Now HERE is what I was looking for.  A dark amber, full bodied, sweet warming beer with a smooth taste.  No funny-business here, this is exactly what I wanted.  After Googling Oktoberfest pictures, I saw lots of images of people enjoying this beer.  If it was good enough for them, it had to be at least on the right track.  I may buy several hundred cases of this and never leave the house.  I will need a vast supply of sausages to grill and chickens to roast.  And I will need to learn those fancy drinking songs.

I'll be the first to tell you that I've never really identified with the German side of my heritage, even though I am more than half.  But this.  This is helping.  Thank you, fine people at Paulaner.  I'm starting to feel German.

Even though I had some of the Weihenstephaner left, my pursuit to drink as many Oktoberfest beers this fall continued -- because it must! -- with me taking a chance on Bell's.

Let me tell you my take on Bell's.  I want to like this brewery.  It's a Michigan institution.  I respect them, and after a bad experience I've come to like Oberon.  But this is tempered by some very, very bad Bell's.  Specifically, their dark beer that almost dares you to like them while punching you in the face with almost a dirtiness that you have to wash out of your mouth.  But I digress.

Or do I?  Bell's Oktoberfest is, once again, not an Oktoberfest in my mind.  It missed the sweetness and warm spicy aromas I expect from an Oktoberfest.  It replaced these qualities with a somewhat bitter bite and a shallow finish that surprised me relative to its amber color.  I'd put it on par with other red beers I've had in the past, namely Killians.  I don't dislike Killians...I really like Killians when I'm expecting Killians.  You can see where I'm going with this.

True to my nature, I muscled through the six-pack, saving the rest of the Weihenstephaner for desert.

Sam Adams has an Oktoberfest out this year.  I want to try it, but I'm scared now.  Will they screw it up too?

Weihenstephaner Festbeir is not a typical Marzen-style Oktoberfest beer.  It's this delicious, smooth-drinking, blond-colored bottlefull of happiness.  When I purchesed this six-pack, I came down with a nasty flu bug and saved most of the beers for the following weekend.  And I'm glad I did.  The beer not heavy, but still has a solid mouthfeel.

Just jotting this down.  If you were expecting more from my blog than reports on alcoholic beverages, you clearly don't knokw me well enough.

I want to say that Matthias, who joined us for dinner a few months ago, and who is also the only person to read this blog, suggested that I try Augustiner.  After checking my two favorite beer stores, I have struck out.  Must....keep....searching.

I love beer.  But of all my favorites, Oktoberfest never fails me.  Strongly suggested by the guy at my beer store, I picked up a six-pack of Hacker-Pschorr.

It's like unicorns and rainbows in a bottle.  Poured into a glass.

It's a full-bodied beer, medium caramel color, very smooth.  5.8% alcohol, it doesn't have a strong alcohol taste like I've had with some other Oktoberfests.

There's this nose to it though.  I couldn't put my finger on it.  Then it struck me.  When I was a kid, I was on an iced tea kick.  Not any iced tea, but the Lipton powdered stuff with the sugar and lemon flavor.  When I'd open the can, the dust inside would waft out.  It's a very distinct smell for me, and this beer has it for one reason or another.  I wouldn't call it a tea-smell.  More like a freeze-dried tea-and-fake-lemon smell that only smells that way to me because I have that frame of reference.  This is not a bad thing, that was a good time in my life...this beer takes me back with every sip.  To someone without this odd bit of smell memory going on, it'd probably smell like...well, I don't know what smells like that.

I'm going to shut up now.  I have five more beers to drink.