Brewview#29: Fall Festival by Ellicottville Brewing Company

Continuing on with the 716Brewviews Oktoberfest Serie, tonight we are drinking Fall Festival brewed by our friends over at Ellicottville Brewing Company. In preparation for this series I have already purchased and tried the different beers in which I plan to Brewview. Honestly, Ellicottville Brewing Company’s Fall Festival is one of the more unique tasting ones. Details of which I will get into further on in this post when the appropriate time arises. Have no fear we will get there.

Brewer’s Thought

What am I diving into when it comes to Fall Festival? Ellicottville Brewing Company provides a very short introduction on their website:

“Skillfully brewed with authentic & FRESH imported Hallertauer hops for a clean and flavorful classic seasonal lager.”

I was also able to garner from another source that Munich malts were also used in the brewing process. So far this beer has German written all over it. The book I use for information on hops and malts described Hallertauer hops as the classic German lager hop and Munich malts as producing flavor that screams ‘German.’ Ellicottville Brewing Company seems to know how to brew a good German style lager just from the appearance of the ingredient list.

But should we really stop there? I think we all know the answer to that question!

The Beer

Fall Festival Lager by Ellicottville Brewing Company

ABV: 5.6% IBU: N/A

Hop Profile: Hallertauer

Malt Profile: Munich

Bottle To Glass

So I’ve already taken the liberty of popping open a Fall Festival for tonight and it’s nothing short of what you would expect when looking the hop and malt profile. The aromas remain consistent when exchanging the bottle for a glass. Receiving contributions from the both the Hallertauer hops and Munich malts. Typically Hallertauer hops provide a fresh straw aroma and at times a hint of chamomile. For Fall Festival I am only getting the fresh straw aroma accented by the malt aroma provided by the Munich malts.

Appearance wise, when first pouring the beer into my glass I got a generous two finger width head which dissipated into a one finger width head. I’m thinking the one finger width head is here to stay, that is until I finish my glass and pour another one. Color wise Fall Festival is one of the lighter German styled lagers I’ve seen. I’m clocking it in at a light amber, though as expected it is crystal clear. On a critical note I’m slightly surprised at how light this beer is with what I’ve read about Munich malts being a dark base malt that provides a darker amber color. Either way it is still delicious looking and leaves my mouth watering.

The Climax

Now as I said earlier, even before I started writing I already had a bottle cracked open. Well it didn’t last too long because for this next part I am required to open another bottle, hopefully it can last till the end!

As I said before Fall Festival is one of the more unique tasting German style lagers I’ve had. In Brewview#28 I mentioned how Rohrbach’s Oktoberfest was slightly lighter than most German style lagers, well Fall Festival is even lighter and easier to drink. I’m cruising on my second one and I’m not getting an overwhelming full feeling or discomfort. Truly, it wouldn’t be difficult to finish off a six pack of Fall Festival or drink it for an entire night. The most unique feature and in my mind the most important is its flavor. Compared to other German style lagers it doesn’t have any caramel, biscuit, or butterscotch flavors. Taking it even further there is absolutely no sweet side to it, which I guess goes hand in hand with the absence of caramel or butterscotch flavors.

The two main flavors I am getting can obviously be pinpointed to the Hallertauer hops and Munich malts. There is a perfect balance between the straw flavor provided by the Hallertauer hops and the malt flavor that screams ‘German’ provided the Munich malts. These two flavors walk hand in hand with each and every sip leaving a very subtle if any bitter after taste to it. The mouth feel is medium, reason being is the creamy mouthfeel that remains. It’s a very well rounded beer that leaves you with a gentle send off, that is if you choose to drink a different beer.

In Conclusion

Fall Festival is proof that sometimes simplicity is the way to go. If you have a taste for a complex beer, Fall Festival is not the beer for you at the moment. The use of a single malt and hop allows for the perfect combination of aroma and flavor. Truly I think this is what gives Fall Festival its appeal, there are times for complex beers but other times simplicity reaches the masses. I think it’s safe to say Fall Festival will be a frequent flier in my fridge for the upcoming Oktoberfest. Ellicottville Brewing Company knew what they were doing when they decided upon brewing Fall Festival and the ingredients used in the process.

Thanks again for reading and having an interest in craft beer. It’s always a nice touch to drink craft beer, but even better when you can drink local.

Great job Ellicottville Brewing Company!

Prost!