Bell’s ‘Octoberfest’ only available in kegs this year

Colin Joliat Staff Writer

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If you needed a reason to get out of the house this fall, now you have one. Bell’s Octoberfest won’t be available in 6-packs this year. You’ll have to hit the bars to get your fix.

Bells

Kegs are scheduled to start shipping this week (August 13).

The absence of bottles this year relates to two inflexible, yet very important factors – the fermentation process required to produce this lager style seasonal, but also the construction and transition into our new 200-barrel brewhouse in Comstock, Michigan.

Octoberfest spends a full six weeks maturing in our fermentation vessels compared to just a few weeks for many of our other brands.

This combined with a year-long construction process and a longer than anticipated transition into our new brewhouse, meant that we were unable to devote the necessary fermentation space required to meet the demand for this beer in both six-packs and on draft.

Kegs were chosen so that we could share as much of this beer with as many of our fans as possible.

We apologize and regret any inconvenience this decision may cause our fans.

Oh lagers, why do you take so long to ferment? This is one of my favorite fall beers, so it’s a shame I won’t be able to stock my fridge with it. The upside is that it gives me an extra excuse to visit great beer bars and seek out tap takeovers.

via Bells