Molloys Guide to Oktoberfest

At Molloys we're all about celebrating great beers, and there are few greater beer celebrations than Munich's Oktoberfest. We now stock five of the six official Oktoberfest beers, so pick some up, find a pretzel and get in the spirit...

What is it? 

Oktoberfest is an annual 16 day festival held in Munich, Germany. It takes place in late September and ends on the first Sunday of October. Not only is Oktoberfest probably the most famous event in Germany, it is also the worlds largest fair, attracting over 6 million visitors. 

Though the focus often seems to be on great beer, that's only a part of a festival celebrating all things Bavarian. 

History

On October 12, 1810, Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen and invited the citizens of Munich along to take part in the festivities. 

At the end of the festivities there was a horse-racing event to celebrate all of Bavaria. This horse-racing was repeated and became Oktoberfest. 

To take advantage of better weather, the festival was moved to the end of September (hence Oktoberfest in September.)

By 1960, horse-racing was no longer part of the festival and the current modern Oktoberfest began to emerge, along with rising international popularity as a tourist event. 

Beers

Germany is famous for its beers and the Reinheitsgebot (German beer purity law,) but Oktoberfest kicks it up another notch.
Not only must the beers follow the Reinheitsgebot, but they must also must brew within the city limits of Munich (which is why Erdinger isn't in) and must also be of a certain strength (about 6% or so.)

The six breweries are:

• Augustiner-Brau
• Hacker-Pschorr-Brau
• Lowenbrau
• Paulaner-Brau
• Spatenbrau
• Staatliches Hofbrau-Munchen

The special Oktoberfest brew is made each year, with each batch being a bit different from one year to the next. The beers are typically stronger with a richer flavour.
If you fancy trying them, Molloys Liquor Stores now stock all but the Augustiner Oktoberfest. 

Some Handy Vocab

"Die Wiesn" is what the locals call Oktoberfest, after the nickname for the location where it takes place. 

"Maß" is the 1 litre stein of beer

"Bierleichen" or 'beer corpses' is the nickname given to those people who pass out from too much beer.

"O' zapft is!" means "it's tapped" and is shouted by the Mayor as he taps the first keg of the festival. 

"Dirndl" the traditional costume often worn by Bavarian women at the festival (making carrying 8 litres of beer even more impressive)

"Lederhosen" the traditional leather trouser costume often worn by Bavarian men at the festival. 

"Brezeln" is the German for pretzels, delicious salty pretzels. 

"Grüß Gott" is an Bavarian form of greeting, translated as "greet god"

Random Bits

• Though it's often seen as very touristy, the actual spread is usually about 70% locals and 30% tourists. 
• There are currently 14 large tents and 20 small tents, each with a character of their own. 
• A "quiet Oktoberfest" policy was developed in 2005 to accommodate older patrons. This means that no loud music can be played before 6pm. 
• 1881 saw the first booths selling bratwurst (the delicious roast German sausages)
• In 2010, 69,293 pork knuckles were consumed.
• The first glass beer mugs were used in 1892

New & Exclusive Spanish Wines to Molloys

We now have a great range of wines exclusive to Molloys.  We've sourced them directly from the vineyard, leading to lower prices for our customers.  Today we'll have a look at some of the Spanish wines that we have in our shops.

Pardal Verdejo

Pardal Verdejo is produced by Vinos & Bodegas Gallegas.  

This modern winery is based in Galicia, north west Spain, near the 

famous pilgrimage town of Santiago de Compostela.

 This wine is really enticing, with  floral and herbaceous aromas.  

Fresh, vibrant green apple flavours with some floral notes in this 

dry, medium bodied wine. Deliciously rich mouthfeel and great

 length of flavour. Discover Spain’s version of Sauvignon Blanc! 

This wine is excellent with chicken, tapas, mild curries and spicy dishes, 

white fish & meat, pork, paella. 

At only €6.49 a bottle this is superb value.

Sancho Garces, Rioja Alta 2009, Crianza                  

Sancho Garces is produced by Bodegas Patrocinio. This bodega 

was formed in 1986 when 170 grape growers came together to 

produce their own wine, instead of just selling on grapes.

Spain’s most popular wine – this is classic Rioja at a super price.  

Enjoy this smooth, medium bodied firm but silky wine, laden with 

ripe dark berry flavours, sweet vanilla, and a lick of spice.

 Gorgeous long finish.

It is made from the tempranillo grape and is aged for 12 months

 in American oak barrels and a further 6 months in the bottle.
Fantastic with roast lamb, beef, red meat or hard cheese.

