As soon as there’s a bit if a chill in the air, beer lovers are ready to break out the Oktoberfest brews. Coinciding with massive festivals in Munich, Germany and elsewhere around the world, breweries here in Milwaukee roll out their fall beers in September and October. Here are the Oktoberfest offerings from some of our area brewers this year.
Bavarian Bierhaus
Because the brewing system is powered by steam and not an open flame at Bavarian Bierhaus, their Oktoberfest is brewed with Melanoidin malt in order to mimic the flavors you’d get from the maillard reaction, the same process that makes browned food flavorful. They also use a minimal amount of Tettnanger hops to balance out the slight sweetness and alcohol to make the beer easy to drink.
Find the brewery: 700 W. Lexington Blvd., Glendale 414-236-7000 thebavarianbierhaus.com
Black Husky Brewing
Beers are named after sled dogs at Black Husky. Their Oktoberfest brew is called Jodler Koenig and has a sweeter, maltier profile than most Oktoberfest beers, according to owner Tim Eichinger. It’s 6% ABV and heavier than some for drinking during cool fall nights. It’ll be available at their Riverwest taproom.
Find the brewery: 909 E. Locust St. 414-509-8855 blackhuskybrewing.com
Delafield Brewhaus
The Oktoberfest from Delafield Brewhaus is a Bavarian-style fest beer that’s deep amber in color, medium-bodied and malty at 6.5% ABV. Other autumn beers include Hop Harvest IPA, a deep golden ale with notes of fresh citrus and pine with Cascade hops grown and harvested from their biergarten; Apple Ale, made with real apple juice and baking spices; and Bourbon Barrel-Aged Okauchee Scotchie—a full-bodied, brawny, brown ale.
Find the brewery: 3832 Hillside Drive, Delafield 262-646-7821 delafieldbrewhaus.com
Enlightened Brewing
While Enlightened isn’t brewing an Oktoberfest this year, they do have two other beers that fit the fall weather. Newton’s Constant is an 8.5% ABV end-of-summer stout with roasty, chocolate and boozy undertones. Kettle Logic is an amber ale made on the malty side and balanced with juicy character from the hops, but isn’t too sweet, bready or biscuity.
Find the brewery: 2020 S. Allis St. 414-704-4085 enlightenedbeer.com
Explorium Brewpub
Explorium’s Oktoberfest is a Marzen-style lager and close relative of their Marzen that recently won a silver medal at the U.S. Open Beer Championships. At a robust 6.5% ABV, it’s available in four packs of 16-ounce cans at retailers, as well as at the brewpub located in Southridge Mall.
Find the brewery: 5300 S. 76th St. 414-423-1365 exploriumbrew.com
The Fermentorium
The Oktoberfest at The Fermentorium is a German-style lager with a deep golden color. It’s brewed with Taurus and Tradition hops along with four types of malt. At a reasonable 5.5% ABV, it’s available at both taproom locations, along with new brews each Thursday.
Find the brewery: 7481 WI-60 Trunk, Cedarburg 6933 W. North Ave. 262-421-8593 thefermentorium.com
Good City Brewing
Good City’s Film Fest Lager is being released this year under the name Good City Oktoberfest. It’s a Marzen-style lager that’s highly drinkable with a light amber color, slightly sweet and biscuity malt character and mild, herbal, German hop profile. It’s available at both taprooms and as six packs for retail. New this year is the Festbier Weisn, a collaboration with the Lowlands Group of restaurants and the Milwaukee Film Festival. It’s a light-colored take on Oktoberfest-style lager with a mild hop character and bready malt profile.
Find the brewery: 2108 N. Farwell Ave. 333 W. Juneau Ave. 414-539-4343 goodcitybrewing.com
Melms Brewing
The Oktoberfest beer at Melms, a 200-year-old brewery that was resurrected in 2014, is darker, sweeter and maltier than most. It was released for the first time last fall in Madison and will be released in early September in Nashotah this year.
