The Kaiser - Avery Brewing Co., Boulder

The Kaiser has a lot going for it. Not the least of which is its reference to the turn of the century German monarchy. The label is thoroughly Germanic and even has a picture of Wilhelm II donning his favorite Pickelhaube. This beer speaks to me on levels that I'm uncomfortable discussing in public... and yet, I can't quite come to terms with the actual beer inside the bottle. First impressions mean a lot, even when it comes to drinking a specialty beer. The Kaiser does just about everything right, it's got a killer bottle, mouth watering appearance and aroma... but it ends up being all for naught. Well, that may be a little melodramatic, but you get the idea. There's some deceptively awesome packaging here and I really want to like this beer but the flavor falls short. Actually, it falls too far... as in, it's too strong, too alcoholic and too sugary sweet.

Dear Avery, I like most of your beers. You do a great job bottling the beers I want to drink. Sure, we've a few disagreements along the way but mostly we tend to see eye to eye. I get what you guys were trying to do here, with The Kaiser, really I do. I mean, what self respecting beer drinking WOULDN'T jump at the chance to drink an Imperial Oktoberfest? Who knew that, all that is Imperial isn't good?

Imperial Stouts are great, Imperial IPAs are... well, hoppier - but some people dig that and I can respect that. I'm hoping that's the same for Imperial Oktoberfests. I really can't get behind the super sweet maltiness in this beer. That sugary, almost cola flavor is just a little too much for me. When I drink a Märzen I'm looking for a grainy, dry oat flavor that is malty but not as sweet as The Kaiser. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone who is a fan of traditional Märzen style Oktoberfest beers. If you like super sweet and malty beers then this would be right up your alley.