Hard to beat at €9.99.

     

A Sinfully Tasty Saint

This week we're looking at BrewDog's 5 a.m. Saint

BrewDog is one of a number of exciting new breweries stocked by Molloys. Set up in 2007 by two friends fed-up with "industrially brewed lagers and stuffy ales," Scottish based BrewDog aim to make contemporary and progressive beers showcasing the world's classic styles.

5 a.m. Saint is named after its combination of five hops ( Cascade, Nelson Sauvin, Amarillo, Simcoe, and Centennial) and five malts ( Munich Malt, Caramalt, Maris Otter,  Crystal and Dark Crystal.)

5am Saint and friends

The 5am Saint experience starts once you pop the cap, with a strong and distinct aroma, conjuring images of a rich black forest gateaux, full of summer fruits and chocolate.

When poured, the ale has a deep amber colour, nearly ruby, with a large frothy head.

First taste packs a really powerful punch, nearly to the point of over overpowering the taste-buds. As with many of the more flavoursome beers in the world, you have to approach with a Guinness mentality and give it a few more tries before you judge.

Once your taste-buds are used to it, you'll find a smooth malty initial taste, where a biscuit and slight sweetness overpowers the bitterness of the hops. By the time it reaches the back of your mouth, a distinct hoppy bitterness kicks in. The bitterness lasts noticeably longer than the other flavours, but though the after-taste is quite powerful, it also fades quickly.

As you work through the beer, you'll notice the nose has changed after pouring, now quite a pleasant woody hint, with possibly herb notes. I couldn't quite pin-point it, and after asking various opinions, everyone agreed it was very familiar, but no agreement was reached.

The ale kept a head right down to the very last mouthful, retaining a consistent flavour right to the end.

Summary: Full of flavour and complexity, the bitter hit from the hops may not be for everybody, but sampling a bottle and making up your own mind is a must for beer fans.

A taste of summer from Goose Island

 This week we're going to look at a seasonal offering to go with our summer (or what's left of it,) Goose Island's Summertime.

Goose Island is a Chicago-based craft brewer, formed in 1988 as part of a movement to counter the dominance of mass-produced beers in mid-western America.

First making a mark on these shores with their IPA (India Pale Ale,) a wide range of Goose Island products can now be found in specialist craft beer stores (such as Molloys.)

Summertime pours a nice light golden colour, slightly darker than most lagers. We got a small head with very small bubbles, though that may have been our pour, the Goose Island site shows a massive frothy head at home in any German beer hall. Speaking of German beer halls, Summertime is a Kölsch style, famous around Cologne and noted for it's refreshing but not over-powering hoppiness, and it's quite a good version of the style. 


The first taste is refreshing, with the hops adding a very slight bitter taste, combined with a gentle fruity acidity. The after taste is quite pleasant and sets you up nicely for another mouthful. The mention of fruitiness can put some people off a beer, but it shouldn't be the case here. Summertime is nowhere near as fruity as popular blond beers such a Hoegaarden, as there's just enough acidity and bitterness to make it genuinely refreshing. 

Summertime with colleagues Harvest Ale and Honker's Ale. Rest of the gang out of shot.

Ideal food pairings would be salad and fish, but realistically the flavour isn't intense enough to take away from anything on a barbecue. 

At 4.7%, it's slightly stronger than most beers aimed at the lighter tasting summer market, but the extra hit of alcohol is hard to detect. 


In terms of complex flavours and long term memorability, Summertime isn't up there with some of the more serious ales, but from the bottle alone you can see it's not trying to compete. Summertime aims to be a refreshing sunny-day treat and on that count it's successful. It may not be exciting enough for the serious beer drinker, but in terms of flavour it's a step up from many of the traditional warm weather beers. 

Summary: Refreshing beer,  a stronger flavour for those who want more bite than their normal summertime Corona or Sol.

Football and Beer

Euro 2012 is upon us and we're all wondering what to drink while watching the footie.  At Molloys we've gone 'foreign' this June and really bumped up our range of European beers.  We've just launched our Euro 2012 Beer of the World Pack.  It contains 12 x 500ml beers from countries competing in the tournament.  It makes a great gift for a football loving friend, for fathers day or just to enjoy in front of the tv. Get all the details here.

 

Quinta do Cachao Douro on Newstalk's Moncrieff show

Quinta do Cachao Douro

If you missed Newstalk's Moncrieff show this afteroon, click on the link below (Part 4 of the broadcast) to hear the podcast, where wine expert Jean Smullen recommends our Quinta do Cachao Douro.

http://www.newstalk.ie/programmes/all/moncrieff/listen-back/

She describes it as being excellent value, and perfect for this rainy unseasonal weather we're having. Splash out on a good steak and pop open a bottle this weekend.