Find the brewery: 418 Merton Ave., Hartland 262-361-4946 melmsbrewing.com
Milwaukee Brewing Company
MKE’s Oktoberfest is a Marzen lager is brewed with pale ale, caramel and toasted Munich malts that attribute a sweet, earthy, malty flavor, toasted aroma and a bright orange hue. Get it in four packs of 16-ounce cans for the first time this year in stores and the taproom. Sasquash, a porter made with 400 pounds of roasted sweet potatoes, is also returning this year after a few years off. Get it the week of Oct. 7. And coming on Friday, Oct. 11, is the next installment of the Brewer’s Day Off series, which will feature a pumpkin, cranberry and orange ale available in the taproom.
Find the brewery: 613 S. Second St. 233 N. Water St. 1128 N. Ninth St. 414-226-2337 mkebrewing.com
MobCraft
Two fall beers are returning this year at MobCraft, including Vanilla Wafer—a 7% ABV chocolately porter with vanilla notes and hints of smooth malty cocoa—and Mobtoberfest, a classic Oktoberfest-style lager with a golden amber hue and bountiful malt character. There will also be four crowdsourced beers re-released this fall: Laughing Clown—a 9.8% ABV milk stout featuring roasted, chocolate malts and cacao nibs; Grasshopper—a milk stout inspired by the classic supper club drink with mint, cocoa, lactose and chocolate malt; Moo-waukee—a white chocolate milk stout brewed with white chocolate, vanilla, cacao nibs and just the right amount of lactose sweetness; and Peanuttin’ Butter Than This Chocolate Porter—a dark, chocolately port with lots of peanuts.
Find the brewery: 505 S. Fifth St. 414-488-2019 mobcraftbeer.com
Sprecher Brewing
Sprecher has two fall beers: an Oktoberfest and a Dopple Bock. The Oktoberfest is a 5.5% ABV Marzen-style, reddish-brown lager with a rich caramel character, long finish, fruity bouquet and mild hopping. The Dopple Bock’s ABV is slightly lower this year than last at 7.8%. It’s a blend of a variety of malts and several hops with notes of dark chocolate, caramel, toffee and burnt toast that responds well to aging. It recently won the 2019 Silver Medal (Dopple/Strong Bock) at the U.S. Open Beer Championships.
Find the brewery: 701 W. Glendale Ave., Glendale 414-964-2739 sprecherbrewery.com
St. Francis Brewing
St. Francis Brewery has a number of fall beers upcoming, some of which are still fermenting. Their Oktoberfest will be a relatively low 5.5% ABV with an amber orange color and a bready, malty flavor. Also look for a Chocolate Oatmeal Stout with a medium body, malty sweetness and dark chocolate and roasted coffee aroma and flavors; and a Scottish Rye Wee Heavy Ale with aromas of caramel, toffee apple and spice and roasty notes and mild dryness at the end from the crystal rye malt.
Find the brewery: 3825 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., St. Francis 414-744-4448 stfrancisbrewery.com
Stock House Brewing
The motto at Stock House is “Never make the same beer twice,” so you know you’re going to get something unique. Their Oktoberfest brew is a weisen-style and the official Wauwatosa Oktoberfest beer for Prosit Tosa, a new Oktoberfest festival. Try it at the brewery or at the event on Saturday, Sept. 28.
Find the brewery: 7208 W. North Ave. 414-739-9876 stockhousebrewing.com
Third Space Brewing
The Oktoberfest at Third Space is brewed in a traditional Marzen style with rich malt flavors, notes of biscuit and toffee and a dry finish. They also have two other fall beers. Unite the Clans is a Scottish ale with slightly roasty, malty flavors and aromas that won a gold medal at the 2017 Great American Beer Festival and a silver medal at the 2018 Festival. The addition of cara-rye malt and Fuggles, a classic hop from the British Isles, give it an underlying spiciness, toffee notes and a unique bready complexity. Their Mocha Java porter has intense coffee aroma and flavor with a hint of sweet cocoa in the background. Balancing the java is a rich porter beer brewed with two types of chocolate malt and specially selected Ecuadorian cacao nibs.
Find the brewery: 1505 W. St. Paul Ave. 414-909-BEER thirdspacebrewing.com
This article is part of our 2019 Fall Drink Guide. Read the rest of the guide here.
