Moerlein Fifth & Vine Oktoberfest Marzen

Christian Moerlein Brewing Company
Brewed at Lion Brewery
Style: Oktoberfest/Märzen
Cincinnati, Ohio USA

Serve in Dimpled mug, Stein

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Slightly hazed amber witha thick tan head. Nose is toffee, grainy malt. Taste i weak toffee, malt, with a watery, herbal bitter. Rather unappealing and bland.

Bottle. Vegetal and grainy malt aroma. Slightly hazy light copper with a moderate ivory head. Vegetal caramel malt and light herbal/spicy bitter flavor. Medium body. I just wasn’t digging this one.

Bottle. Corn and barley malt aroma. Golden yellow with large off-white head. Sweet toffee malt flavor. Very light hint of lemon in the finish. Okay - nothing great.

The third beer in my Thursday Night Mediocre-athon. Some light sweetness, some dryish, woody flavors in the finish. Kinda hard to concentrate on, actually.

12 oz. Clear copper with a spongy foam that tries to last. Nose is old peanut butter and molasses. Taste is metallic molasses, light citrus and stale dry grass. Light-medium body has too much carbonation but seems to fit the style somewhat.

UPDATED: OCT 10, 2012 Amber color with a beige head. Aroma contains some caramel, citrus, and toffee, The flavor is oktoberfestalicious if that makes sense. The palate is a bit thin. Same stuff different day, Overall an ok session beer.

Bottle to pint. Looks decent; a transparent burnt-orange with thin white lacing. Smells semi-sweet and malty with a lagerish funkiness. Tastes the same with an average mouthfeel. Not bad.

12oz bottle from Kroger - pours caramel amber with tan head and decent lacing. Nose is pumpkin and toast. Flavor adds wet hay and a little spiciness. Sweeter than I would expect for the style, with some bitterness on the back end. Short toasty finish. I think this beer would be better if paired with brats and sauerkraut with pork chops, steaming potatoes, pepper corns and white wine. OK, this beer made me hungry. Hark, I shake my fist at you!

12oz bottle from some drive-thru liquor store in Cincinnati, OH. Pours a clear amber colored body with a finger-width, creamy, beige head that dissipates quickly and leaves a moderate lacing. Aroma is slightly sweet malts with some toast and toffee, grains, a light earth, and a hint of fruit. Flavor is similar. Slight malt sweetness with some toast, toffee, and a light nut up front with a slight grainy middle and a light fruit note. Finishes clean and somewhat dry with a light earthy bitterness and malt sweetness before leaving a medium length aftertaste. Light-medium body and a moderate carbonation. Overall, nothing special, but a decent Oktoberfest. Easy drinking and an alright "local" beer.

12 ounce bottle
$1.00 is a low risk proposition for anything so I grabbed this while going through Cincinnati. It isn’t the greatest marzen but even at the full price for a six pack it is standard Moerlein’s fare. As long as you know that going in you won’t be too disappointed.

Aroma / Appearance - A carbonated coppery body was the right color for the style. Nuts, banana bread, and chocolate chips were sweeter than I expected. This smells like a slice of toast slathered in Nutella.

Flavor / Palate - Fluid and creamy, this tastes like the inside of a Twinkie was blended with nuts, banana chips, and white toast. If you’ve had one pedestrian marzen you know what this is like. If you want to buy local give it a shot. It is a toss up whether Mt Carmel would be a better alternative.