Ballast Point Celebrates Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest began as a wedding celebration with multiple days of drinking, feasting and horse races more than 200 years ago when Bavaria’s Crown Prince Ludwig married Princess Therese of Saxony-Hildburghausen on Oct. 12, 1810. Fast forward to today and Ballast Point is honoring the fall fest by pouring six traditional German-style beers, minus the horses!

Dead Ringer – Amber Lager, Märzen, ABV: 6% (Draft)

This Oktoberfest lager is inspired by old-style Märzen brews customarily enjoyed during Bavaria’s world-famous beer festival. Thanks to an abundance of toasted malt and a lower hop bitterness, this dark reddish brown lager is loaded with sweet, caramel toffee flavors and aromas. All the taste and celebration of Oktoberfest packed into one bottle; no lederhosen required.

$10: Oktoberfest Dead Ringer beer + stein

Schlenkerlish– Rauchbier, ABV: 6.6% (Draft)

Inspired by a trip to Bamberg, Germany, the traditional home of rauchbier, this beer is an homage to the urbock style made by the most famous rauchbierbrauerei in the world, Schlenkerla.  This beer features 100% Weyermann (the largest German malt producer, also located in Bamberg) malts, with just short of 30% of the grain bill comprised of beechwood-smoked Vienna-type malt.  Richly flavorful yet remarkably drinkable, with a punch of smoke balanced by a firmly malty, bready sweetness, this beer will make you crave a blustery, snowy day warmed by wood-fired stove and a plate of traditional Franconian schweinhaxe.

Menu Notes: A bock-strength, malty and robustly smoky amber/brown lager inspired by Aecht Schlenkerla’s urbock rauchbier

Helles Bock – Helles Bock, ABV: 7.5% (Draft)

Don’t let this beer’s appearance fool you when lined up alongside Uber to Helles, the Dortmunder Export, and/or Festbier- despite its similar appearance, this one will sneak up on you if you’re not careful.  Constructed of 100% Proximity Pilsen malt, this beer is deceptively light, pale, and drinkable- but lurking within is a punchy ABV that will let you know that you’re drinking something of a little higher octane with a touch of retronasal ethanol burn.

Menu Notes: Clean, drinkable, but sneakily strong bock-style Helles lager

Uber-to-Helles – Munich Helles, ABV 5.4% (Draft)

This is a traditional Munich Helles German lager.  A thirteen (13) day fermentation followed by a forty-two (42) day conditioning period helped created a clean, malty…dare I say refreshing, lager.  Pilsner malt with a touch of Munich and melanoidin malt helps to create a bready, nutty character countered by a delicate floral hop aroma and flavor.  A terrific food-pairing beer.

Menu Notes: Refreshing German Lager with a clean maltiness.

Dortmunder Export – Dortmunder Export/Gernan Helles Exportbier, ABV: 5.6% (Draft)

A beer style that sits squarely between a pilsner and a Munich Helles (less hop-forward than the former, more bitter than the latter), this is a pale lager featuring a very nuanced ingredient tweak: hard brewing water (as is characteristic of the water around Dortmund in northwest Germany) with high sulfate, carbonate, and chloride, all of which provide a distinctly minerally, almost salty finish.  100% German pale malt provides a satisfying malt backbone and a bit of bready sweetness that balances a delicate Spalt-driven hop character.  Clean, crisp, and impeccably balanced.

Menu Notes: Similar style to a pilsner and Munich Helles (more bitter than the latter, less hop-forward than the former), featuring a hard water profile characteristic of Dortmund, which provides a minerally, almost salty finish

Festbier – German Festbier, ABV: 5.5% (Draft)

The most popular beer style served at Oktoberfest in Germany since the early 1990’s.  A relatively new beer style, Paulaner brewed the first pale Oktoberfest beer in the 1970s to create a beer that was “more poundable” than the traditional amber Oktoberfest beer.  This beer has a malt bill of Pilsen, Briess Goldpils Vienna and Munich 10L along with a whirpool addition of Vic Secret, an Australian hop.  The end result is a lightly fruity, herbal aroma and a clean lightly malty lager taste.

Menu Notes: A clean, pale German lager lightly malty with Vic Secret hops for a fruity hoppy finish.  Designed for consumption in stein form.

October 9th – through while supplies last!

Ballast Point Oktoberfest starts Friday, October 9th – through while supplies last! Visit any Ballast Point locations in Miramar, Little Italy, and Home Brew Mart.

See you there….and stay healthy, San Diego! Prost!

Share This Post
The Latest
Mt. Ada
The perfect pop-up escape awaits just 22 miles off the Southern California coast. Catalina Island debuts exciting new summer adventures that blend beachside relaxation, small-town...
victorian hotel room
The legendary Hotel del Coronado announced the completion of its Victorian building revitalization, marking the final milestone in Blackstone Real Estate’s comprehensive $550 million transformation...
Daybreaker SD
Something magical happened last time Daybreaker Coffee Club took over Quartyard, and now it’s happening again. This isn’t your typical morning gathering—it’s a full-throttle celebration...
Medieval Festival at Serpentine Cider
Huzzah! Time travel becomes reality this weekend at Serpentine Cider’s Medieval Festival. Step back to the Middle Ages for an afternoon of knights, maidens, craft...
Annual Art In The Village In Carlsbad Returns For Its 24th Year
Two and a half decades of artistic excellence return to Carlsbad Village. Art in the Village celebrates its 27th year bringing together more than 150...
Mirae kh RHEE Constellations
Art meets personal narrative in one of this year’s most compelling exhibitions. “Mirae kh RHEE: Constellations” opens at MOPA@SDMA, presenting a deeply moving exploration of...
Recently Featured Restaurants
San Diego got a serious culinary upgrade with Little Italy’s Barra Oliba, the Spanish-inspired bistro that opened late in 2024. The restaurant has already established...
The bayfront dining scene at Mission Bay has a new star, and we couldn’t be more excited about it. Bianchi Pizza & Pasta has opened...
A new fire has lit up Little Italy—Piedra Santa, an Argentinian-inspired steakhouse, is now open and bringing the bold, smoky tradition of open-flame grilling to...
Dora, a vibrant new Southern Italian restaurant from the husband-and-wife team behind Cori Trattoria, is set to open in La Jolla’s Theater District this fall—and...
There’s a breezy new addition to Little Italy’s dining scene! Brisa, an island vibes and Latin-Japanese fusion restaurant, is now open at the corner of...
Downtown La Mesa has a delicious new addition—Tour de Tapas, a restaurant offering Euro small plates and sips inspired by the culinary traditions of Spain,...