A bit of Oktoberfest History
Started in 1810 as a public celebration for the wedding of Crown Price Ludwig (later King), the first Oktoberfest took place on October 12th just outside of gates of Munich. It featured horse racing, food, and huge amounts of beer, drawing large crowds and becoming enshrined in annual tradition. Early Oktoberfest beers resembled dark lagers such as dunkels, but over time the focus shifted with Spaten Brewery's introduction of Märzenbier (Märzen - meaning brewed in March, and then stored over the summer). Spaten continued to innovate and introduced what we know as the first beer specifically branded as "Oktoberfest" in 1872, a continued evolution of the Märzen style. In the late 1970s, Paulaner introduced the Festbier style which gained prevalence as changing tastes shifted to these bright pale Munich lagers with Nobel hops. In general, Märzen is a malty German amber lager with clean, rich, toasty and bready malt flavor, minimal bitterness, and a dry finish while a Festbier is a light and refreshing golden lager. To this day only six Munich breweries are allowed to name their beers officially as Oktoberfest: Spaten Brauerei, Hacker-Pschorr, Paulaner, Hofbräu, Augustiner, and Löwenbräu. All other breweries in Germany must call their beers seasonal lagers, ambers, or golden "Oktoberfest-style" beers. At the same time, Festbier is often used outside Germany to describe today's Oktoberfestbier. In the United States, most craft beer offerings called "Oktoberfest' will be the more malty Märzen style, though you may see some that clarify that they are indeed a Festbier on the labeling. On German labels, you may see the current lineup of golden festbiers referred to as "Wiesn beer" which is a shortened form of "Theresienwiese," the name of the meadow in Munich where Oktoberfest is held each year.
5 of the Best Oktoberfest Beers
For our selections, we considered traditional German staples as well some American Craft brands. Ranking is a combination of house tastings and public ratings on untapped. All beers have been tasted internally.
1. Augustiner Oktoberfest Bier - Festbier
My personal favorite of the historic six Munich breweries,
Augustiner's Festbier is one of the higher ABV in the category at 6.3%. It is more full bodied and a hair sweeter than most others in the category and drinks exceptionally clean. Augustiner is the only one of the six to still serve beer exclusively from wooden barrels, in accordance with tradition and at much additional expense and effort. Of the locals I talked to in Munich, 6 out of 7 mentioned this as being their favorite. Unfortunately, it is a bit tough to find in the U.S. though a specialty bar may have gotten their hands on a keg. I struggled with whether or not to include it for this reason, but I do believe it is the overall top performer.
2. Ayinger Fest-Märzen
Located in Aying, Germany, about 25km south of Munich, Ayinger is very well regarded and is the highest rated beer in the style on Untapped. Since they are outside Munich city limits, they are not allowed to call their beer Oktoberfestbier and instead went with the title "Fest-Märzen". It drinks somewhere between the more heavily malted Märzens and Fesbiers, a middle-of-the road crowd pleaser at 25IBUs and 5.8% ABV. Ayinger's Fest-Märzen is the highest upvoted Oktoberfest stye style beer on the beer Reddit and I can personally attest that it is fantastic. As hard as it is to find the Augustiner, this is probably your best bet in the U.S. as it is stocked by Total Wine, Whole Foods, and some other large format stores.
3. Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest - Festbier
Known for it's distinctive black and yellow can,
Sierra Nevada's Oktobersfest is a collaboration with a German brewer (2025 is Störtebeker and is one of the better years to date) and is readily available in most U.S. states from August-September each year in both 6 and 12-pack formats. It is a Festbier at 6% ABV with Opal, Perle, Spalter Select, and Tradition hops giving it a lovely 30 IBUs. Note that the collaboration brewery and final product do vary year-to-year, so it may be worth seeing what the beer nerds are saying about the current iteration before buying. While the best years are probably worthy of the top spot on this list, some relatively flat performers pull the Sierra Nevada down to #3. The 2023-2025 batches have all been fantastic following a bit of a pandemic shutdown slump. For bonus points, visit one of their tap houses in CA or NC; they're like a beer Disney World with great brews and food to match. For the spring, they take the fall recipe and brew an imperial version, aging it in whiskey barrels to outstanding effect (Barrel-Aged Superfest).
Developed more than 200 years ago, this is the beer that Paulaner brought to the first Oktoberfest. It is readily available year-round in the U.S. due to steady demand, a consumer endorsement! It pairs Herkules and Hallertauer Tradition hops with a blend of Pilsner/light malt and Munich/dark malt to produce a final gravity of 5.8% ABV. Costco typically has a sweet pack which crams a 1L Maßkrug (stein) with a 1L can of Paulaner for around $10. You need the big glass for the full experience - I promise.
5. Hofbräu Dunkel
Another historical throwback,
Hofbräuhaus's Dunkel was the first beer ever brewed by the brewery. It is around 5.5% ABV, 23 IBUs, and is a bottom-fermented dark lager, combining 3 malts (Munich, light, and caramel) with Hercules and Perle hops. They produce the Dunkel year-round and you can find it easily enough on store shelves. I find that the Dunkel offers more fruited and chocolate flavors that the Märzen or Festbier styles. They also have a Dunkel-Weizen which adds that sweet wheat and more fruit, not as historical but a fantastic swap-in to a party lineup.
Outro
There are few events that have had as profound an impact on beer history as Oktoberfest, and I suspect that we have yet more to see in the cycle of innovation. That being said, it's worth your time to try all of the offerings from the six original Munich breweries eventually. On the craft side, it's reasonable to expect that a highly esteemed brewery is going to put out a good seasonal beer, but the heavy hitters are seldom seen outside of on-premise taprooms. Give your local place a shot; they may surprise you! If you're planning an
Oktoberfest party, I would try for a Marzen or Festbier, a Dunkel/Dunek-Weizen/Hefewisen, and a
light beer of your choosing.
Where is Sam Adams? While many associate Sam Adams with the iconic orange Oktoberfest can and they did much to popularize the style in America, I believe that it is overshadowed by many of the options on this list. It's a solid beer but middle-of-the-pack, and I would actually point you to their Dunkel, Flannel-Fest, as being their best
fall beer. Sam Adams Oktoberfest is available at Costco, Sam's Club, and other big box in 28 bottle packs which is nice if you need a lot of it!
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