Oktoberfest 2022

details about THe beer we're serving on the green today...

Feats of Strength - Festbier
5.9% ABV

Although Oktoberfest started in 1810, this style didn’t emerge and replace the Marzen until the 1990’s. Essentially, it’s a more pale and slightly hoppier version of the Marzen made to be “less filling”. It’s officially the only beer served at the Munich Oktoberfest every year.

This version has an aroma of light sourdough bread and earthy noble hops that pair wonderfully with light malty flavors which fade to fresh dough before ending on a crisp, clean note.

Black Flannel is elated to make our version of this celebrated style for our very own Oktoberfest here in Essex.

Marzen - Old Style Oktoberfest Amber Lager
5.8% ABV

Sometimes referred to as an Oktoberfest in the states, the Märzen is an amber, malty Bavarian lager meant to be drunk by the liter. It was the official beer at Munich’s Oktoberfest for over a century (1870s-1990) before it was replaced by the lighter-colored Festbier, which was thought to be more drinkable. This beer features strong notes of bread crust and toast, but remains dangerously drinkable at 5.8%. The smooth body mixed with a complex lingering malt character make this a crushable yet flavorful lager. Starts malty and sweet, but finishes semi dry.

Black Flannel's version has a toasty and bready malt character, subtle noble hops for balance, and a mouthfeel that makes this traditional Bavarian lager way too easy to drink.

Braunbier - Munich Dunkel
4.4% ABV

Black Flannel’s Braunbier is the epitome of the Munich Dunkel style. Brewed with traditional ingredients and a traditional mash process, this beer should taste very similar to what you would purchase in Bavaria. “Braunbier” is a callback to the original name for this style before it got the “Dunkel” name. Aroma features rich bready malt, toast, and nuts with very light chocolate. Chocolate & subtle roast give way to a semi-sweet, crisp finish on the palate. A dangerously easy-drinking beer.

Napravnik - Czech Amber Lager
5.0% ABV

Aroma is dominated by earthy hops and scents reminiscent of molasses cookies, with hints of honey comb, toasted muffin, and black cherry. On the palate is a subtly sweet, malty flavor saddled by an assertive yet inviting bitterness before finishing clean, crisp, and refreshing. This Bohemian beverage is modeled after the Bavarian style Vienna Lager. Polotmavý, as the Czechs call it, literally translates to semi dark.

Janacek - Czech Dark Lager
5.0% ABV

A robust take on the Czech Dark Lager style just in time for the colder months. This beer has aromas reminiscent of cold brewed coffee, cola, and bread crust. On the palate we have a pleasant maltiness, earthy hops, and a surprisingly clean finish relative to its color. This beer’s namesake, Leoš Janáček, is a famous Czech composer who dedicated his life to learning about folk music from the rural reaches of the Czech Republic and writing music inspired by it. Na Zdravi!

Dent Head - Kolsch-style Ale
5.0% ABV

Straw-colored, light-bodied, and easy-drinking with malt notes of cracker and bread dough, spicy noble hops, and subtle fruitiness from the yeast. One of the harder styles to get right because there’s very little malt and hop aroma to hide behind. Cologne brewers were some of the first to organize into a brewer’s guild in the middle of the 14th century, and they’ve remained a brewing center on the Rhine ever since. Dent Head is inspired by the style, and it’s a highly drinkable beer with light corny sweetness and very low noble hop bitterness for balance.

Wortspiel Smoked Marzen
5.3% ABV

Collaboration with Collaborative Brewing Co, Wortspiel is German for Word Play. A lovely and complex aroma that brings together fresh baked bread crust, molasses cookies, and delicate malt smokiness. Medium-low body on the palate with a subtle smokey presence that fades pleasantly into soft bready malts on the finish. This crisp, complex, and subtly smoky lager makes for a refreshing adventure!

Black Flannel Pilsner
4.6% ABV

Hop-focused German-style Pilsner brewed with German malt and hops. We open fermented this beer, which was then naturally carbonated for a smooth, soft mouthfeel. Pilsner is often mistaken as a light, malty beer in America—ours sticks to the historical tradition of a moderately bitter lager with floral and crackery notes that is, most importantly, outrageously drinkable.