This morning I started milling for our first batch of Oktoberfest of 2015. It got me thinking back to this time last year... Holy crap has a lot changed? Last year, we brewed 180 Barrels of Oktoberfest and there was no way we could have brewed more. However, this year we knew that 180 barrels wouldn't be enough, so in anticipation of the Oktoberfest coming up, we got 2 new 60 barrel fermenters a few weeks ago. Now we will be able to at least double last year's production.
When we first started talks again about the Oktoberfest this year, I was excited to finally be brewing a seasonal that we had brewed before, and that we didn't have any plans to tweak the recipe or procedures. In doing so, that would make this the first seasonal offering that has stayed the same as the previous year's version in 2 years. All that to say, that plan fell apart and I decided to make one last really small tweak. Although, this change is one that no one would ever know that we made unless told that a change had been made.
One thing that a lot of people don't realize is that this is actually our 3rd year brewing the Oktoberfest. The first year, we did just 30 barrels and it was draught only in a few places. To be honest, that first batch was one of the beers that I was really disappointed in. At the time, our kettle gave us a lot of issues during our boils and as a result, the first year of Oktoberfest had a noticeable amount of DMS (vegetal flavor). Thankfully, not too many people had the opportunity to try that beer, and the majority of people that did try it did not pick up the DMS flavor.
By last year, we had our kettle issues fixed and we brewed the exact same recipe with a minor tweak in regards to the water chemistry. Using softer water, we were able to brew the beer with more of a crisp, clean finish. Without the DMS and with the better mouthfeel, the Oktoberfest was a huge success. In addition to those changes, we were in the middle of making a change to a new maltster. Since we brewed three batches of the beer last year, we were able to see the evolution of the beer as we converted the beer over to using malts exclusively from Germany. By the time we brewed our last batch a year ago, we had made the switch completely and the improvements in the beer really showed.
So that brings us to this year... The one that we here at the brewery have all been looking forward to. Going back to what I mentioned earlier, this beer was supposed to be the first seasonal that we could look forward to doing exactly the same as the previous year. For us, that feels really big because we have made so many changes and introduced so many new beers that have been really popular. We've been kind of fantasizing about what it would mean to brew the same beers, but to have a following for them before they're released. For us it means greater predictability of our brew schedule, easier sales pitches to restaurants and bars, and the ability to forecast the necessity for expansion with greater precision than before.
So here it is... The last minor tweak to any of our seasonal beers. Last year, I loved the clarity of the filtered beer, the color was a nice golden color comparable to the Oktoberfests most commonly served in Germany, the aroma was great, the flavor was nice and bready, and the mouthfeel was exactly as we wanted it. But, the one thing I thought could be better was the size of the head. The foam had the appropriate white color and it had great retention, but it did not have the huge fluffy head that you see in German steins. Last year, I kept wanting to use hop extract for bittering as it provides a smoother, cleaner bitterness and is more common in Germany than hop pellets. The extract is made with supercritical CO2, which extracts all of the desirable compounds that we want from hops, but leaves behind a lot of the polyphenols and vegetal matter. It is also more consistent from year to year than hop pellets are. In addition to the hop extract for bitterness, there is another advanced hop product (hexahydro-iso-alpha acid) which helps to greatly enhance beer foam and retention. When the beer is released, there will be no noticeable change in the flavor of the beer, other than it will feel more easily drinkable as a result of the the softer bitterness and the appearance will be better.
For those of you that did not have the opportunity to try the beer last year; our Oktoberfest is indicative of a Helles-Marzen (Pale Marzen) like what would be found most commonly in Germany, which is a contrast to the type of Oktoberfest most commonly brewed in America. The result is a crisper, less sweet, and lighter colored beer, while still being full bodied and malty.
Prost!
