It’s our favorite time of year! With Fall comes all good things – sweater weather, pumpkin flavored everything, caramel apples, a steamy beverage on a brisk day, children running through fallen leaves, and of course great wine and beer. Oktoberfest has come and it’s time to celebrate fall.

A Quick Oktoberfest History Lesson –

The first Oktoberfest was held in the year 1810 in honor of the Bavarian Crown Prince Ludwig’s marriage to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen. The festivities began on October 12, 1810 and ended on October 17th with a horse race. In the following years, the celebrations were repeated and, later, the festival was prolonged and moved forward into September.

By moving the festivities up, it allowed for better weather conditions. Because the September nights were warmer, the visitors were able to enjoy the gardens outside the tents and the stroll over “die Wiesen” or the fields, much longer without feeling chilly. Historically, the last Oktoberfest weekend was in October and this tradition continues into present times. Today, the center of this culture is beer, with roughly 7 million liters of it poured at the festival annually.

Almost as iconic as the beer itself, a Bierstiefel (aka a glass or plastic beer boot) is sure to be spotted anytime during Oktoberfest. If you bring a Bierstiefel to a party during Oktoberfest, everyone will scream “Das Boot” as you walk in the door. “Das Boot” translated from German to English means “the boat”. We sincerely doubt Germans yell “Das Boot” when you walk into a beer tent carrying such a “mug”. Also, there was a popular movie in German titled “Das Boot” back in the 60s-70s. It was about a U-boat during WWII. But whatever you are drinking, Oktoberfest is a lot of fun… Folklore has it that Bierstiefels, or beer boots, were invented after a general promised his troops he would drink out of his boot if they won. He commissioned a glass boot so he could fulfill his promise without the smell and taste of dirty socks.

How to Celebrate Fall by Drinking Beer from a Boot

For the past century, beer boots have been included in festive celebrations and passed among friends as a drinking challenge because believe it or not, there is a right–and wrong–way to drink beer out of a boot. (Keep in mind that one boot contains five beers.) If you don’t turn the toe of the boot away from you, a tidal wave of beer will flow towards you as the air bubble reaches the toe part of the boot.

Today the festival isn’t only a smorgasbord to celebrate fall for beer but for food as well, featuring traditionally Bavarian food such as sausages served with mustard and sauerkraut, spit-grilled chicken, warm soft pretzels, potato salad, apple strudel, and honey-dumplings. Yum.

We told you all good things come in the Fall. Stop in soon to check out our Fall beer selection as well as our gourmet market to take your beer drinking experience to the next level!

We’re approaching the stretch of the year that calls for some European influence in our beers.  It’s time to keep the parties indoors and indulge in some original beer styles to accompany our afternoon and evening meals.  It’s tough to make that transition so quickly but we’ve been keeping a steady, year-round supply of German and Belgian favorites to fit into any beer lover’s routine. There’s a definite distinction between what domestic varieties offer compared to what our treasured imports can put on the table. This translates to an historic promise that whatever Eastern European labels you pick up here will always bring a unique taste and conversation to your drinking sessions with friends and family.

There’s an age-old law in Germany called “reinheitsgebot,” which establishes a purity standard for German and Bavarian beer as well.  The Germans even have a word, “bierernst,” that literally translates to “beer serious.” This law and term equal out to an assurance that only barley, hops, yeast and water are to be used in German and Bavarian beer. The last time we checked, the U.S. does not have a national decree in place to have such a revered quality assurance on our favorite brews. With that in mind, you can rest assured that what German and Belgian favorites beer you have in your fridge are brewed to the highest standard.

Here are a few suggestions from our staff on what German and Belgian favorites you should be cracking open soon!

Franziskaner Hefe-Weisse – Hefeweizen

Sporting a very sweet and fruity body, this hefeweizen encompasses that original German style of the variety. With a floral and yeast-filled palate, bringing out notes of banana bread, orange and coriander, this import is full of flavors and accompanied with a subtle alcohol presence.

Weihenstephaner Korbinian – Doppelbock

Full-bodied, dark and voluptuous. Easy notes of chocolate, bitter fruit, caramel and a light candied taste make for a great chilled glass by the fireplace or kitchen counter. This Doppel has an eerily, easy drinkability and a smoothness that can bring a casual beer drinker to the light. Being one of our favorites at the store, we cannot talk this German mainstay up enough.

Trappistes Rochefort 10 – Quadrupel

Retaining a caramel head through an even pour, this Belgian is a beautiful one. The smell of a certain liquor belies a fruity and chocolate-shop essence of tasting notes. Overly smooth, it has an extremely gratifying finish that leaves your palate in need of another sip or a bite of sausage to fulfill the experience. Take a seat and pick this layered brew apart.

Duvel – Belgian Strong Pale Ale

Taking a spicier note compared to its Belgian brothers, Duvel’s pale ale is not only a popular import for the U.S. but has a dedicated following spanning the globe. Leaning towards a more fruit forward body, Duvel takes a leap past any Belgian style domestic beer with an even more glazed mid palate. An up-front fruitiness and dry, carbonated finish makes for an outstanding drinkability.