The Jersey City Independent "

Editor’s note: Who couldn’t go for a beer right about now, after this kind of week here in Jersey City?

Beer correspondent (nice title, huh?) Jonathan Fitzgerald is on vacation this week. In his absence he asked a friend, fellow Jersey resident and writer Kevin Gosa, to assume his beer blogging responsibility. (Clearly, he takes this stuff seriously.) And he did so admirably.

What is it you could think about every single day while on vacation? What would distract you from enjoying, in full, the time and space you inhabit? What might you long for with such great intensity that you salivate at the mere thought of it?

Whatever it might be, unless you are German and homesick, you are probably not longing for a big stein at the biergarten. But I did.

Ever since Zeppelin Hall was brought to my attention I awaited its opening like Harry Potter awaits the advance release of the Nimbus 3000. But sadly for me (or not so sadly, really) I missed the opening while on trip to see family back in the Midwest. Everyday I was there, I thought about that first litre of beer I would have when I got home and marched right over to Zeppelin Hall.

Would it be hefewiezen? Perhaps dunkel? Maibock? Pilsner? Helles?

There is much to consider when selecting one’s first beer at a brand new biergarten. I carefully weighed all the pros and cons of each selection on Zeppelin Hall’s massive draught list, and decided on a beer that seemed like, perhaps, the most appropriate for the setting — and innappropriate for the season.

Spaten Oktoberfest.

Yes. My first litre of beer at my new favorite place in the universe was an Oktoberfest in the middle of summer. (Not that we’ve had much of a summer here.)

Nothing to me says “outdoor, German-style biergarten” more than an Oktoberfest.

The Zeppelin hall description of Spaten Oktoberfest: The Spaten Oktoberfest is a classic of the Oktoberfest style, it pours a transparent brown with orangey red hints. The white head dissipates quickly leaving nice lace. It has the smell of a good lager, but with the slightest amount of crystal malts to add color and a bit of sweetness. Sweet and refreshing taste, it is not too plain nor too bold. There is a fine balance in this beer.

According to Spaten it is the world’s first Oktoberfest beer originating in 1872.

It was so good I can believe it.

The beer was darker than I expected, like grade B maple syrup. But it wasn’t heavy. (Except that I’m gonna have to go the gym, not to work off beer calories, but to strengthen my arm to hold up a beer that large.) It had a nice soft feel on the tongue and was truly refreshing – to my surprise given the humidity and heat that day.

I like a flavorful beer. It doesn’t have to be excessively hoppy and bitter, or overly sweet, or super malty. It just has to have some substance or I feel like I’m wasting my time and my stomach space.

Spaten Oktoberfest’s slight sweetness and bready flavor hits right away and stays consistent throughout. No strange aftertaste awaits you sixty seconds after it’s down your gullet. Just a smooth and soft beer that remains drinkable sip after sip from even the massive litre glass.

What will be most interesting to discover is if my love for this beer is more romantic than gastronomic. I expect further review, and a few more pints (or litres), will tell.

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