Quinta do Cachao Douro 2009

Did you catch our Quinta da Cachao Douro being reviewed on Newstalk this afternoon?

Click on the link below to hear the Podcast, where wine expert Jean Smullen recommends this popular Portuguese wine:

"a very good vintage
"wonderful concentrated wine... a very drinkable good quality wine... "


http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3983779848100504176#editor/target=post;postID=2427559663845923823

Caribbean Classics

We've gone very Caribbean in the last few weeks and listed two of the most iconic beers of that region.

Red Stripe

Red Stripe is an icon reflecting the roots, vibrancy, and pride of the Jamaican people.  It all began in 1928 when two Jamaicans, Desnoes & Geddes (D&G) began brewing it in a soda-pop factory in Kingston. The brand has been the recipient of numerous international awards for fine quality and taste including 11 gold medals at the Monde Selection and the “Grand Gold Medal” in Barcelona in 1991.

Red Stripe Jamaican Lager has a refreshing taste, perfectly balancing malty-sweet and lightly hoppy flavors. The result is a lager that’s crisp, clean and easy to drink. Red Stripe is moderate in body, bitterness, hop aroma and has a low butterscotch

flavor. 4.7% ABV.  It comes in 33cl bottles and retails for €2.99.

Cubanero Fuerte

Also known as Bucanero Fuerte, this lager is brewed in Holguin, Cuba. Bucanero Fuerte gets its name from old legends of the pirates that roamed the Caribbean sea.

It is a golden beer, with a vigorous and robust flavour.  Nice noble hop aroma. Light body, fairly bitter.  The beer is brewed in Holguin as this is where the best quality water can be found. 5.4% ABV, the cost is €2.29 for a 33cl bottle.

Bank holiday wine recommendations

Take inspiration from the wine critics when choosing your bank holiday wine. 

The Sunday Times has just chosen our La Marca Prosecco (€14.49) as one of the best prosecco in the country! 

They also advised to look out for words on the label which denote better quality - Valdobbiadene means it comes from one of the better vineyard zones, and Spumante means that it is fully sparkling as opposed to lightly sparkling. We are happy to say that our La Marca ticks both boxes!

Over at The Daily Star, the editor there was 'very impressed with the quality at some very affordable prices.' 

She picked out Ch. du Donjon Grand Tradition Minervois (€9.25), Douro from Caves Messias (€7.49) and Vivolo Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (€8.49).  Vivolo is also a bit of a staff favourite, as it happens.

Need we say more!

A nice red wine for Easter

Treat yourself this Easter to a bottle of delicious Ch. Donjon Minervois.  Enjoy wonderful layers of flavours in this red wine: earthy lead pencil, wood, blackcurrant, blueberry, vanilla and a lovely long spicy finish. With its medium tannin and body, it would be perfect with roast lamb this weekend. 

The wine is sourced from a small family property in the Languedoc Roussillon area, in south west France, and is made by Carol & Jean Panis. The area is famous for its brilliant sunshine, producing fruity wines from grape varieties known for their juicy, spicy flavours.

Another notable feature is the exceptional value for money this area delivers. All the more so, as we bring this wine to you directly, and pass on the saving.  It's €9.25 in our stores.

As they say in France, Les Pâques heureux, or Happy Easter!

Flying Dog Beers

We really are in the middle of a love affair with American beers in Ireland at the moment.  There are so many micro-breweries producing a wonderful array of beer styles, that the curious beer drinker would be lost for choice.


One brewery that is new to Molloys is the Flying Dog Brewery.

Flying Dog Brewery is a beer brewery now located in Frederick, Maryland, United States. Originally opening in Aspen, Colorado in 1990 as a brewpub, it became the first brewery to open in Aspen in over 100 years, and one of the first brewpubs in the Rocky Mountain region. In 1991, Flying Dog’s “Doggie Style” was bottled and won the “The Best Pale Ale in America” award at the Great American Beer Festival.

Flying Dog Brewery is noted for using the unusual art of Ralph Steadman, best known as the illustrator of the works of Hunter S. Thompson, on its labels. 

Doggie Style Classic Pale Ale 5.5% 355ml btl €3.29

APPEARANCE: This beer produced a foamy 1/2" off-white head that dissipated quickly leaving good head lacing. Carbonation was soft in a hazy amber body.

