Beer of the Weekend #508: Goose Island Oktoberfest

The beer tonight is Goose Island Oktoberfest, brewed by the Goose Island Beer Company of Chicago, Illinois.


Serving type: 12-ounce bottle. The “BOTTLED ON DATE” printed on the back label is “11JULY13” — which seems insane. This Oktoberfest beer was bottled one week after the Fourth of July.

Appearance: Poured into a pint glass. The color is medium copper. A half-finger of foam developed but fizzled — yes, fizzled noisily like pop bubbles — away very quickly to leave a wisp of skim on the top and almost no ring of foam around the edge. It looks flat. (I guess that is what one gets with märzen bottled in July.)

Smell: Faint aromas of toffee, caramel, cherry licorice, and hints of esters.

Taste: Despite the lackluster aroma and sketchy appearance, it has a decent, full body and the flavor is decent. It is mostly metallic and a little earthy, but caramel, toasted malts, toffee, and licorice hang out in the background. As the beer warms, lemon and apple jump into the mix.

Drinkability: Though the flavor was decent, I think this bottle was a little off. Goose Island is better than this so I will need to get another bottle for the hell of it.

Fun facts about GIO:

-Style: Märzen.

-Price: $1.79/bottle at John’s Grocery.

-Alcohol content: 6.4 percent ABV.

-IBU: 17.


The Quiet Man’s grade: C.

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