newsminer.com

There are plenty of fine examples of Oktoberfest-style beers available locally, and I recommend trying a few to figure out your favorite.
Drink locally, and try Silver Gulch’s Oktoberfest, which I am enjoying as I pen this column. Medium-bodied with a rich copper sheen, this beer has a light head hiding a subtle sweetness. It’s not too heavy and finishes dry with a hint of hops.
Other great beers imported into Alaska begin with Avery's Imperial Kaiser. Coming in with a high 10 percent alcohol content, this beer is surprising smooth and drinkable, The malt content doesn't overwhelm, and balance the hops perfectly. This orange beer disappeared out of the glass all too fast.
Also from Colorado (avery is from Boulder), is Lefthand Brewing's Oktoberfest. This beer has a darker, almost brownish color from the use of darker malts. These malts add a sweet, though heavy, body. Hops are almost non-existent in the flavor profile, but that sweetness is all that's needed.
Flying Dog Brewing’s Dogtoberfest, another nice choice. Somewhat lighter in color, this brew has a sweet, malty breadiness with hints of vanilla and grassy endnotes. The alcohol content is 5.3 percent, so it goes down easy (just be careful).
Samuel Adams uses four malts to produce its Oktoberfest. The result is a darker, almost brown in color, ale with lots of maltiness right up front. It’s sweeter because of this but finds a nice balance through hops that tend to hide mostly in the background.
It wouldn’t be right to leave out German beers, especially since the Oktoberfest concept originated in Germany in 1810 to celebrate the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) with Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen.
The exact date of the event has changed throughout the years, but the emphasis on drinking beer hasn’t.
Spaten, of Munich, claims to have produced the first offical Oktoberfest beer, though this was in 1872. It was a variation of the popular marzen style, what they called an Ur-Marzen. This style became the accepted norm for Oktoberfest beers. Later, the company changed the beer’s name to Oktoberfestbier Ur-Märzen, as we find it now, to explain that it was brewed for festival time.
Paulaner, also from Munich, makes a fine Oktoberfest-Märzen. This version is amber in color, almost red, with a hearty maltiness that makes this one a bit sweet. The finish is surprisingly dry with a dash of hops to close out.
Ayinger Oktoberest Marzen might be the lightest of the bunch. This "Authentic Bavarian Festival Lager," as the bottle touts, is a clear-orange-y color, lightly malty and with a dry finish. Crisp overall with light hop essence and spice.
Finally, another German classic in the style is the Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest-Märzen. This one is dark copper in color and pours with a nice head that fades quickly to a thin layer. A hearty maltiness greets the lips but is only mildly sweet with light fruit notes. Like all the others, the finish is dry and refreshing.
All of these beers are fine “session” brews, meaning they go down smooth and that enjoying more than one should be no problem. Serve them with brats or burgers, sauerkraut and potato salad, but enjoy them now — this style is traditionally brewed only a couple months per year.