AROMA: Light grainy malts with some caramel and moderate piney hops.

TASTE: Taste followed aroma mostly: light malts, a very light touch of honey and moderately piny hops.

MOUTHFEEL: This beer had a medium body with a smooth texture, soft carbonation and good body lacing that dissipated quickly. The initial flavor was moderately bitter with a slightly less bitter finish that lasted for a long time.

DRINKABILITY: This is a balanced, moderately hopped session ale. Easy to drink, repeatable and well priced, it is definitely worth having again and I'd serve it to others with no qualms. Though there are better examples of the APA style, this is a good, solid APA.

Raging Bitch Belgian Style IPA 8.3% 355ml €3.79

Appearance: Light copper color that is extremely clear. Lots of bubbles. Resilient, lofty thick, vanilla/cream head. Little-to-no lacing.

Aroma: Orange peel with a slight sweetness. 

Taste: Very smooth and dry with orange peel/citrus emphasis. Medium hoppiness that does not overstay its welcome.

Mouthfeel: Lighter, medium-thin body with perfect carbonation. 

O: An absolutely beautiful beer that is excellently drinkable. The body is thin enough to go down easy, but a wonderful dry and short lived hop taste keeps you tasting all the way down.

Snake Dog IPA  7.1% €3.79

Appearance: Pours a clear amber with a sticky, off-white head.

Aroma: Very hoppy. Website advertises Warrior and Columbus hops and they are very apparent in the nose.

Taste: A bigger IPA at 7.1% ABV and decent flavor. Not as bitter as the smell or label would have you believe, but still very good tasting. Malt and bitterness balance out well. Some caramel notes and slight pine flavor.

Mouthfeel: Very full mouthfeel, consistent with other FD beers. Hint of alcohol in the exhale.

Overall: Not the a bad IPA. 

Non Alcoholic Beers

Non Alcoholic Beers

It's January again and some of you may be looking to try something a little different for New Year.  Below are some of the non alcoholic beers & ciders that we have in Molloys.

Erdinger Non Alcohol

Very popular in Germany, this brand is advertised as as multi vitamin drink to athletes. Erdinger Weissbier 'non-alcoholic' is brewed with the customary care and experience gained from over 110 years of brewing tradition and in accordance with the highest quality standards.

Erdinger's master brewers have succeeded in retaining the aromatic, full-bodied Erdinger character - even without alcohol. It is this unique flavor which has spread the fame of Erdinger Weissbräu far beyond the borders of Germany.

Baltika 0

A huge favourite and definitely my favourite non alcoholic lager.  You wouldn't know it was alcohol free when drinking.  This Russian brand has been repeatedly declared the best alcohol-free beer at Russian and international professional contests. In 2006 the Baltika №0 received a most prestigious award: a silver medal in the Alcohol-Free Beer category at the International Tasting Contest of the Brewers’ Association — the World Beer Cup 2006. In 2008 this brand was awarded a bronze medal in the Low Alcohol Packaged category at the Australian International Beer Awards contest as well as the Platinum Osiris in the Best Alcohol-Free Beer category of the professional Osiris Contest at the X Big Moscow Beer Festival. In addition, this brand was declared the best by the results of people’s tasting at the beer festival in Moscow.

Kopparberg Non Alcoholic Pear Cider

The first alcohol free pear cider, it delivers the same great taste as with all Kopparberg ciders.  Available in 500ml bottles.

Weihenstephaner Non Alcoholic

A cloudy non alcohol wheat beer with a smooth malt background, yeast flavours, spicy, with fruity banana overtones. Medium bodied, and good flavours for a non alcoholic beer. Thanks to the gentle process for removing alcohol, which the brewery developed in collaboration with the University Munich-Weihenstephan their non-alcoholic yeast wheat beer offers you everything you expect from a premium beer. And you don't have to be worried about driving. Available in 500ml bottle.  

Maisels Weisse Non Alcoholic

Sometimes I'm too lazy to write up info on a beer.  This time however I've taken this verbatim from a German beer review site that had also (very badly) 

translated the review in English.  Enjoy!!!!!

Maisel’s Weisse Alcohol-free is the ideal fitness and wellness beverage for active and health conscious connoisseur. The sporty version of Maisel’s Weisse is made like any other Maisel’s Weisse varieties of only natural raw materials, containing vitamins, isotonic, using 40% less calories. With a proprietary brewing process has succeeded the master brewers of avoiding alcohol sparing, which the characteristics of Maisel’s Weisse remain preserved. Also shines so this version with the unique bright reddish amber color and a spicy-fruity taste sensation.