion at the entrance – obviously not a real one!

Spaten Oktoberfest is classed as the first Oktoberfest beer to ever be created and since then, the recipe has hardly changed. It has an ABV of 5.9%.

Hacker Pschorr Oktoberfest has an alcohol content of 5.8% and is amber in colour. It is slightly sweeter than the others.

We stock all six Oktoberfest beers individually but we’ve also created mixed cases of them, which are great for parties and beer gifts. The cases are available in packs of 6, 12 and 18 and each come with free branded beer mats.

As well as the beers, we also have Erdinger and Hofbrau Steins for sale. These are heavy and made from glass and can hold 2 pints of beer.

Don’t forget when you’re celebrating Oktoberfest, whether you’re in Germany or at home with your friends and family, the famous saying is Oans, Zwoa, Gsuffa. It basically means one, two, bottoms up and can be heard throughout the beer tents.

Prost!