Oktoberfest is sleeping off a pandemic this year. Let’s bring a little bit of Munich home.
With its buoyant oompah bands, brimming steins, and traditional outfits, Munich’s Oktoberfest is one of the world’s most recognizable celebrations. It’s a festival of beer and Bavarian heritage, sure, but during its two and a half weeks between late September and early October, it’s also a feeling – one so pervasive you’d think every chimney and gutter and church spire in the historic city diffused some invisible, irresistible joy mist.
“It really gives the city a special flair,” says Carolin Grove, of Hotel Vier Jahreszeiten Kempinski Munich. The property sits an easy walk from the Oktoberfest fairground festivities, known as the Wiesn, where national breweries such as Paulaner, Hofbräu, and Löwenbräu erect dozens of mammoth, ornately decorated Festzelte (festival tents) that typically attract 6 million annual visitors. “All the windows of the shops have special displays, and the hotels do special treats,” she says – like serving beer during breakfast at the Vier Jahreszeiten. Grove swaps out her usual attire for traditional German dress, as is the custom for residents. “Even in Gucci and Louis Vuitton shops, instead of all black, the workers sometimes wear dirndls and lederhosen,” she says.
This year, of course, things are different: Germany has canceled Oktoberfest for the first time since World War II. So many of its hallmarks – dancing, live music, the communal tables within the Festzelte – are antithetical to social distancing in a country that has taken Covid-19 very seriously. To safely celebrate, Munich-based Virtuoso travel agency cofounder Gabriel Doucet Donida suggests having Oktoberfest at home. “Start the party with pear schnapps, a long-held tradition,” he says. “And no Oktoberfest is complete without Bavarian pretzels with Obatzda cheese spread, grilled chicken with potato salad or duck accompanied by red cabbage, and Bayerischer Kaiserschmarrn,” – a pancake that’s torn into pieces and typically served with applesauce or plum jam.
As for the brews, skip the big import brands and check out these U.S. craft brewery selections. And get festive – it’s the spirit that matters most. “The atmosphere is what makes Oktoberfest so special,” Grove says. “I don’t even drink beer.”
Oompah-Approved: Seven seasonal brews for throwing your own Oktoberfest.
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While many brewmasters focus on flashy sours, prestige IPAs, and other zeitgeist-y styles, Jack’s Abby in Framingham, Massachusetts, dedicates itself to lagers such as its Copper Legend, brewed with hops from the Seitz family’s 600-year-old Bavarian farm.
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Oaktoberfest, from Austin’s oldest operating brewery, Live Oak Brewing Company, isn’t just a clever play on words – it’s a faithful expression of Märzen, the original Oktoberfest beer brewed in March (März in German), with an elevated alcohol content to make it last until the fall.
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At Columbus, Ohio’s year-old Gemüt Biergarten, where custom stained-glass windows depict scenes from German and Nordic mythology, the crisp Sow of Sunna märzen gets its spicy aroma from Hallertau and Saaz, two of the four “noble” hops that have underpinned Bavarian brewing for centuries.
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Generous on the malt and light-handed on the hops, Brooklyn Brewery’s easygoing, toasty, and widely available Oktoberfest marks its 20th anniversary this year.
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Burlington, Vermont’s Switchback Brewing Co. makes its Smoked Märzen Fest Bier with beechwood-smoked malt, giving the Oktoberfest brew a campfire aroma that’s a natural match for mustard-streaked pretzels and wursts.
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Vida y Muerta, from Chicago’s Latin American-inspired 5 Rabbit Cervecería, is an Oktoberfest/Day of the Dead crossover with Argentinean dulce de leche and Mexican cinnamon applied to a brisk märzen template.
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In McMinnville, Oregon, the Heater Allen Bobtoberfest from father-daughter brewer/owners Rick and Lisa Allen has a smooth, butterscotch malt backdrop and a snappy hop finish.
This article originally appeared in the September 2020 issue of Virtuoso Life.